Crucial Habitat Assessment Tools
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Regional Viewer Application -- System Architecture Vision Wyoming Launches Wildlife, Natural Resources Mapping Tool as Part of Larger WGA Effort |
The Western Governors’ Wildlife Council is creating the Western Wildlife Crucial Habitat Assessment Tool (CHAT) for public release in 2013. The CHAT aims to bring greater certainty and predictability to planning efforts by establishing a common starting point for discussing the intersection of development and wildlife. In its simplest form, CHAT will be an easily accessible online system of maps displaying crucial wildlife habitat and corridors across the West.
Progress to Develop CHAT
In 2010, supported by a $3 million grant from the Department of Energy, Western state wildlife agencies launched regional pilot projects to test guidance outlined in the Wildlife Council’s White Paper. The year-long pilot projects significantly supported coordination across political jurisdictions including inventorying common data, improving data development and data management, and increasing data sharing – all with the aim of identifying crucial habitat and corridors in a compatible manner across the West.
Based on significant knowledge gains from the pilot projects, in August 2011 the Wildlife Council refined their vision and established clearer milestones with a focus of developing the West-wide CHAT. Efforts over the next two years will provide publicly-available, regionally-compatible crucial habitat and corridor information by 2013. All the while, WGWC will continue to support the development of state-specific CHATs in individual states, as desired.
Timeline
The WGWC is in the middle of its plan to implement the regional CHAT viewer.
Present – Fall 2012: States will complete development of Tier 1 data; apply crucial habitat definitions to data in a compatible manner; continue to build and improve upon individual state CHATs, as desired; and advise the WGWC on elements of a West-wide CHAT data viewer.
Fall 2012 – December 2013: Regional development and public display of crucial habitat and corridor information in a West-wide CHAT.
Working Groups
Within a collaborative group of CHAT leads for each state, five working groups have been formed to develop regional products and process that will support crucial habitat identification in all western states. This approach will best leverage existing resources and expertise in the states, and will support development of regionally-compatible products. The working groups will focus on completing Tier 1 datasets, and will explore processes for applying crucial habitat definitions and developing the CHAT GIS platform, as outlined in the Wildlife Council’s White Paper. Work group recommendations will be brought to CHAT leads in each of the Western states.
- Species and Habitats of Concern Work Group - Objective: Evaluate products and processes that may assist in determining crucial habitat for species and habitats of concern in the West. Regional datasets, as well as a process for states to select and/or incorporate additional fine filters, will be developed working with relevant non-state entities.
Contact This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. (WA) for more information.
- Unfragmented Lands Work Group - Objective: Evaluate products or processes that may assist in determining crucial habitat for remaining large, intact landscapes or natural and unfragmented habitats associated with connectivity areas. A coarse-filter data layer will be developed working with relevant non-state entities.
Contact This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. (WA) for more information.
- Terrestrial Game and Sportfish Work Group - Objective: Evaluate products and processes that may assist in determining crucial habitat for terrestrial game and sportfish in the West. Recommendations will be made to individual states for options to utilize existing range maps, as well as a process for filling key data gaps.
Contact This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. (UT) for more information.
- Crucial Habitat Roll-up Work Group - Objective: Prototype the application of the Wildlife Council’s crucial habitat definitions by individual states to promote consistency and expedite crucial habitat identification.
Contact This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. (AZ) for more information.
- Regional Viewer Work Group- Objective: Identify and present options to the Wildlife Council for CHAT regional viewer application development, including costs, timeline and long-term stewardship mechanisms.
Contact This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. (WY) for more information.
CHAT Workgroups Flowchart
CHATs in Individual States
Arizona, California, Montana and Washington have already developed state-specific information and data on priority species and habitat, and the first multi-state system is now available that covers the range of the lesser prairie chicken. Progress to develop regional information in 2012 is referenced above, and other states are preparing to launch individual systems within the year. A West-wide CHAT is slated for debut in 2013.
| State | Tool | Contact |
| Alaska | Fish Resource Monitor |
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, Alaska Department of Game and Fish |
| Arizona | HabiMap™ Arizona |
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, Arizona Game & Fish |
| California | Areas of Conservation Emphasis (ACE-II) |
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, California Fish and Game |
| Montana | Crucial Areas Assessment and Planning System (CAPS) |
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, Montana Fish, Wildlife and Parks |
| Washington | Priority Habitats and Species (PHS on the Web) |
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, Washington Department of Fish and Wildlife |
| Wyoming | The Wyoming Interagency Spatial Database & Online Management (WISDOM) System |
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| Southern Great Plans |
Southern Great Plains CHAT (for lesser prairie chicken across range in Colorado, Kansas, New Mexico, Oklahoma and Texas) | Contacts available on SGPCHAT website |
Banner photo of moose courtesy of the Utah Division of Wildlife Resources.