A Guide to Soil Quality Monitoring for Long Term Ecosystem Sustainability on Northern Region National Forests

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• Research Publications
• Graduate Theses

[Last update: 08/14/2015]

REFERENCE DOCUMENTS 

Forest Soil-Disturbance Monitoring Protocol (FSDMP) Toolkit

• NEW - Forest Soil Disturbance Monitoring National Database Is Here!
  Database for all FSDMP Data - this link provides FAQs, instructions, and a quick start guide [link added 07/02/2015]
  Forest Soil Disturbance Monitoring Form [form updated July 2015]
• Forest Soil-Disturbance Monitoring Protocol Toolkit Brochure
  (PDF - 4.2 MB) [Document posted on 03/09/2010]
• Forest Soil Disturbance Monitoring Protocol, Volumes I and II
  by Deborah S. Page-Dumroese, Ann M. Abbott, and Thomas M. Rice, September 2009, GTR-WO-82
  • Forest Soil Disturbance Monitoring Protocol,
    Volume I: Rapid Assessment
    General Technical Report GTR-WO-82a
    (PDF - 211 KB)
  • Forest Soil Disturbance Monitoring Protocol,
    Volume II: Supplementary Methods, Statistics, and Data Collection
    General Technical Report GTR-WO-82b
    (PDF - 1.8 MB)
  • Forest Soil Disturbance Monitoring Protocol,
    SPANISH version
    (PDF - 13.57 MB) [Document posted on 03/04/2013]
• Soil-Disturbance Field Guide (Visual Field Guide) 0819 1815P. by Carolyn Napper, Deborah S. Page-Dumroese and Steve Howes. 2009. San Dimas, CA: U.S. Department of Agriculture, Forest Service, San Dimas Technology and Development Center. 112 p.
  [Link to document posted on 01/06/2010]
• Point Form for the Field Guide - 03/31/2010
  (Excel file - 35 KB) [Document posted on 03/09/2010; Last update 04/20/2010]
• FSDMP Training Materials
  by Ann M. Abbott, Deborah S. Page-Dumroese, Carolyn Napper and Janie Ybarra, May 2010
  • Part One: FSDMP Protocol Basics
    (multi-media presentation) [Posted on 05/20/2010]
  • Part Two: Gallatin NF Example
    (multi-media presentation) [Posted on 05/20/2010]
  • Part Three: How to Use the Soil-Disturbance Field Guide
    (multi-media presentation) [Posted on 05/20/2010]
• Scientific background for soil monitoring on National Forests and Rangelands: workshop proceedings. April 29–30, 2008; Denver, CO. Page-Dumroese, Deborah; Neary, Daniel; Trettin, Carl. Published in 2010. Proc. RMRS-P-59. Fort Collins, CO: U.S. Department of Agriculture, Forest Service, Rocky Mountain Research Station. 126 p.
  [Link posted on 07/13/2010]
• GTR-PNW-811 – Miller, Richard E., James D. McIver, Steven W. Howes and William B Gaeuman. Assessment of Soil Disturbance in Forests of the Interior Columbia River Basin: A Critique. (available at https://www.treesearch.fs.fed.us/pubs/35150). 2010.
  [Link to document added 07/30/2010]
• Reeves, Derrick, Deborah Page-Dumroese and Mark Coleman. “Detrimental Soil Disturbance Associated with Timber Harvest Systems on National Forests in the Northern Region.” (PDF file - 1.89 MB) RMRS-RP-89, June 2011.
  [document added 07/06/2011]
• Robinson, Scott B. “Assessing Visual Disturbance Conditions on the Custer National Forest.” (PDF file - 570 KB) Unpublished masters thesis, Michigan Technical University, 2011. (used the FSDMP to do retrospective monitoring)
  [document added 05/09/2011]

Other Reference Documents

• 2010 Soil Management Manual (part of FSM 2500 – Watershed and Air Management)
  [Document added to SoLo on 12/06/2010]
  • Chapter 2500 - Zero Code
  • FSH 2509.18 - Soil Management Handbook
  • Chapter 2550 - Soil Managment Manual

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FORMS 

National Forest Soil Disturbance Monitoring Forms

NOTE: You will need Adobe Acrobat Reader (free download) to view PDF files.

• SoLo Soil Disturbance Monitoring Form (SDM - blank form, ".xls") and associated "Read Me First" file (PDF)
  [Form most recently updated on 05/09/2013 - uploaded to this page on 05/28/2015]
• Forest Soil Disturbance Monitoring Form, SPANISH version (blank form, ".xls") (PDF)
  [Document added to this page on 03/04/2013]
• Abbreviated Soil Monitoring Form - This form is for 10 soil monitoring points. Can be used during a quick walk-through of the activity area.
  [Link posted on 04/01/2010]
• Paper Field Form and Sample Size Calculation Tables
  (Excel file) [Document posted on 03/09/2010; file fixed and uploaded on 04/20/2010]

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NATIONAL FOREST SYSTEM (NFS) DOCUMENTS 

Region 1 Forest Service Handbooks

• Clearwater NF Land System Inventory - 1983 (PDF - 21.4 MB)
• Lolo NF Land System Inventory - 1988 (PDF - 54.8 MB)
• MT631—Soil Survey of Helena National Forest Area, Montana (link to PDF).
  [link added 07/29/2011]
• Region One Soil Quality Monitoring Handbook (HTML)
• Soil Survey of Gallatin National Forest, Montana (PDF - 34.6 MB; maps not included). 1996. Authors: Carl E. Davis and Henry F. Shovic. USDA Forest Service and Natural Resources Conservation Service in cooperation with the Montana Agricultural Experiment Station.
• Soil Survey of Kootenai National Forest Area, Montana and Idaho (PDF - 12.8 MB; maps not included). 1995. Authors: Louis J. Kuennen and Marci L. Nielsen-Gerhardt. USDA Forest Service and Natural Resources Conservation Service in cooperation with the Montana Agricultural Experiment Station.

Administrative Studies and Reports

• Modoc NF Timber Stand Fertilization Analysis Inventory - 1985 (out of area) (PDF - 896 KB)
• Region 1 Soil Characterization Lab Data (sections for Beaverhead NF, Bitterroot NF, Clearwater NF, Custer NF, Deerlodge NF, Flathead NF, Gallatin NF, Kootenai NF and Nez Perce NF) - prepared by the University of Idaho College of Agriculture Department of Plant, Soil and Entomological Sciences for the USDA Forest Service; April 1981 (PDF - 19.3 MB)
• Region 1 Soil Compaction Study: Final Report to the United States Forest Service (applies to Bitterroot NF, Flathead NF and Kootenai NF) - prepared by Steve Cullen and Clint Montagne; January 1981 (PDF - 5.8 MB)
• Subsection Attributes - List showing physiography, geology and climate information (PDF - 236 KB)

Monitoring Reports

BEAVERHEAD-DEERLODGE NF - Soil Monitoring Data

• Ruby Allotment - 1987, 1990 (PDF - 244 KB)
• Warm Springs Exclosure - 1987 (PDF - 168 KB)
• Elkhorn Timber Sale - 1984 (PDF - 1.7 MB)
• Elkhorn Timber Sale - 1983 (PDF - 292 KB)
• Elkhorn Timber Sale - 1982 (PDF - 532 KB)

FLATHEAD NF - Soil Monitoring Data

• Soil Data: Collection includes data from the 1960s through the 1980s (PDF - 4.1 MB)

GALLATIN NF - Soil Monitoring Reports

• 1991 Soil Monitoring Program - Summary Report (PDF - 1.1 MB)
• 1990 Soil Monitoring Program - Summary Report (PDF - 432 KB)

HELENA NF - Soil Monitoring Data, Reports & Other Studies

• Clancy-Unionville Project Data Sheets - 2004 (PDF - 1 MB)
• Clancy-Unionville Pre-Soil Monitoring Report - 2003 (PDF - 436 KB)
• Clancy-Unionville Project Data Sheets - 2003 (PDF - 3.4 MB)
• Toston Maudlow Salvage Sale Unit Logs - 2002–2003 (PDF - 908 KB)
• Clancy-Unionville Project Data Sheets - 2002 (PDF - 2.9 MB)
• Regeneration Study - Soil Moisture and Temperature Implications, 1984–1986 (PDF - 206 KB)

IDAHO PANHANDLE NF - Soil Monitoring Reports

• Rone, Gina (IPNF Forest Soil Scientist). August 2011. Summary of Soil Monitoring on the IPNF 1980s to 2010 (PDF Document)
• 1997 Soil Monitoring Report (MS Word Document - 32 KB)
• 1998 Soil Monitoring Report (MS Word Document - 84 KB)
• 1999 Soil Monitoring Report (MS Word Document - 133 KB)
• 2000 Soil Monitoring Report (MS Word Document - 44 KB)
• 2001 Soil Monitoring Report (MS Word Document - 44 KB)
• 2002 Soil Monitoring Report (MS Word Document - 37 KB)
• 2003 Soil Monitoring Report (MS Word Document - 37 KB)
• 2004 Soil Monitoring Report (MS Word Document - 40 KB)

KOOTENAI NF - Soil Monitoring Data and Reports

• 1988-2003 Soil Monitoring Report - Summary (PDF - 404 KB)
• 1997 Soil Monitoring Report (HTML) OR 1997 Soil Monitoring Report (PDF - 376 KB)
• 2003 Soil Monitoring Data Sheets (PDF - 22.9 MB)
• 2002 Soil Monitoring Data Sheets (PDF - 3.2 MB)
• 2001 Soil Monitoring Data Sheets (PDF - 716 KB)
• 2000 Soil Monitoring Data Sheets (PDF - 512 KB)
• 1999 Soil Monitoring Data Sheets (PDF - 2.6 MB)
• 1998 Soil Monitoring Data Sheets (PDF - 2.3 MB)
• 1997 Soil Monitoring Data Sheets (PDF - 2.2 MB)
• 1996 Soil Monitoring Data Sheets (PDF - 2.4 MB)
• 1995 Soil Monitoring Data Sheets (PDF - 776 KB)
• 1994 Soil Monitoring Data Sheets (PDF - 240 KB)
• 1993 Soil Monitoring Data Sheets (PDF - 1.9 MB)
• 1992 Soil Monitoring Data Sheets (PDF - 3.1 MB)
• 1991 Soil Monitoring Data Sheets (PDF - 672 KB)
• 1990 Soil Monitoring Data Sheets (PDF - 428 KB)
• 1989 Soil Monitoring Data Sheets (PDF - 472 KB)
• 1988 Soil Monitoring Data Sheets (PDF - 368 KB)

LEWIS & CLARK NF - Soil Monitoring Data and Reports

• 2002 Soil Monitoring Report (PDF - 768 KB)
• 2002 Soil Monitoring Data Sheets (PDF - 2.6 MB)

LOLO NF - Soil Monitoring Data and Reports

• Post-Burn Summary - 2004 (PDF - 196 KB)
• Antique Salvage Timber C.E. - 2003 (PDF - 80 KB)
• Draft Soil and Water Report for Fishtrap EIS - 2002–2003 (PDF - 128 KB)
• Knox-Brooks Stewardship Project Designation by Prescription Inspection Form - Memo - 2002–2003 (PDF - 664 KB)
• Boyer Salvage Implementation Monitoring - Field Notes - 2002 (PDF - 12 KB)
• Landowner Fire, Unit 713 West (Becky McFarlan) - 2002 (PDF - 24 KB)
• Soil Transects, Superior Ranger District - 2002 (PDF - 272 KB)
• Post Burn Field Notes: Soils Recon - 2002 (PDF - 16 KB)
• Field Notes, Proposed Unit 211/227, 223 Soils - 2002 (PDF - 12 KB)
• Superior District, Alpine Fire - Soil Quality Evaluation Forms - 2001 (PDF - 184 KB)
• Item 4-3 on Soil Productivity - 2000-2001 (PDF - 40 KB)
• Landowner Fire Soil Surveys - 2001 (PDF - 148 KB)
• Flat Creek Fire Soils Survey - 2001 (PDF - 580 KB)
• Ninemile Soil Surveys - 2001 (PDF - 423 KB)
• Game Range Stewardship Project - Soil Quality and Productivity Monitoring - 2001 (PDF - 28 KB)
• Forest Plan Monitoring Report, Soil Productivity Item 4-3 - 1987-2001 (PDF - 1.4 MB)
• Mill-Key-Wey Soil Compaction Check - 2000 (PDF - 32 KB)
• Knox-Brooks Soil Quality Considerations - Memo - 2000 (PDF - 28 KB)
• Ninemile, Marion-Josephine Timber Sale - Soil Monitoring Data Sheets - 1986–2000 (PDF - 5.5 MB)
• Seeley Lake Fuels Hazard Reduction Project - Report - 1999 (PDF - 396 KB)
• Sloway Campground Facilities Improvements - Memo - 1998 (PDF - 84 KB)
• Archibald Timber Sale, Seeley Lake Ranger District - Memo - 1997 (PDF - 16 KB)
• South Fork - East Fork Lolo Range Allotment, Missoula Ranger District - Report and Data - 1994–1997 (PDF - 148 KB)
• Plains/T. Falls - Machine Site Preparation Inspection Report - 1995 (PDF - 296 KB)
• Soil Analysis Report (Chemical) for N 47 degrees 30.5', W 114 degrees 54.7' - 1994 (PDF - 132 KB)
• Savenac Nursery, Soil Nutrient Analysis - 1991 (PDF - 204 KB)
• Camas Report - Chemical Analysis - 1990 (PDF - 220 KB)
• Chemical Analysis of Lolo National Forest Soils - 1990 (PDF - 440 KB)
• Plains Seed Orchard Site - Memo - 1989 (PDF - 940 KB)
• Plains Ranger District - Soil Type Map - 1989 (PDF - 136 KB)
• Finley Flat Data Sheets - 1986 (PDF - 988 KB)
• Mullan Gulch Plantation: regeneration unit, Superior Ranger District - Report - 1984 (PDF - 252 KB)
• Chemical Analysis of Soil Samples Collected from Champion's Thompson River Haul Road - 1983 (PDF - 288 KB)
• Siegel Pass Regeneration Study Plan - DRAFT - 1983 (PDF - 392 KB)
• Northern Tier, Ninemile Study - 1979 (PDF - 172 KB)
• Plains Ranger District: Data from Upper Wallace Creek, Siegel Creek and others - Year? (PDF - 600 KB)
• Lolo NF Best Management Practices Effectiveness Report Link (PDF - 20 KB)
• St. Regis - Ninemile Survey - Year? (PDF - 60 KB)

NEZ PERCE NF - Soil Monitoring Reports

• Dead French Timber Sale - Soil Monitoring Reports - 1987, 1988 (PDF - 140 KB)
• Huckleberry Heaven - Soil Monitoring Reports - 199? (PDF - 108 KB)
• Monitoring of Recent Landslides - 1997 (PDF - 40 KB)
• Soil Monitoring Study: Mackay Day Timber Sale - 2003 (PDF - 452 KB)
• Soil, Water and Riparian Monitoring North Fork Face Timber Sale, Salmon River Ranger District - 1988 (PDF - 308 KB)
• NFS Report?Soil and Vegetation Response to Prescribed Burning for Winter Range Enhancement, Selway Ranger District (PDF - 112 KB)
• Region 6 Soil Monitoring Methodology, Mark Sommer/Nez Perce National Forest 8/16/91 (PDF - 88 KB)
• Slate Creek District Overview - 1987–2000 (PDF - 120 KB)

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RESEARCH PUBLICATIONS 

Symposium Proceedings/General Technical Reports (GTRs)

Washington Office

• WO-GTR-68 – Winthers, E.; Fallon, D.; Haglund, J.; DeMeo, T.; Nowacki, G.; Tart, D.; Ferwerda, M.; Robertson, G.; Gallegos, A.; Rorick, A.; Cleland, D. T.; Robbie, W. 2005. Terrestrial Ecological Unit Inventory technical guide: Landscape and Land Unit Scales. USDA Forest Service, Washington Office, Ecosystem Management Coordination Staff.
  [Document added to SoLo on 03/03/2009]

Intermountain Research Station (Later renamed Rocky Mountain Research Station)

• GTR-INT-326 – Page-Dumroese, D.; Harvey, A.; Jurgensen, M. A Guide to Soil Sampling and Analysis on the National Forests of the Inland Northwest United States (PDF - 6.92 MB). United States Department of Agriculture, Forest Service, Intermountain Research Station - General Technical Report, INT-GTR-326, October 1995.
• (Document in GTR-INT-280) – Geist, J. M., R. T. Meurisse, T. A. Max. 1991. Monitoring Forest Soil Properties to Maintain Productivity. (HTML) In:  Harvey, Alan E.; Neuenschwander, Leon F., compilers. Proceedings - management and productivity of western-montane forest soils; 1990 April 10–12; Boise, ID. Gen. Tech. Rep. INT-280. Ogden UT: U. S. Department of Agriculture, Forest Service, Intermountain Research Station. pp 90–94.

Rocky Mountain Research Station (Previously named Intermountain Research Station)

• (Document in RMRS-P-41) – Page-Dumroese, D.; Jurgensen, M.; Abbott, A.; Rice, T.; Tirocke, J.; Farley, S.; DeHart, S. Monitoring Changes in Soil Quality from Post-fire Logging in the Inland Northwest (PDF available at https://forest.moscowfsl.wsu.edu/smp/docs/dumroese/RMRS-P-41_605-614.pdf). In:  Andrews, Patricia L.; Butler, Bret W., comps. 2006. Fuels Management. How to Measure Success: Conference Proceedings. 28-30 March 2006; Portland, OR. Proceedings RMRS-P-41. Fort Collins, CO: U.S. Department of Agriculture, Forest Service, Rocky Mountain Research Station. pp 605–614.

Other Publications

• Arnold, Julie and Chelsea Wrenn. Assessment of Soil Disturbance Following Silvicultural Operations Using the Draft Visual Indicators Protocol: A Region 8 Trial on the Santee Experimental Forest. 2008. USDA Forest Service, Center for Forested Wetlands Research, Southern Research Station, Cordesville, SC (unpublished as of 01/06/2009).
  [link to document added 02/20/2009]
• Aust, W. Michael; James A. Burger; Emily A. Carter; David P. Preston and Steven C. Patterson. Visually determined soil disturbance classes used as indices of forest harvesting disturbance. 1998. South. J. Appl. For. 22(4): 245–250.
  [link to document added 02/13/2009]
• B. C. Ministry of Forests. Soil Conservation Surveys Guidebook, 2nd Edition. 2001. Province of British Columbia, Canada.
  [link to document added 02/13/2009]
• Breckenridge, R. P., W. G. Kepner, and D. A. Mouat. 1995. A Process for Selecting Indicators for Monitoring Conditions of Rangeland Health. (HTML) Environmental Monitoring and Assessment. 36: 45–60.
• Bulmer, Chuck; Shannon M. Berch; Mike Curran; Bill Chapman; Marty Kranabetter; Stephane Dub�; Graeme Hope; Paul Courtin and Richard Kabzems. Monitoring the effects of forest practices on soil productivity and hydrologic function. 2008. BC Journal of Ecosystems and Management 9(2):48–59.
  [link to document added 02/20/2009]
• Burger, James A. and Daniel L. Kelting. Using soil quality indicators to assess forest stand management. 1999. For. Ecol. Mgmt. 122: 155–166.
  [link to document added 02/13/2009]
• Canadian Forest Service and B.C. Ministry of Forests. Forest Soil Temperature Manual (FRDA report 130) (available at https://www.for.gov.bc.ca/hfd/pubs/Docs/Frr/Frr130.htm). 1990.
• Curran, Mike; Doug Maynard; Ron Heninger; Tom Terry; Steve Howes; Doug Stone; Tom Niemann and Richard E. Miller. Elements and rationale for a common approach to assess and report soil disturbance. 2007. For. Chron. 83(6): 1–15.
  [link to document added 02/13/2009]
• Curran, Michael P.; Richard E. Miller; Steven W. Howes; Douglas G. Maynard; Thomas A. Terry; Ronald L. Heniger; Thomas Niemann; Ken van Rees; Robert F. Powers and Stephen H. Schoenholtz. Progress towards more uniform assessment and reporting of soil disturbance for operations, research, and sustainability protocols. 2005. For. Ecol. Mgmt. 220: 17–30.
  [link to document added 02/13/2009]
• Ford, G. L.; C. L. Maynard; J. A. Nesser; D. Page-Dumroese. Landtype Associations of the Northern Region, A First Approximation (PDF - 2.6 MB). 1996. (This document was expanded in 1997 and functions as the Landtype Associations section of this SoLo web site.)
• Halvorson, Jonathan J., Jeffrey L. Smith, and R. I. Papendick. 1997. Issues of scale for evaluating soil quality. (HTML) Journal of Soil and Water Conservation, Jan.–Feb. 1997. pp 26-30.
• Herrick, J. E.; Whitford, W. G.; de Soyza, A. G.; Van Zee, J. W.; Havstad, K. M.; Seybold, C. A.; Walton, M. Field soil aggregate stability kit for soil quality and rangeland health evaluations. 2001. (published in CATENA 44: 27–35 by Elsevier; available for purchase at Science Direct)
• Howes, Steve; John Hazard, and J. Michael Geist. 1983. Guidelines for sampling some physical conditions of surface soils. (PDF - 3.2 MB) U.S. Forest Service publication R6-RWM-146-1983. Pacific Northwest Region. Portland, OR. July 1983. 34 pp.
• National Research Council – Board on Agriculture. Rangeland Health: New Methods to Classify, Inventory, and Monitor Rangelands. (https://books.nap.edu/books/0309048796/html/97.html#pagetop) Washington, DC: National Academy Press, 1994.
• Page-Dumroese, D. S., A. E. Harvey, M. F. Jurgensen and M. P. Amaranthus. Comparison methods for determining bulk densities of rocky forest soils. 1999. (abstract is available at Soil Science Society of America Journal)
• Rangeland Health Criteria Tables (PDF - 76 KB) - applies to eastern Montana forests that contain open rangeland
• Reeves, Derrick, Deborah Page-Dumroese and Mark Coleman. “Detrimental Soil Disturbance Associated with Timber Harvest Systems on National Forests in the Northern Region.” (PDF file - 1.89 MB) RMRS-RP-89, June 2011.
  [document added 07/06/2011]
• Robinson, Scott B. “Assessing Visual Disturbance Conditions on the Custer National Forest.” (PDF file - 570 KB) Unpublished masters thesis, Michigan Technical University, 2011. (used the FSDMP to do retrospective monitoring)
  [document added 05/09/2011]
• Wilson, S. D. and H. R. Kleb. 1996. The influence of prairie and forest vegetation on soil moisture and available nitrogen. The American Midland Naturalist. 136: 222–231.

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GRADUATE THESES 

• Reeves, Derrick B. “Soil Disturbance Monitoring of Timber Harvest Operations in the USDA Forest Service Northern Region.” (PDF file - 1.6 MB) Unpublished masters thesis, University of Idaho, 2011.
  [document added 05/23/2011]
• Robinson, Scott B. “Assessing Visual Disturbance Conditions on the Custer National Forest.” (PDF file - 570 KB) Unpublished masters thesis, Michigan Technical University, 2011. (used the FSDMP to do retrospective monitoring)
  [document added 05/09/2011]

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