Range health tool updated for Saskatchewan native grasslands
By Your Southwest Media Group
A Saskatchewan grassland conservation group has released an updated tool to help assess the health of native prairie rangelands.
The Saskatchewan Prairie Conservation Action Plan has unveiled the second edition of the Saskatchewan Rangeland Health Assessment for Native Grasslands, updating the original 2008 workbook.
The field workbook guides producers, land managers and rangeland specialists through a nine-question score sheet. It looks at five indicators of range health: plant community, invasive weeds, vegetation layers, soil and erosion, and plant litter.
The assessment provides a score out of 100, placing the rangeland in one of three categories: healthy, healthy with challenges, or needs improvement.
Officials say the results can help provide baseline data, track changes over time and validate current grazing or management practices.
The updated edition includes clearer links to Saskatchewan rangeland ecosystem reference plant communities, added assessment of woody species encroachment, evaluation of biocrust presence and updated guidance on non-native forage species and noxious weeds.
It also includes Saskatchewan-based research to help interpret whether plant litter is excessive or reduced.
“Rangeland ecosystems are dynamic, ever-changing landscapes, as are the people, plants and wildlife that rely on these habitats,” said Carolyn Gaudet, who managed Saskatchewan PCAP. “The focus of the working group responsible for the update was to ensure the assessment remained practical while rooted in science.”
The workbook is intended for ranchers, producers, federal and provincial rangeland specialists, environmental groups, Crown lease holders, community pastures and private agrologists.
The release coincides with the International Year of Rangelands and Pastoralists.