BURNS, Ore. — Non-native grasses in the Northern Great Basin of Eastern Oregon are invading the sagebrush steppe, destroying wildlife habitat, reducing grazing land and fueling wildfire.
An estimated 50% of the sagebrush ecosystem has disappeared, according to Dustin Johnson, Oregon State University Extension Service rangeland faculty and professor in the College of Agricultural Sciences. The battle is on to save the rest.
"Despite the fact that the interactive problems of invasive annual grasses and wildfire have degraded millions of acres, and are complex and difficult to solve, it is important to remember that much of our sagebrush rangelands are still in relatively good shape," Johnson said. "This gives me a lot of hope that the ecosystem can be saved, but the losses and impacts caused by wildfire and invasives are mounting."
Workshop sparks a special journal issue
As part of the effort to bring together agencies, organizations and ranchers to address invasive grasses, Johnson worked with High Desert Partnership and Oregon SageCon Partnership to produce the Invasive Annual Grass Workshop, a two-day virtual event in 2020 with 32 speakers, panelists and moderators.
The success of the workshop led to an opportunity for Johnson and Vanessa Schroeder, OSU Extension faculty research assistant, to work with Brenda Smith, executive director with High Desert Partnership, to guest edit a special peer-reviewed issue of the journal Rangelands. The three outlined the issue, coordinated 33 authors, reviewed articles and ensured cohesion in article placement. The articles were written by workshop speakers based on their presentations.
"The special issue is an urgent call to action among rangeland managers and practitioners, because the time is now for a coordinated, concerted effort to protect and grow these intact areas of rangeland," Johnson said. "Success requires persistence, partnerships and proactive management because these formidable problems are not going away anytime soon, do not respect property boundaries and are much more cost effective to address when prevented."
Creating a forum for rangeland stakeholders
A record 250 people from nine western states joined the 2020 invasive grass webinar to hear sessions on invasive plants such as:
- Cheatgrass
- Medusahead rye
- Ventenata
These species outpace native flora, creating conditions that benefit wildfire and damage grazing land. The event highlighted the complexity of dealing with invasive grasses and wildfire mitigation and emphasized strategies to address the issue.
The workshop created a forum for rangeland stakeholders who may not typically interact, said Schroeder, who works directly with ranchers. To maximize the opportunity to get people on the same page, Johnson and Schroeder intentionally paired diverse perspectives — private landowners, agency managers and nonprofit organizations.
As they chose speakers, Schroeder said the goal was to present a coordinated discussion of solutions for managing invasive annual grasses and the fuel beds that build up as they take over native habitat. These invaders infiltrate niches opened by disturbances such as wildfire and overgrazing and thrive on the resource-rich environment that follows. Once depleted, native bunchgrass cannot compete and invasive species dominate.
"It’s incredibly important for us to work together," Schroeder said. "The problem of invasive annual grasses and wildfire is untenable. We’re at a nexus. What we’ve been doing hasn’t been working. One entity can’t solve this problem. We need to be persistent to find a strategic approach. Now’s the time to tackle this issue. If we don’t, we’re going to lose our sagebrush steppe."
Learn more
To watch the workshop sessions or read presenter bios, visit the High Desert Partnership website.
Previously titled OSU Extension outreach results in special issue of Rangelands journal
