ResilienceInterior Dept.’s National Seed Strategy to guide post-disaster rehabilitation, restoration

Published 17 August 2015

As part of what it describes as a comprehensive, science-based strategy to address the threat of wildfires that are damaging landscapes across the West, the Department of the Interior announced the release of a National Seed Strategy for rehabilitation and restoration to help foster resilient and healthy landscapes. The strategy is meant to guide ecological restoration across major landscapes, especially for those lands damaged by rangeland fires, invasive species, severe storms, and drought.

As part of what it describes as a comprehensive, science-based strategy to address the threat of wildfires that are damaging landscapes across the West, the Department of the Interior announced the release of a National Seed Strategy for rehabilitation and restoration to help foster resilient and healthy landscapes.

The strategy, developed in partnership with the Plant Conservation Alliance and the U.S. Department of Agriculture, is meant to guide ecological restoration across major landscapes, especially for those lands damaged by rangeland fires, invasive species, severe storms and drought. The Department of the Interior says that the strategy is in place to put emphasis on the importance of planting appropriate seeds to help grow plant life and pollinator habitat, which are critical natural defenses against climate change.

“Having the right seed in the right place at the right time makes a major difference in the health of our landscapes,” said U.S. Secretary of the Interior Sally Jewell. “This is a collaborative effort to ensure that we’re taking a landscape level approach to supporting lands that are more resilient to drought, intense fires and invasive species.”

In 2012, more than two million acres of sagebrush habitat burned in four western states. Now, worsening landscape scale disturbances, like wildfires and drought, have exacerbated land managers’ need for mechanisms that build a natural defense against a changing climate.

In the East, Hurricane Sandy caused widespread damage to native plant habitats that stabilize soils, filter water and absorb storm surges. A chronic shortage of native seed for restoration purposes left those landscapes vulnerable to hostile species and erosion, while undermining their ability to build up resilience, support wildlife and economic activity.

The National Seed Strategy outlines coordinated and focused research, as well as improvements in seed production and restoration technology to increase the availability of genetically appropriate, locally adapted seed. The research findings identified in the strategy will inform the development of new management tools to aid in restoration planning and implementation.

Deputy Director of the Bureau of Land Management (BLM) Steve Ellis announced the strategy at the BLM Boise Regional Seed Warehouse.

“Large, disturbed areas must be replanted quickly to avoid severe erosion or colonization by non-native invasive plants,” Ellis said. “In many cases, it has been difficult to obtain and deliver adequate quantities of the appropriate seed to meet a region’s particular need. This Strategy builds on the significant achievements we are making in landscape restoration, and calls for