CONTENTS

• Greetings from the Program Manager

  Since our last newsletter at the end of March, much has happened. Fieldwork is rolling along in ME, PA and OH. We had a Joint Band Meeting in April where a number of decisions were made. The FHM Management Team met and is working on reorganization now that it is no longer directly responsible for Phase 3. Our cooperators met in May and have formed the NE-FIA Regional Management Team. The national FIA Management Team met in June and made several key decisions affecting data access and information management, among other things.

  Personally, some colleagues from the US and I have met twice since March with counterparts in Mexico to assist them in the development of a national inventory system. It has given me a new appreciation for the excellent forest inventory and monitoring system we have here in the US. However, it is also clear that there is more to be done, especially in the development of methods to provide more localized data for land managers and other customers.

  I have also been appointed to an advisory board to oversee an effort to develop mobile computing hardware and software technologies. This is a joint effort involving Iowa State University and the University of California at Santa Barbara with support provided by the National Science Foundation and several federal agencies. The goals are to: 1) develop an integrated electronic data collection system which the field crew "wears", 2) allow multiple users to transmit information from one to another in the field without wires, 3) display map layers overlaid on aerial photos or satellite imagery and pin-point the current crew location on it, and 4) use wireless technology to upload and download data in the field. The investigators are one year into a three year $1.7 million project. I hope this will move us significantly forward in field data collection technologies.

  Chip Scott
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• NE-FIA Regional Management Team

  Last summer we met with our State cooperators in Portsmouth, NH. In our May 8-9 meeting in Matamoras, PA this group met and formed the NE-FIA Regional Management Team. The team is composed of FIA and FHM representative(s) from each of the 13 states, plus one representative from Region 9 of the National Forest System and one from NA State & Private Forestry (S&PF). Sloane Crawford-NY and Tom Hall-PA will continue as co-chairs. During the meeting, our FIA staff described current progress at both the regional and national levels (see group updates below). We discussed various ways in which we can work as partners. Although NE-FIA has greatly increased our analytical capacity, state and regional analyses would be greatly enhanced with state cooperation. NE-FIA described four efforts to make FIA data more available via the web. States are interested in risk mapping and forest type mapping. FIA data is a valuable source of information for those efforts. Finally, we developed a draft charter that is being circulated for review by those representatives who were unable to attend. It will be ratified at our next meeting in December.

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• Data Collection Group Update
  

  This is our first annual survey of Ohio, where we have three crews collecting data on a 7-year cycle. Maine is conducting all Phase 2 and Phase 3 work with their own crews on a 5-year cycle. NE-FIA has one crew there doing training and Quality Assurance/Quality Control work. We have 6 crews plus one QA/QC crew in Pennsylvania collecting data on a 5-year cycle (with support from the PA Bureau of Forestry). They are also supporting additional data collection on regeneration (see Pennsylvania Regeneration Study below). With our 8 crews in WV, we will complete our last periodic survey by the end of December. Contact Dave Alerich at dalerich@fs.fed.us or 610-975-4057 for more information or check our website for fieldwork status: www.fs.fed.us/ne/fia

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• Analysis Group Update

  • Periodic Inventories: The Analysis Section continues to work towards publishing resource analyses for all of the remaining states with periodic inventories: VT, NH, MA, CT, RI, NJ, DE, and MD in 2001, and WV in 2002. The two basic formats for publishing will be foldout brochures and color booklets. The brochures for VT and NH have been published. The booklet for VT is being finalized by the VT Dept. of Forests, Parks & Recreation. MA published a similar booklet recently, so an expanded brochure will be produced instead. In addition, we hope to produce a booklet for all of Southern New England. Contact Will McWilliams at wmcwilliams@fs.fed.us or 610-557-4050 for more information.

  • FHM Reporting: State-level summary reports covering previous years' measurements of FHM samples for each state in the northeast region have been sent to the editors for publication. A color booklet summarizing FHM findings for the region as a whole is in the review. Contact Chuck Barnett at cjbarnett@fs.fed.us or 610-557-4031 for more information.

  • Delaware River Basin Study: Fieldwork has begun again this summer in the Delaware River Basis cross-agency study. In addition to last year's effort to address a variety of ecosystem components in an integrated manner, a riparian monitoring system is being pilot tested. The team was also recently awarded $750,000 by NASA over three years. Specific objectives are to: (1) integrate estimates of forest biomass and net primary productivity from MODIS with statistical estimates from field monitoring, (2) characterize patterns of forest fragmentation and historical land use change and associated carbon losses from Landsat TM, (3) develop and apply consistent cover type classifications for MODIS, Landsat TM, and field sample plot networks, and (4) estimate a complete basin-wide carbon budget including carbon loss by water transport. For more information, contact Rich Birdsey, Global Change Program Manager, at rbirdsey@fs.fed.us or 610-557-4091.

  • Pennsylvania Regeneration Study: Past studies have suggested that advance regeneration is often lacking in stands across Pennsylvania and that oak regeneration is especially rare. With over half of the State's timberland in financially mature sawtimber stands, the regeneration issue has moved to the forefront of discussion about long-term resource sustainability. To better address the issue, the Bureau of Forestry is fully funding a study of regeneration quality and abundance on FIA sample plots beginning this year. During the leaf-on season, FIA will measure all established tree seedlings at least 2 inches tall by species, seedling source, and height class at each microplot. In addition, other understory vegetation is being measured at each subplot. Following the first five years of measurement, these samples will help gauge the regenerative capacity of the State's forestland. The results will also help NE-FIA evaluate the proposed national protocol for counting seedlings. Contact Will McWilliams at wmcwilliams@fs.fed.us or 610-557-4050 for more information.

  • Woodland Ownership Study: The questionnaire has been designed and through a couple of rounds of review. It will soon be sent to the Washington Office for approval. The survey will begin in January 2002. For more information about the Survey or to receive a draft questionnaire, contact the Survey coordinator Brett Butler (bbutler01@fs.fed.us, 610-326-7775), or check out the website: www.fs.fed.us/woodlandowners

  • Timber Products Output: We have recently signed an agreement with Bruce Hansen's Research Work Unit in Princeton, WV to handle all Timber Products Output surveys and reporting. The Unit has already been working with several states. Contact Bruce Hansen at bghansen@fs.fed.us or 610-557-4050 for more information.

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• Techniques Developments Group Update

  The Techniques Development section is evaluating procedures to make continuous maps from point-sample data. Continuous maps of volume could be useful as a layer in a geographic information system (GIS), as a map for assisting managers, and as a post stratifier of volume in statistical analysis of forest inventory data. This is a challenging problem because our plots are on average 3 km apart in a widely varying landscape. The map of cubic-foot volume for Connecticut is made using the mathematical procedure of neural networks. In addition to cubic-foot volume from the FIA ground plots, data from satellite imagery, an insolation index, and the x and y coordinates were used to develop the model. To date, neural networks have provided the most realistic model (the lowest root mean square error) and the highest overall accuracy of 48%. Contact Mike Hoppus at mhoppus@fs.fed.us or 610-557-4039 for more information.
  [view graphic of cubic-fool volume for Connecticut].

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• Information Management group update

  The following periodic surveys are published or are nearing completion:

  • The Forest Statistics for Delaware 1986 and 1999 (Published)
  • The Forest Statistics for Maryland 1986 and 1999 (In review)
  • The Forest Statistics for New Jersey 1987 and 1999 (In review)

  We have compiled the 2000 data for Maine and Pennsylvania and are working with these states on the tabulating the results. We are working with the Maine Forest Service on a joint publication of the first two years of data (40% of all plots). The 2000 data is the first year of annual data in Pennsylvania. Even though we do not intend to publish results based on 20% of all plots, we are working with the PA Bureau of Forestry to determine what results are reliable enough for release. At a minimum, we will post figures on the web and will add the data to the FIADB website-www.ncrs.fs.fed.us/4801/fiadb. Contact Tom Frieswyk at tfrieswyk@fs.fed.us or 610-557-4069 for more information.

  The Forest Inventory and Analysis Database (FIADB) replaces two FIA regional databases, one for the Eastern States (Eastwide database) and the other for the Western States (Westwide database). The new national plot design was the impetus for replacing these two databases. Legacy periodic inventory data from the Eastwide and Westwide databases has been converted and loaded into the FIADB. Future annual inventory data will also be loaded into the FIADB as they become available. To facilitate the use of the FIADB a new web application has been developed. The Forest Inventory Mapmaker, available at www.ncrs.fs.fed.us/4801/fiadb, allows the user to create: 1) tables of forest statistics, 2) shaded county or congressional district maps, and 3) files for downloading but without the location (latitude and longitude).

  The Forest Inventory Mapmaker program is a server-side web application, so the only software required to access this program is an Internet browser such as Microsoft Internet Explorer or Netscape. The Mapmaker can also be accessed through the FIA web site at fia.fs.fed.us in the 'Online Database' section. For questions about the tool, or feedback on this version, please contact Pat Miles (pmiles@fs.fed.us) at the North Central FIA unit, telephone (651) 649-5146. [from FIA News April 2, 2001]

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• Recent Changes

  We have added 3 QA/QC crews this year and 3 field crews in Ohio (one crew there serves both roles). We are interviewing candidates for a programmer position. We have recently appointed Katherine Johnson as our Phase 3 field coordinator. She was on our field staff in Pennsylvania, but has now moved to our headquarters in Newtown Square. She has an excellent background in botany - this will help as we move to full implementation of the Vegetation indicator next year.

  Although not strictly with FIA, the FIA Program Manager supervises the Northeastern Research Station biometrician. Dave Randall retired at the end of December. Sara Duke from Utah State University will begin July 30. She will move sometime in late September. She has an M.S. and PhD. in plant ecology and an M.S. in statistics.

  We will soon announce a research forester position to serve as NE-FIA's biometrician. Ideally, we are looking for someone with a Ph.D. in forest biometrics with interests in forest sampling, data analysis, modeling, and remote sensing. Let us know if you or someone else you know would be interested so that we can be sure he/she gets the announcement. For more information, contact Mike Hoppus at mhoppus@fs.fed.us or 610-557-403, or Chip Scott at ctscott@fs.fed.us or 610-557-4020. Note: only U.S. citizens can apply.

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• FHM Update

  With the addition of Ohio as an annual state, we have also added Phase 3 (FHM) plots there. Although the Division of Forestry had a number of FHM plots on their lands, this will be the first statewide effort to monitor forest health. Thus, all 13 states in the Northeastern Research Station now are in the FHM network.

  At the FHM Management Team meeting in May, a number of topics were discussed and decisions made. The Ozone indicator is moving off plot to its own grid. The grid has been intensified for areas of high ozone (much of the Northeast). The intensity has been reduced for areas of low ozone and for forest types that are not susceptible, such as pinyon-juniper types. The Mgt. Team agreed to assume responsibility for these plots since this work is no longer tied to the FIA Phase 3 network, however, the final plan needs to be negotiated with the FIA Mgt. Team.

  The Mgt. Team formed a committee to develop a reorganization proposal for the Team. This reflects the shift in scope now that FIA has taken on Phase 3. The committee has now completed its work - the decision will be made at a future meeting.

  Work on Urban Forest Health Monitoring is proceeding on three fronts. The methods for doing Phase 3 type plots in urban settings have been developed by Dave Nowak-NE and others. Due to the small area of this resource, the Urban FHM plots are using the 16 times more intensive Phase 2 locations in urban settings. A pilot test was to be conducted in Indiana this summer, but time ran out. Hopefully the test will be done next summer. Work is proceeding on the development of a street tree FHM methodology. Finally, a test of Urban FHM methods in a small area of interest with external funding is being tested in AL.

  The FHM web site has a new address: www.na.fs.fed.us/spfo/fhm.

  Most of the posters presented at the FHM National Conference in Las Vegas February 5-8, have been posted on the web and can be found at the following site:
  
  

  www.na.fs.fed.us/spfo/fhm/posters01/posters01.htm

  With the help of Kathy Anderson out of the USDA FS S&PF in St. Paul MN, the posters were converted to Adobe Acrobat format as best as possible and posted on the web. Some may be slow in downloading as they are very big, so please be patient. [from Manfred Mielke, S&PF]

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• FIA Update

  The FIA Management Team met in Puerto Rico in June. Because we were discussing a white paper on how to conduct surveys in HI and the tropical US territories, the International Institute of Tropical Forestry was our host. On our field trip to the Caribbean National Forest we were able to see the challenges of conducting forest surveys in the tropics. We discussed the proposed plan that called for conducting the surveys on a periodic rather than annual basis due to the small size and remoteness of most of the islands. Due to the small size and high biodiversity and high spatial diversity, they will be seeking funding to increase the plot density by a factor of three.

  The following items are from the national FIA News that is now available on the FIA website: fia.fs.fed.us/news.htm:

  • The Annual Business Report for the FIA Program, Fiscal Year 2000, is now available. The report addresses program expenditures, staffing, partner contributions, program accomplishments, and plans for the future. This is third annual business report for FIA, and the first to include business information reflecting the incorporation of the Forest Health Monitoring plots into the FIA program. Major accomplishments in FY 2000 included expansion of the annual FIA program into 7 new states, for a total of 42% of the country covered (up from 21% in 1999); a near doubling of contributions from program partners, from $4.6 million in 1999 to $7.4 million in 2000; and an increase in reports and publications produced, from 91 in 1999 to 123 in 2000. Hard copies of the report will be available on request from your regional or national FIA office, or you can download the report in electronic format from our Library. [Copies have been sent to each State Forester. Send requests for copies to Chip Scott at ctscott@fs.fed.us or 610-557-4020.

  • The FIA program, in cooperation with the Forest Service's Strategic Planning and Resource Assessment staff, has produced a 20-page brochure called U.S. Forest Facts and Historical Trends. This color brochure presents some highlights from the 2000 Resources Planning Act (RPA) assessment, currently in press. It breaks the US into North, South, and west regions and shows status and trend data for forest area, reserved forest, timberland, ownership, species composition, growth, harvest, and mortality, and timber products. Hard copies of the brochure are available from Brad Smith of the FIA program, or you can download the brochure in electronic format from our Library. A metric version of the brochure using metric units is in preparation and will be available soon.

  • National FIA Users Group Meeting will be held August 2-3, 2001 in Alexandria, Virginia. This is our annual meeting for FIA users at the national level. Check with your local FIA unit (Chip Scott) if you are interested in regional user groups. If you would like an invitation to the National User Group meeting, please contact Michael Goergen, SAF Director of Forest Policy, 301-897-8720 ext. 116, or goergenm@safnet.org.

  • The 3rd Annual FIA Science Symposium will be held in conjunction with the 2001 Midwest Forest Mensurationists' Annual Meeting, October 17-19, 2001, at the Grand Traverse Resort in Traverse City, Michigan. Interest is high as, to date there are over 30 presentations, 2 panels and several posters on the program. Information and hotel reservation forms are available from the Midwest Forest Mensurationists web site. If you have further questions, please feel free to contact John Moser. Meeting registration and program materials will be e-mailed at a later date.

  • The National FIA newsletter is now available on the FIA website: fia.fs.fed.us/news.htm.

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