Rangeland health assessment: The key to understanding and assessing rangeland soil health in the Northern Great Plains

Abstract

As the science related to soil and rangeland health evolves, so do protocols and assessment methodologies. Rangeland health assessments consist of evaluating how well ecological processes, such as the water cycle, energy flow, and nutrient cycling, are functioning at a site. Maintained ecological functions provide support for specific plant and animal communities (Pellant et al. 2005) and ensure a flow of ecosystem services. The most commonly used protocol to assess US rangelands has become the Interpreting Indicators of Rangeland Health (IIRH) assessment (Pellant et al. 2005; Pyke et al. 2002). Rangeland health assessments use 17 indicators to rate 3 attributes of rangeland health that integrate soil and plant indicators together with other abiotic factors into one scientifically tested assessment tool. Attributes rated as part of rangeland health assessments are soil and site stability, hydrologic function, and biotic integrity (Pellant et al. 2005). Additionally, rangeland health protocols have been tested across a broad range of ecosystems and are already in use by thousands of individuals worldwide. Other common tools used to evaluate rangelands include similarity indices and trend studies, which can be used alone or in conjunction with the rangeland health assessment methodology.