Pacific Northwest United States Research Articles

Risk assessment for non‐crop hosts of pea enation mosaic virus and the aphid vector Acyrthosiphon pisum

Abstract Viral insect‐borne plant pathogens have devastating impacts in agroecosystems. Vector‐borne pathogens are often transmitted by generalist insects that move between non‐crop and crop hosts. Insect vectors can have wide diet breadths, but it is often unknown which hosts serve as pathogen reservoirs and which non‐crop host harbours the highest density of vectors. In the Pacific Northwest USA, the pea aphid (Acyrthosiphon pisum) is a key virus vector in pulse crops. Despite pea aphid having a large number of potential non‐crop plant hosts occuring in the region, no reservoir has yet been identified for the economically‐costly pathogen Pea Enation Mosaic Virus (PEMV). We addressed these issues by linking field surveys of an aphid vector and plant virus with statistical models to develop risk assessments for common non‐crop legumes; in 2018, we completed a 65‐site survey where aphids were surveyed in weedy legumes within and outside dry pea fields. We quantified the abundance of pea aphids on 17 hosts, and plant tissue was tested for PEMV. Relatively high densities of A. pisum were found in habitats dominated by hairy vetch (Vicia villosa), which was the only legume other than cultivated dry pea where PEMV was detected. Our results indicate that V. villosa is a key alternative host for PEMV, and that pest management practices in this region should consider the distribution and abundance of this weedy host in viral disease mitigation efforts for pulses.

An Antiracism Community-Based Participatory Research With Organizations Serving Immigrant and Marginalized Communities, Including Asian Americans and Native Hawaiians/Pacific Islanders in the United States Pacific Northwest: Qualitative Description Study With Key Informants.

Asian American (AA) community leaders, Native Hawaiian/Pacific Islander (NH/PI) community leaders, and allies in the United States Pacific Northwest expressed concern that there are families and children from AA communities and NH/PI communities who experience and witness acts of xenophobia and racism. This can cause racial trauma. The long-time practice of aggregating AA and NH/PI data contributes to erasure and makes it challenging to advance health equity, such as allocating resources. According to AAPI Data's long-awaited report in June 2022, there are over 24 million AAs and 1.6 million NHs/PIs in the United States, growing by 40% and 30%, respectively, between 2010 and 2020. Philanthropic investments have not kept up with this substantive increase. The National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine emphasized the need for effective partnerships to advance the health and well-being of individuals and communities in antiracism and system-level research. The aim of this community-based participatory research qualitative description study was to identify perceptions and experiences regarding racial discrimination, race-based stress, and racial trauma; intergenerational healing and resiliency; and sharing the body with science from key informants of an academic and community partnership to inform antiracism coalition work. This partnership includes academic researchers and community leaders from community-based organizations and a health care organization serving immigrant and marginalized communities, including AAs and NHs/PIs in the United States Pacific Northwest. In total, 10 key informants joined 1 of 2 participatory group discussions via videoconference for 2 hours in 2022. We used a semistructured and open-ended group interview guide. A qualitative participatory group-level assessment was conducted with the key informants and transcribed. Interpretations and meanings of the main points and the main themes were reflected upon, clarified, and verified with the key informants in real time. The field note-based data transcripts were manually coded using conventional content analysis. Reflexivity was used. There were 6 main themes: prejudice plus power in racism definition and working in solidarity to counter lateral oppression/false sense of security, microaggression as multilayers, "not assimilationist by nature" and responding differently to white superiority, intergenerational- and identity-related trauma, what is healing among People of Color and through a lens of resiliency and intergenerational connection and knowledge, and mistrust and fear in the research and health care systems surrounding intentions of the body. The themes highlight the importance of internal and intergenerational healing from racial trauma and the need for solidarity among communities of color to combat white supremacy and colonization. This work was foundational in an ongoing effort to dismantle racism and uplift the community voice through a cross-sector academic and community partnership to inform antiracism coalition work.

Canola rotation effects on soil water and subsequent wheat in the Pacific Northwest USA

AbstractFarmers in Mediterranean climate regions are increasingly growing canola (Brassica napus L.) in wheat (Triticum aestivum L.)‐based systems to break soil‐borne pathogen disease cycles, control weeds, and enhance crop marketing opportunities. A 6‐year rainfed cropping systems experiment was conducted near Ritzville, Washington USA from 2015 to 2021. The objective was to compare performance of winter and spring canola, winter triticale (× Triticosecale Wittmack) (WT), and winter wheat (WW) and measure their effects on soil water dynamics and subsequent performance of spring wheat (SW). Overwinter soil water gain in canola stubble was significantly reduced compared to water gain in WT and WW stubble. The more winter precipitation, the greater the differences in soil water among treatments in early spring. There was a trend in all years for diminished overwinter soil water gain in canola stubble. Averaged over years, grain yield of SW was 1940, 2340, and 2210 kg/ha grown on canola, WT, and WW stubble, respectively (p = 0.045). Coefficients of determination from regression analysis conducted each year showed a high correlation between water content in the 180 cm profile in early spring and SW grain yield, except in one year of extreme drought. This paper provides a first report in a Mediterranean climate region of decline in wheat grain yield after canola versus after a cereal crops, primarily due to reduced overwinter soil water storage.

Teach-Back Method in Presenting Health Promotion Topics Program: Nursing Collaboration with the Micronesian Islander Community Organization and Micronesian Islander Parent Leaders

Background A Micronesian Islander-based nonprofit community organization and academic nursing partnership in the United States Pacific Northwest identified the need to use the Teach-Back method with the Micronesian Islander Parent Leaders (MIPLs) to address prevention of non-communicable diseases for health promotion outreach. MIPLs are well-respected community leaders and elders from diverse Island communities. The Teach-Back method verifies a person’s understanding of the health messages, reteaching or modifying messages if knowledge is not met, and is a strategy for health literacy. A health message communicator or presenter uses caring, plain, and respectful language and asks participants to repeat the health messages that they receive in their own words. The RE-AIM framework guided this community participatory scholarly project. The community participatory scholarly project aimed to implement and evaluate the Teach-Back method in presenting health promotion topics with MIPLs as a program. Project questions were: 1) How effective is the Teach-Back method in presenting health promotion topics as a program using a distance learning format? and 2) Is the Teach-Back method as a program acceptable for communicating health messages for MIPLs? Approach The project was implemented in 4 virtual sessions using the Teach-Back method in presenting health promotion topics. We used the Teach-Back Confidence and Commitment Scale, distance learning and open-ended items, and field notes and observations journal for evaluation. Participants used the Teach-Back Observation Tool to practice observing the presenter leveraging essential elements of the Teach-Back method. Findings MIPLs reported increased adoption and acceptance of the Teach-Back method to communicate health messages to their community and family members. Conclusion Health promotion topics identified by the group were presented using caring, respectful, plain language, and in a non-threatening manner as a vehicle to illustrate and evaluate using the established Teach-Back method tools

Managing Arbuscular Mycorrhizal Fungi in Arid Columbia Basin Vineyards of the Pacific Northwest United States

<h3>Abstract</h3> <h3>Background and goals</h3> Arbuscular mycorrhizal fungi (AMF) are root symbionts that help grapevines acquire nutrients from soil. Growers in many regions, including the Columbia River basin of Oregon and Washington, lack information needed to best manage AMF. Such lacking information includes understanding whether natural AMF populations are sufficient to ensure healthy colonization in new plantings, and what factors influence AMF in established plantings. <h3>Methods and key findings</h3> AMF colonization of grapevine fine roots was determined in 32 commercial vineyards and in a vineyard that was heavily infested by the northern root-knot nematode (NRKN, <i>Meloidogyne hapla</i>). Root colonization by AMF was as extensive in young vines (one- to two-years-old) as in older vines (&gt;15-years-old) examined in the survey, and was high throughout the season in the single vineyard trial. AMF colonization was greater overall in red wine grape cultivars than in white wine grape cultivars. AMF colonization correlated negatively with soil nitrate and leaf nitrogen (N) concentrations across vineyards, while arbuscules in roots correlated negatively with NRKN populations in soil. Both AMF and arbuscules in roots correlated negatively with NRKN populations per unit of fine root length at the beginning and end of the growing season in the heavily infested vineyard. <h3>Conclusions and significance</h3> Results suggest that AMF populations in soils of the Columbia River basin are ample to ensure high levels of grapevine root colonization, so inoculation is likely not needed when planting or replanting vineyards in the region. AMF colonization was reduced by high N and high populations of NRKN in soil.

Anthropogenic Contributions to the 2021 Pacific Northwest Heatwave

AbstractDaily maximum temperatures during the 2021 heatwave in the Pacific Northwest United States and Canada shattered century old records. Multiple causal factors, including anthropogenic climate change, contributed to these high temperatures, challenging traditional methods of attributing human influence. We demonstrate that the observed 2021 daily maximum temperatures are far above the bounds of Generalized Extreme Value distributions fitted from historical data. Hence, confidence in Granger causal inference statements about the human influence on this heatwave is low. Alternatively, we present a more conditional hindcast attribution study using two regional models. We performed ensembles of simulations of the heatwave to investigate how the event would have changed if it had occurred without anthropogenic climate change and with future warming. We found that global warming caused a ∼0.8°C–1°C increase in heatwave temperatures. Future warming would lead to a ∼5°C increase in heatwave temperature by the end of the 21st century.

Pandemic Spiritual Leadership: A Trans-national Study of Innovation and Spiritual Practices.

The COVID-19 pandemic introduced disruption that crossed sectors, borders, and disciplinary boundaries. Among faith communities and religious leaders, numerous commentators have observed technological innovations in response to physical gathering disruptions. We outline a form of pandemic spiritual leadership that supports faith communities beyond digital innovation by combining original empirical research and a novel conceptual framework. Our project examined innovation through a comparative study of how faith leaders adapt religious practices during a time of disruption. While existing research on congregational responses to COVID-19 has documented sustained technological innovation, our research argues that technological innovation is only one feature of a broader catalog of innovative practices. To generate a trans-national sample, we used purposive sampling in two distinct locations, Pacific Northwest United States and Aotearoa New Zealand. Although separated by culture and geography, a purposeful sample across these two contexts illustrated how spiritual leaders in post-Christian contexts similarly responded to the pandemic crisis. The research involved semi-structured interviewing of nineteen faith leaders from seventeen communities we observed undertaking creative adaption. A trans-national selection deepened understandings of the dynamism of the unfolding pandemic and how limits, experienced differently in diverse contexts, can be generative. Our study identified six organizing practices: blessing, walking, slowing, place-making, connecting, and localizing care. We demonstrate how the presence of God is cultivated amid local letterboxes and neighborhood crossroads and argue for an intensification of the local as markers of pandemic spiritual leadership. These interrelated spiritual practices express features of Michel de Certeau's "pedestrian utterings," Joseph Schumpeter's "creative recombination" and Pierre Bourdieu's social theory. Working with Certeau, we describe pedestrian utterings as historic church practices reframed as everyday local practices. Working with Schumpeter, we describe how the six practices and the language of innovation used by participants express creative recombinations. Working with Bourdieu, we consider how disruption realigns social fields, including between individuals, congregations, and broader communities. Finally, amid social distancing, congregations proved to be an anchor in resourcing this pandemic spiritual leadership. These four theoretical foci and six localizing practices provide a conceptual framework for future research into spiritual practices and religious leadership in the wake of a crisis. Confinements in space and movement can be generative of spiritual practice. For religious leaders and organizations, the research informs the cultivation of concrete practices that can encourage communities of care as part of crisis preparation. For scholars and religious practitioners alike, while pandemics enforce social separation, pandemic spiritual leadership combines attention to the local and the particular, as new forms of in-place practice emerge to sustain faith communities.

Barley grain protein is influenced by genotype, environment, and nitrogen management and is the major driver of malting quality

AbstractMalted barley (Hordeum vulgare) is a crucial component of beer, and it has been established that barley genotype has an effect on malting quality and beer flavor. This study extends this exploration by evaluating the effects of genotype, environment, and management on malting quality. Five fall‐planted malting barley lines were grown in three locations, each representing a distinct growing environment in the Pacific Northwest (United States), and under nitrogen (N) treatments: control (N1) and N application at heading in addition to the control (N2). Genotype × location interactions were observed for all agronomic (yield, test weight) and grain quality metrics (grain protein, plumpness), and N treatment × genotype interactions were observed for grain protein and plumpness. Overall, N2 increased grain protein, without exceeding specifications, by almost 1% point. Based on random forest analysis, the major driver of all‐malt index score was grain protein, followed by peak gelatinization temperature, germination energy, and water sensitivity. Still, over 70% of variation in all‐malt index score was unexplained, which is likely due to genotype and location differences, as indicated by principal component analysis. This research confirms the agronomic potential of fall‐planted malting barley in the Pacific Northwest and, although micromalted samples did not meet industry specifications, trends were identified that indicate the potential for these varieties at these locations. This research also demonstrates the potential of N management to fine‐tune malting quality through grain protein, and that malting quality is influenced by genotype and environment, though many of the specific drivers remain unknown.

Exploring Perinatal Nursing Care for Opioid Use Disorder: Knowledge, Stigma, and Compassion.

The opioid epidemic has greatly increased the number of pregnant women with opioid use and newborns exposed to opioids in utero. Mothers with opioid use disorder can face stigma by nurses in perinatal care settings, contributing to negative care experiences. A survey was distributed to nurses caring for mothers and newborns exposed to opioids in a large urban hospital in the Pacific Northwest United States (n = 89) from March to July 2019. Survey measures included participant characteristics, attitude toward substance use in pregnancy and postpartum (stigma, compassion satisfaction, comfort, and knowledge), and open-ended questions. Relationships among variables and questionnaire items were examined using Pearson's correlations, 2-sample t tests, and simultaneous multiple linear regression. Qualitative description was used to analyze open-ended questions. Nurses' stigma was negatively correlated with compassion satisfaction (r = -0.63), feeling knowledgeable (r = -0.36), and comfortable in providing care to this population (r = -0.44). Nurses identified defensiveness, lack of trust, and inadequate social support as key challenges in this patient population. Nurses suggested more support for mothers and nurses, increased nursing education, and clinical guidelines to improve clinical practice and foster therapeutic relationships. Findings highlight potential strategies to improve nursing care for chemically dependent mothers and their infants. These strategies may offer practical approaches to reduce stigma, develop therapeutic relationships, and improve patient outcomes.

Accounting for snowpack and time-varying lags in statistical models of stream temperature

Water temperature plays a primary role in driving ecological processes in streams due to its direct impact on biogeochemical cycles and the physiological processes of stream fauna, such as growth, development, and the timing of life history events. Streams influenced by snowpack melt are generally cooler in the summer and demonstrate less sensitivity to climate variability in what is commonly referred to as “climate buffering”. Despite the substantial influence of snowpack on stream temperature and expected changes in snowpack accumulation and melt timing with climate change, methods for representing snowpack in statistical models for stream temperature have not been well explored. In this investigation, we quantified the extent of stream temperature buffering in free-flowing streams across a geographically diverse region in the Pacific Northwest USA. We demonstrated that statistical models of daily mean stream temperature can be improved by explicitly accounting for temporal variability in a small number of climate covariates believed to be mechanistically related to stream temperature. Our novel statistical approach included as predictors combinations and interactions between the following variables: (1) air temperature, (2) lagged air temperature (where the lag duration varied according to its relationship with flow on a given day at that site), (3) flow, (4) snowpack in the upstream catchment, and (5) day of year. We found that sites with substantial snow influence were associated with increased air temperature buffering during the warm season and longer air temperature lags (>30 days during spring high flows and ∼ 10 days during late summer low flows) compared to sites where precipitation predominantly fell as rain (<6 days year-round). By accounting for snowpack and temporal variation in lagged heat transfer processes, our models were able to accurately predict seasonal patterns and interannual variability in stream temperature in validation data from years not used in model fits using publicly available data sources (average RMPSE ∼ 0.80).

Using long-term citizen science data to distinguish zones of debris accumulation.

Studies show that a driver of coastal debris is the rate between debris deposition and resuspension; however, the influence of beach zone topography on the distribution of debris remains poorly understood. Using five years of marine debris data collected by the COASST citizen science program, we explored the spatiotemporal trends in debris abundance within two regions of the United States Pacific Northwest and investigated whether higher debris loads are associated with beach zones that have a higher propensity to trap debris. We found that beaches with larger wood zones had higher debris loads, adding to the growing evidence that backshore areas of beaches act as sinks for debris. Higher debris loads were also associated with beaches that had larger wrack zones suggesting that onshore transport from the marine reservoir is a dominant source of debris. This study provides a long-term baseline of marine debris which managers could use to inform source reduction interventions.

Linkage QTL Mapping and Genome-Wide Association Study on Resistance in Chickpea to Pythium ultimum.

The soilborne oomycete plant pathogen Pythium ultimum causes seed rot and pre-emergence damping-off of chickpea (Cicer arietinum L.). The pathogen has been controlled for several decades using the fungicide metalaxyl as seed treatment but has re-emerged as a severe problem with the detection of metalaxyl-resistant isolates of the pathogen from infested fields in the United States Pacific Northwest. The objective of this study was to identify genetic markers and candidate genes associated with resistance to P. ultimum in an interspecific recombinant inbred line population (CRIL-7) derived from a cross between C. reticulatum (PI 599072) x C. arietinum (FLIP 84-92C) and conduct genome-wide association studies (GWAS) for disease resistance using a chickpea diversity panel consisting of 184 accessions. CRIL-7 was examined using 1029 SNP markers spanning eight linkage groups. A major QTL, “qpsd4-1,” was detected on LG 4 that explained 41.8% of phenotypic variance, and a minor QTL, “qpsd8-1,” was detected on LG8 that explained 4.5% of phenotypic variance. Seven candidate genes were also detected using composite interval mapping including several genes previously associated with disease resistance in other crop species. A total of 302,902 single nucleotide polymorphic (SNP) markers were used to determine population structure and kinship of the diversity panel. Marker–trait associations were established by employing different combinations of principal components (PC) and kinships (K) in the FarmCPU model. Genome-wide association studies detected 11 significant SNPs and seven candidate genes associated with disease resistance. SNP Ca4_1765418, detected by GWAS on chromosome 4, was located within QTL qpsd4-1 that was revealed in the interspecific CRIL-7 population. The present study provides tools to enable MAS for resistance to P. ultimum and identified genomic domains and candidate genes involved in the resistance of chickpea to soilborne diseases.

Phylogenetics and evolution of wheat streak mosaic virus: Its global origin and the source of the Australian epidemic

AbstractWheat streak mosaic tritimovirus (WSMV) seriously damages wheat worldwide. We report analyses of new complete ORF (CO) sequences from seven Australian isolates with 56 COs and 128 coat protein (CP) genes sequenced previously. Eleven CO and three CP sequences were recombinants so were removed from our analyses. Patristic distances of maximum‐likelihood phylogenies of nonrecombinant (n‐rec) CO sequences and their CP sequences were closely correlated (R = 0.994, p ≤ 0.00001). The phylogeny of all 188 n‐rec CP genes had four well‐supported phylogroups (I–IV): phylogroup I (one Mexican sequence), phylogroup II (six Iranian sequences), phylogroup III (48 sequences) and phylogroup IV (133 sequences), each with basal Iranian sequences and either mostly European (phylogroup III) or mostly American (phylogroup IV) terminal sequences. Australian and South American sequences formed a phylogroup IV subcluster within a Pacific Northwest USA cluster. Unlike the Iranian, South American and European populations, the North American and Australian populations demonstrated recent population imbalance. Sample collection dates of 40 CO sequences are known, allowing WSMV phylogeny dating by RTDT methodology. The most recent WSMV ancestor was dated at 1456 CE, and the Australian cluster at 1998.7 CE, only 2–3 years before WSMV was first reported. Tritimoviruses originated in central Eurasia, WSMV first entering wheat in its Middle East domestication centre and one basal lineage being taken to Mexico after the Spanish conquest, whereas the other most basal lineage spread throughout Iran, before spreading to other world regions. Probable future spread to other world regions of additional WSMV phylogroups, and of interphylogroup recombinants, constitutes a biosecurity concern.

Diagnostic Framework for Evaluating How Parametric Uncertainty Influences Agro‐Hydrologic Model Projections of Crop Yields Under Climate Change

AbstractDespite the prevalence of climate change assessments of crop yields, there are significant limits to our understanding of how parametric uncertainty in the underlying agro‐hydrologic models as well as the stationarity assumptions tacit to their commonly employed calibration procedures are influencing projections. This study addresses this knowledge gap by clarifying how parametric uncertainty in agro‐hydrologic models influences yield projections under changing future climate. We focus on rain‐fed winter wheat systems in the drylands of United States Pacific Northwest. We use a tightly coupled agro‐hydrologic model, VIC‐CropSyst, as a representative of this class of models. Our contributed diagnostic global sensitivity analysis framework identifies differences in how influential factors (e.g., temperature during early growth stages or the growing degree‐day required to reach peak leaf area index) vary across zones during historical and future periods. Our results show that the dominant parametric controls for yield projection and their sensitivities change subject to agro‐climatic zones and differences in the specific temperature‐precipitation trends in future climate scenarios. Our results also indicate that the stationarity assumptions tacit to using historical observations to calibrate agro‐hydrologic model parameters and their subsequent use in future yield projections may introduce significant bias. Employing the stationarity assumption in future projections problematically ignores how shifts in climate influence the relative dominance of underlying agro‐hydrologic processes in the model. This study's contributed diagnostic exploratory modeling framework has promise for advancing our understanding of how calibration, parametric uncertainties, and climate induced changes in the dominance of model biophysical processes shape crop yield projections.

Interactions Between Fire Refugia and Climate-Environment Conditions Determine Mesic Subalpine Forest Recovery After Large and Severe Wildfires

Infrequent stand-replacing wildfires are characteristic of mesic and/or cool conifer forests in western North America, where forest recovery within high-severity burn patch interiors can be slow, yet successful over long temporal periods (decades to centuries). Increasing fire frequency and high-severity burn patch size, under a warming climate, however, may challenge post-fire forest recovery, promoting landscape-level shifts in forest structure, composition, and distribution of non-forest patches. Crucial to a delay and/or impediment to this shift, fire refugia (i.e., remnant seed sources) may determine forest recovery trajectories and potential forest state-transitions. To examine how fire refugia attributes (i.e. extent, composition, and structure) interact with local climate and environmental conditions to determine post-fire forest recovery responses, we developed fine-grain maps of fire refugia via remote sensing and conducted field-based assessment of post-fire conifer tree establishment largely originating (i.e., dispersed) from fire refugium in the Central Cascade Range of the Pacific Northwest United States. We found that limitations on seed availability, represented by the distance2-weighted density (D2WD) of fine-grain refugia extent, largely explained post-fire tree establishment responses within our relatively mesic and cool subalpine study sites. Interactions between seed availability, climate, and environmental conditions indicated that the structural attributes of refugia (e.g., tree height) and site abiotic/biotic environmental controls (e.g., climate water deficit, canopy cover, and coarse woody debris cover) interplayed to constrain or enhance species-specific tree establishment responses. Importantly, these interactions illustrate that when seed availability is critically low for a given area, climate-environment conditions may strongly determine whether forests recover following fire(s). Toward modelling and predicting tree establishment responses and potential forest state-transitions after large stand-replacing fires(s), our study demonstrates the importance of accurately quantifying seed availability via the fine-grain extent, configuration, and attributes of remnant seed source legacies.

Lifecycle Assessment and Techno-Economic Analysis of Biochar Pellet Production from Forest Residues and Field Application

Biochar produced from low-value forest biomass can provide substantial benefits to ecosystems and mitigate climate change-induced risks such as forest fires. Forest residues from restoration activities and timber harvest and biochar itself are bulky and thus incur high logistic costs, so are considered major bottlenecks for the commercialization of the biochar industry. The objectives of this study were to assess the environmental footprints and techno-economic feasibility of converting forest residues in Pacific Northwest United States into biochar pellets using portable systems followed by delivery of the final product to end-users for land application (dispersion). Two portable systems (Biochar Solutions Incorporated (BSI) and Air Curtain Burner (ACB)) were considered for biochar production. A cradle-to-grave lifecycle assessment (LCA) and a discounted cash flow analysis method were used to quantify the environmental impacts and minimum selling price (MSP) of biochar. The global warming (GW) impact of biochar production through BSI and ACB was estimated to be 306–444, and 750–1016 kgCO₂eq/tonne biochar applied to the field, respectively. The MSP of biochar produced through BSI and ACB was 1674–1909 and 528–1051 USD/tonne biochar applied to the field, respectively. Pelletizing of biochar reduced GW impacts during outbound logistics (~8–20%) but increased emissions during pelletizing (~1–9%). Results show the BSI system was a more viable option in terms of GW impact, whereas the ACB system can produce biochar with lower MSP. The results of the study conclude that the production of biochar pellets through the two portable systems and applied to fields can be both an environmentally beneficial and economically viable option.

Influence of sustainability programs on fungicide stewardship practices in Pacific Northwest United States vineyards

Influence of sustainability programs on fungicide stewardship practices in Pacific Northwest United States vineyards

Socioeconomic Trajectories of 10 Rural Federal Forest-Based Communities in the American Pacific Northwest

Since the 1980s, many rural forest-based communities in the United States Pacific Northwest have experienced negative shifts in their socioeconomic well-being. Following a preceding assessment conducted in the early 2000s, we analyzed the socioeconomic status and local perspectives of change in 10 rural federal forest-based communities after 25 years of ecosystem management under the Northwest Forest Plan. We used a community classification approach to understand the variability in socioeconomic trajectories and illustrate how trajectories shape the different ways that communities define themselves as forest-based. The classification groups communities according to distinct trends in the shifting relationships between forests, community identity, and socioeconomic characteristics. We found that community well-being did not improve with trajectories retaining significant timber-based production. We discuss our results within the context of previous findings and suggest some hypotheses for deepening understanding of the relationships between the developmental pathways of rural forest-based communities and federal forest management.

Mass transport deposits in reflection seismic data offshore Oregon, USA

AbstractSubmarine landslides associated with the Cascadia subduction zone offshore of the Pacific northwest United States and Canada represent significant natural geohazards. Mapping past submarine landslide deposits is critical for understanding present and future slope failure and tsunami hazard potential. We focus on the portion of Cascadia offshore Oregon to map the occurrences of submarine landslide deposits (mass transport deposits [MTDs]) in the subsurface using recent high‐resolution reflection seismic data. We identified 133 MTDs and categorized them based on their present morphology inferred from their acoustic characteristics as disintegrative or blocky. Interestingly, nearly 76% of the MTDs are located in the northern Oregon margin and many of these are non‐cohesive disintegrative deposits. MTDs are less common in the southern Oregon margin, however, they were also much larger and more cohesive than those found in the north. The differences are not likely to be related to differences in earthquake intensity but rather sedimentation rates and basin structures. Specifically, the northern Oregon margin is proximal to the sediment‐delivery systems of the Columbia River and has landward verging fold‐and‐thrust structures, whereas the southern Oregon margin is relatively sediment starved and has seaward verging structures resulting in fewer steep ridges. Because of the higher sedimentation rates, the northern Oregon margin may be prone to more frequent and disintegrative types of slope failures. In contrast, the southern margin may have enhanced slope stability due to seismic strengthening and lower sedimentation rates. However, when slope failures do occur in the southern Oregon margin, they tend to be more cohesive and blocky. Therefore, even though there are fewer slope failures in the southern Oregon margin, there is still hazard potential because fast‐moving cohesive slope failures can generate tsunami.

Ground Cover—Biomass Functions for Early-Seral Vegetation

Vegetation biomass is commonly measured through destructive sampling, but this method is time-consuming and is not applicable for certain studies. Therefore, it is necessary to find reliable methods to estimate vegetation biomass indirectly. Quantification of early-seral vegetation biomass in reforested stands in the United States Pacific Northwest (PNW) is important as competition between the vegetation community and planted conifer seedlings can have important consequences on seedling performance. The goal of this study was to develop models to indirectly estimate early-seral vegetation biomass using vegetation cover, height, or a combination of the two for different growth habits (ferns, forbs, graminoids, brambles, and shrubs) and environments (wet and dry) in reforested timber stands in Western Oregon, USA. Six different linear and non-linear regression models were tested using cover or the product of cover and height as the only predicting variable, and two additional models tested the use of cover and height as independent variables. The models were developed for six different growth habits and two different environments. Generalized models tested the combination of all growth habits (total) and sites (pooled data set). Power models were used to estimate early-seral vegetation biomass for most of the growth habits, at both sites, and for the pooled data set. Furthermore, when power models were preferred, most of the growth habits used vegetation cover and height separately as predicting variables. Selecting generalized models for predicting early-seral vegetation biomass across different growth habits and environments is a good option and does not involve an important trade-off by losing accuracy and/or precision. The presented models offer an efficient and non-destructive method for foresters and scientists to estimate vegetation biomass from simple field or aerial measurement of cover and height. Depending on the objectives and availability of input data, users may select which model to apply.