Development of a Site Comparison Index: Southeast Upland Forests

Abstract : The SERDP Ecosystem Management Project (SEMP), a Defense research program hosted by Fort Benning, Georgia, is a set of related projects examining ecosystem management. Soils, vegetation, and military use aspects are part of a systematic study to assist military installation land managers to weigh demands for sustainable mission use and proactive stewardship. Adaptive management tools will be developed based on relating SEMP research findings to land management concerns and responsibilities. Different research teams, from many universities and U.S. Government laboratories, planned and chose their studies and sites with reference only to this goal. Each team ranked their sites on subjective Low, Medium, High disturbance scales. Later, when teams presented their results, it became clear that there was no consistent way to relate, for example, the different definitions of "medium" across the teams. To create a objective site comparison index (SCI), a combination of metrics: soil A-horizon depth, soil compaction, ground cover, canopy cover, basal area, remote sensed Normalized Difference Vegetation Index, and soil carbon and nitrogen, were evaluated in 2003 and 2004 across a broad disturbance gradient and forest community types at Fort Benning. The results support the application and utility of a SCI, at least in comparable environments.