December 8, 2005
San Francisco Peaks Weed Management Area
The San Francisco Peaks Weed Management Area (SFPWMA) held its quarterly meeting in the field 30 November. Held at Picture Canyon, the idea was to demonstrate and train in mapping weed colonies using Global Positioning System (GPS) and specialized Geographic Information Systems (GIS) software. Doing this enables land and vegetation managers to collect information about the size and shape of weed infestations and draw it directly onto maps. This saves time and allows for accurate estimates of the size and area, accurate estimates of time or materials needed to control a colony, and allows for other weed control teams to find the sites. This information could also be collected on a county, state, or national level, which helps prioritize weed problems.
A partial list of organizations who attended includes:
Arizona State Land Dept, Noxious Weeds Program Coordinator
Arizona County Extension Service, MWS Program Manager
Arizona Master Naturalist Program, certified Master Naturalist
Coconino County Extension Service
Coconino Natural Resource Conservation District Program Manager
Coconino National Forest Zone Botanist
Coconino National Forest Noxious Weed Specialist
NAU Ecological Restoration Institute, Member
City of Flagstaff Traffic Commission, Member
This is not a complete list of SFPWMA members, either. These quarterly meetings are open the public, although they might be considered dry or technical from a layperson's point of view.