First meetings with BLM staff

Holly, Yemi and I got all settled into the McLaughlin Reserve Field Station on Thursday and took a trip to the BLM field office in Ukiah on Friday (the office is about 1.5 hours from where we live, so they're hoping we won't have to drive out TOO often). There, we were met by the field office manager, Rich Burns. Rich introduced us to the few staff members that actually work on Fridays, and they presented us with a general overview of the areas their office over-sees. Pardee Bardwell, whose official title is Rangeland Management Specialist but wears many hats for BLM, took us on a driving tour of the outer edge of the Cache Creek Natural Area to show us the main gates we'll be using to enter the property.

This morning, Jim and Mark Conley came out from the state office in Sacramento. They brought us a ton of equipment we'll be using in the field, a pile of literature to sort through, and most importantly, a better understanding of what they think we'll be doing this summer. Holly and Yemi have a very interesting task ahead of them and its broad scope will make it challenging, to be sure. One of their main duties is to beta-test the Bureau's new wilderness monitoring protocol... Jim and Mark referred to them as "guinea pigs" for a program that will eventually be implemented nation-wide! Very exciting stuff! You can ask them about it if you'd like to know more.

Jim has outlined some tasks for me that he thinks will most benefit our project. My focus will be mostly on Harley Gulch and Davis Creek:

1. Assemble existing data sets on water quality and soil chemical properties on soils in high mercury sites in Cache Creek Watershed, including the EPA CERCLA projects at the Sulfur Bank Mine and the Abbott-Turkey Run Mine Complex

2. Characterize the state of knowledge about the chemical pathways for mercury methylation and demethylation in natural settings

3. Meet with staff of agencies who are concerned with mercury management in the Cache Creek Basin (BLM, US EPA, US FWS, Yolo County Flood Control and Water Conservation District, USGS, Central Valley Regional Water Quality Control Board, UC-Davis McLaughlin Natural Reserve)

4. Digital photographic documentation of current conditions and environmental problems on BLM lands in Harley Gulch and Davis Creek

5. Assist with characterizing the stream bed of Harley Gulch Creek and Davis Creek found on BLM lands

6. Assist the USDA Natural Resource Conservation Service botanist in collecting and surveying abandoned mine sites to be revegetated

7. Assist with production of cross-sectional and longitudinal stream profiles, with staff from the Gualala River Stewardship Council

8. Sample water quality in Harley Gulch and Davis Creek every second week (pH, temperature, DO, oxidation-reduction potential, electro-conductivity, ion concentration strips for salinity (chloride) and sulfate)

9. Determine sediment/soil profiles to a depth of 10 cm along the east branch of Harley Gulch Creek, the main stem of Harley Gulch, Harley Gulch Delta, Upper and Lower Davis Creek, and Lower Bear Creek (as time and funding permit)

10. Augur soil profiles in the Harley Gulch Delta to send for mercury sampling (to determine the volume of mercury-contaminated soil)

Jim has given me the liberty to add to the list or adjust any of these tasks to suit our information needs. I'd love to hear your feedback on the fieldwork plan!

We have the day off tomorrow. On Monday morning, we will be attending the weekly staff meeting at the state office in Sacramento and then taking a defensive driving course (if our background checks go through and we are indeed granted access to BLM computers) so that we can be assigned BLM vehicles. Sometime next week, Holly and I will be taking a road trip to Hollister where they've located a truck with an automatic transmission for her to use. We're both glad that they are providing us with vehicles... this summer will involve A LOT of driving.

O.K.- that's all for now! I hope you all are having a pleasant start to the summer.

~k