http://www.fs.fed.us/research/
Montana
Forest Service Research and Development (FS R&D) employs 140 permanent research personnel in
Montana through the Rocky Mountain Research Station (RMRS), headquartered in Fort Collins, Colorado,
the Missoula Fire Sciences Lab, Missoula Forestry Sciences Lab, the Aldo Leopold Wilderness Research
Institute, and Bozeman Forestry Sciences Lab. Long-term research in Montana is conducted on two
Experimental Forests: the Coram and Tenderfoot Creek.
Montana Funding History
FY 2013
Enacted
FY 2014
Enacted
FY 2015
Budget
Bozeman Forest Sciences Lab
$282,000
$303,600
$280,700
Missoula Forest Sciences Lab and Fire Lab
$5,275,000
$5,683,400
$5,259,300
MONTANA TOTAL
$5,557,000
$5,987,000
$5,540,000
The FY 2015 President’s Budget for RMRS is
$37,687,000, of which $13,142,000 is for annualized
Forest Inventory and Analysis (FIA). In addition,
$6,911,000 is provided for National Fire Plan research.
RMRS will also receive a competitive share of the
national amount of $6,914,000 for the Joint Fire
Science Program.
FY 2015 Program Changes
Rocky Mountain Research Station
The RMRS mission is to develop and deliver scientific
information and technology to sustain the health and
productivity of the nation’s forest, rangeland,
grassland, and desert ecosystems throughout the
Interior West. RMRS research provides the scientific
foundation to understand and adapt to the dynamic
conditions associated with ecosystem health and
sustainability: human use of land and resources,
climate
change,
wildland
fire
and
fuels
management, native and non-native insects and
diseases, and watershed productivity and resilience.
The RMRS is organized into seven science programs
with research labs in nine of the twelve states within
its territory. The RMRS conducts research and delivers
science products in collaboration with a variety of
partners to maximize the relevance and reach of
RMRS science.
The FY 2015 President's Budget includes a station
decrease of $3,038,000 from the FY 2014 Enacted.
The proposed funding will enable RMRS to continue
producing the scientific information and tools
needed to sustain and restore the productivity and
resilience of western ecosystems. It will allow RMRS to
sustain investment in high priority research
established in its 2014 Strategic Business Plan, by
deferring investments in less urgent research priorities.
FY 2013 Key Accomplishments in Montana


RMRS research, published in the journal Science,
revealed that declining stream flows in the
Pacific Northwest and Northern Rocky Mountain
regions are linked to changes in oceanic
temperature-driven winter winds that reduce
precipitation, lessen stream flow, and can impact
the region's water supply.
RMRS scientists, in collaboration with the University
of Montana, used genetic analysis to identify a
new species of fish, the Cedar Sculpin, or Cottus
schitsu’umsh (s-cHEET-sue-umsh) in the Coeur
d’Alene and St. Joe rivers. The species name was
chosen through consultation with elders from the
Coeur d'Alene Tribe.
“Schitsu’umsh” means

“those who were found here” or “the discovered
people,” and is the name of the tribe.
RMRS scientists worked with land managers on
the Helena National Forest to evaluate wildfire
risks to the Helena municipal water supply and
homeowner risk in the wildland urban interface.
Risk assessment results will directly contribute to
NEPA fuel treatment planning.
Priority Research
Forest Service R&D Priority Research Areas build on
local and regional research to solve issues important
to the American people. Examples of priority
research conducted by the RMRS include:
Forest Disturbance: Managing forests to sustain
ecosystem health requires knowledge of how forests
change over time in response to natural disturbances
and
management
actions.
RMRS
scientists
developed geospatial tools to help land managers
anticipate future conditions, spot ecological trends,
and design effective adaptive strategies.
Watershed Management and Restoration: Sustaining
healthy watersheds is fundamental to ensure a safe
and reliable water supply. RMRS scientists developed
the GRAIP tool, a data driven road inventory method
and model which assesses the risks to aquatic
resources from road related sediment discharge. This
tool enables land managers to prioritize mitigation on
open roads and de-commission roads most at risk of
delivering sediment to the stream. This research was
cited in the Environmental Protection Agency’s (EPA)
rule to regulate runoff from forest roads, and figured
prominently in the U.S. Supreme Court's decision to
uphold the EPA's policy on forest road runoff as a
nonpoint source.
Bioenergy and Bio-Based Products: RMRS researchers
are exploring biomass utilization by mobile fastpyrolysis to convert residual forest biomass into
biochar (black carbon) and biofuel near harvest
sites. These carbon-rich biochar amendments return
nutrients to the soil, supplement long-resident soil
carbon pools, and improve water
microbial biomass, and nutrient cycling.
retention,
Forest Inventory and Analysis (FIA): The FIA program
provides data on conditions and trends for public
and private forest lands in the United States. The
RMRS Inventory & Monitoring program completed
the first-ever high-resolution analysis of climatic
patterns using tree-ring data from the FIA plot grid.
This technique will enable fine-scale reconstruction of
El Nino-Southern Oscillation (ENSO) influence on
forest growth across large areas.
Localized Needs Research in Montana
The RMRS invests in research and science delivery
specific to issues of local and regional importance.
Examples include:
Watershed Protection: RMRS scientists are assisting
Collaborative
Forestry
Landscape
Restoration
Program (CRLRP) projects and the Crown of the
Continent Conservation Initiative by assessing
watershed conditions using road analysis tools that
provide cost-effective and accurate estimates of
sediment delivery to sensitive aquatic habitats.
Forest Management: RMRS scientists are working with
Montana State University to develop methods that
combine LANDSAT imagery and various radar
technologies to map forest composition across broad
landscapes. This enables managers to identify forest
management projects with least potential impact to
federally protected wildlife.
Fish Habitat: RMRS scientists found that cool-andcoldwater fish species are moving upstream toward
cooler water as increasing temperatures warm their
native habitats. During the 20th century, and as air
temperatures rose by 0.6°C, stream habitats for cooland-coldwater fish moved upstream by 1.5-43 km in
many instances.
Due to changing climates,
important commercial and recreational fish species
(e.g. salmon and trout) could disappear from some
areas.
FOREST SERVICE RESEARCH & DEVELOPMENT (FS R&D) is a world leader in innovative science for sustaining global forest resources for future
generations. Research findings and products benefit forest and rangeland managers, and everyone who uses goods or services from
forests. We operate five research stations that encompass all 50 states, the Forest Products Laboratory located in Madison, Wisconsin, and
the International Institute of Tropical Forestry located in Puerto Rico. Our researchers and support personnel are located at 67 field sites
throughout the United States. We also maintain 80 experimental forests and ranges across the Nation. Our unique ability to integrate
science and decision making and to work across boundaries between public, private, and tribal lands through strong partnerships
advances the Agency’s three core themes of restoration, communities, and fire.
The FS R&D program has two components: Priority Research Areas and Strategic Program Areas. The Priority Research Areas address
urgent needs in seven areas: Forest Disturbance, Forest Inventory and Analysis, Watershed Management and Restoration, Bioenergy and
Biobased Products, Urban Natural Resources Stewardship, Nanotechnology, and Localized Needs Research (region-specific needs). The
Strategic Program Areas (SPAs) are the long-term programs from which Priority Research Areas are funded. The seven SPAs are: Wildland
Fire and Fuels; Invasive Species; Recreation; Resource Management and Use; Water, Air, and Soil; Wildlife and Fish; and Inventory and
Monitoring.
The FY 2015 President’s Budget includes $275,315,000 for Forest and Rangeland Research, $19,795,000 for the FS R&D National Fire Plan, and
$6,914,000 for the Joint Fire Science Program.