Kansas Forest Action PlanKansas forests are critical to public health

and well-being. They provide clean air and water. Woodlands and windbreaks are peaceful places to recreate where families can enjoy wildlife and nature.

Kansas forests, woodlands, and windbreaks are under threat and need protection from insects, disease, and development. The Kansas Forest Action Plan identifies priority issues, landscapes, and strategies that protect forests, woodlands, and windbreaks. The plan addresses problems before they arrive and reflects experts’ best thinking. The Kansas Forest Action Plan targets resources efficiently by setting out a clear plan to cooperating organizations and funding agencies.

Broad public input was used to identify the following key issues facing Kansas forests: • Lessen threats to forest health• Minimizing wildfire risk• Reducing loss of forestland• Increasing water quality and quantity• Improving biodiversity and wildlife habitat• Sustaining forest and agroforestry ecosystems• Creating jobs and promoting economic benefits of

woodlands

Kansas Forest ResourcesKansas forests form the western boundary of the

central hardwood forests of the United States. Trees cover 5.5 million acres of Kansas, about 10 percent of the land area. Oak-hickory is the predominant forest type followed by elm/ash/cottonwood.

Ninety-five percent of Kansas forests are privately owned and are as important to our state infrastruc-ture as roads and bridges. Kansas windbreaks and shelterbelts are an important part of the 2.9 million acres of agroforestry resources. Offering protection to 1.2 million acres of crop and grassland, if placed end to end, these windbreaks would stretch 43,436 miles. Streamside forests also are an important component of Kansas agroforestry resources providing natural buffers between crop fields and streams. An economic analysis in the Tuttle Creek Reservoir Watershed suggests that stream bank stabilization with riparian forest buffers can save $42 million in annual dredging costs and prolong water supplies from federal reservoirs.

Kansas urban forests include more than 33 million trees, which provide canopy cover to 14 percent of the area of our towns and cities. These trees store 16.3 million tons of carbon dioxide with a value of $91.9 million and reduce energy costs by $19.7 million annually.

A Road Map for Kansas Forests, Woodlands, and Windbreaks

Type of Forest Coverage in Kansas Description

Forestland (USFS Forest Inventory and Analysis)

2.5 million acres Groupings of trees located in rural areas greater than an acre in size and wider than 120 feet with stocking coverage greater than 10 percent.

Agroforestry (windbreaks and stream side forests)

2.9 million acres Windbreaks, shelterbelts, streamside forests, and isolated trees located in rural areas that are either less than 120 feet wide, less than an acre in size, or less than 10 percent stocking coverage.

Urban and Community Forests

33,141,000 trees providing cover to 14 percent of the total area of Kansas communities

Trees, both within and outside forested stands, which occur within urban and community areas.

Kansas State University Agricultural Experiment Station and Cooperative Extension Service

Kans

as F

ores

t Act

ion

Plan

Issu

esCo

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rate

gies

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en T

hrea

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rest

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limat

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bore

r, th

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ne w

ilt.

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sive s

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k wi

th th

e Kan

sas D

epar

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gricu

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to d

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ted

trees

in q

uara

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ed

area

s. U

pdat

e em

erald

ash

bore

r rea

dine

ss p

lans.

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ntor

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ne, w

alnut

, and

ash

to h

elp

com

mun

ities

asse

ss p

oten

tial r

emov

al an

d re

plac

emen

t cos

ts. E

stabl

ish a

pest

dete

ctor

s pro

gram

. C

ontin

ue p

ublic

and

prof

essio

nal e

duca

tion.

Con

tinue

trap

ping

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ald as

h bo

rer a

nd m

onito

ring

blac

k wa

lnut

. Con

trol t

amar

isk, R

ussia

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ive,

and

amur

hon

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ckle.

App

oint

a wo

ody

inva

sive

spec

ies c

omm

ittee

.

Min

imiz

ing

Wild

fire R

iskW

oody

encr

oach

men

t int

o gr

assla

nds.

Ove

rgro

wth

of e

aste

rn

redc

edar

whe

re u

rban

and

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as

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t. La

ck o

f dat

a abo

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res.

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htin

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spon

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Iden

tify

area

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easte

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dced

ar an

d ot

her w

oody

spec

ies.

Enc

oura

ge th

e ad

optio

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Com

mun

ity W

ildfir

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tect

ion

Plan

s and

Fire

wise

. Dev

elop

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ight

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atio

nal

prog

ram

s. U

se p

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ribed

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for p

rairi

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ildfir

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vent

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Wor

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th

rura

l fire

dep

artm

ents

and

Kan

sas S

tate

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to im

prov

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occ

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ata.

Impr

ove

pres

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re w

eath

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ert n

etwo

rk.

Red

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ss

of F

ores

tland

Con

vers

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to u

rban

or a

gricu

ltura

l us

es. L

oss o

f stre

am si

de an

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ater

qua

lity.

Com

mun

icate

the v

alue o

f Kan

sas f

ores

ts an

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entif

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rest

area

s. In

tegr

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ree

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nanc

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infra

struc

ture

stra

tegi

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to la

nd u

se, p

arks

, tra

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rtatio

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ters

hed

plan

s. In

tegr

ate t

rees

into

wat

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ed m

anag

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t, er

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n co

ntro

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ergy

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ea p

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n pr

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m u

sing

cons

erva

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ease

men

ts.

Incr

easin

g Wat

er

Qua

lity a

nd

Qua

ntity

Red

uced

wat

er su

pply

asso

ciate

d wi

th

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men

tatio

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fede

ral r

eser

voirs

. R

educ

ing

crop

land

runo

ff an

d str

eam

ba

nk er

osio

n. C

ompl

ianc

e with

go

vern

men

tal p

ollu

tion

regu

latio

ns.

Use

Wat

ersh

ed R

esto

ratio

n an

d Pr

otec

tion

Stra

tegy

(WRA

PS) g

roup

s in

prio

rity

wate

rshe

ds

to g

uide

pro

tect

ion,

man

agem

ent,

and

esta

blish

men

t of r

ipar

ian

fore

sts. C

lassif

y rip

aria

n fo

rest

cond

ition

s with

rem

ote s

ensin

g, G

IS, a

nd fo

rest

inve

ntor

y. Im

plem

ent B

est M

anag

emen

t Pra

ctice

s (B

MPs

) in

targ

eted

wat

ersh

eds.

Prot

ect a

nd es

tabl

ish st

ream

side

fore

sts to

addr

ess r

eser

voir

sedi

men

tatio

n.

Impr

ovin

g Bi

odiv

ersit

y and

W

ildlif

e Hab

itat

Loss

of h

abita

t for

spec

ies i

n ne

ed o

f co

nser

vatio

n. L

oss o

f bio

dive

rsity

to

inva

sive s

pecie

s.

Con

serv

e rip

aria

n fo

rest

and

shru

b ha

bita

t for

prio

rity

spec

ies (

easte

rn sp

otte

d sk

unk,

sprin

g pe

eper

, red

bell

ied

snak

e, br

oadh

ead

skin

k) in

prio

rity

area

s. A

ctiv

ely

man

age f

ores

ts in

prio

rity

area

s to

susta

in o

r inc

reas

e pop

ulat

ions

of r

are,

thre

aten

ed, o

r end

ange

red

bird

s, m

amm

als, r

eptil

es,

amph

ibia

ns, a

nd in

sect

s.

Sust

aini

ng F

ores

t an

d A

grof

ores

try

Eco

syst

ems

Lack

of a

ctiv

e man

agem

ent.

Dec

linin

g fu

nctio

n an

d he

alth

of

wind

brea

ks, c

omm

unity

fore

sts, a

nd

fore

stlan

ds.

Prom

ote t

he ad

optio

n an

d re

nova

tion

of w

indb

reak

s. In

vent

ory

urba

n an

d co

mm

unity

fore

sts to

ta

rget

haz

ardo

us tr

ees f

or re

mov

al, m

itiga

te fu

ture

haz

ards

, and

iden

tify

plan

ting

prio

ritie

s. Tr

ain

new

urba

n an

d ru

ral f

ores

try

prof

essio

nals.

Dev

elop

new

biom

ass m

arke

ts fo

r non

mar

keta

ble

mat

eria

l. Tar

get a

reas

for c

otto

nwoo

d an

d oa

k re

gene

ratio

n.

Cre

atin

g Jo

bs an

d E

cono

mic

Ben

efits

of

Woo

dlan

ds

Lack

of i

nfra

struc

ture

to se

ll, su

pply,

an

d pr

oces

s loc

al wo

od. L

ack

of

mar

kets

for l

ower

-qua

lity

spec

ies.

Targ

et p

ublic

boi

ler sy

stem

s 40

year

s old

or o

lder

for c

onve

rsio

n to

woo

dy b

iom

ass.

Incr

ease

the

quali

ty o

f inv

ento

ry d

ata t

o pr

ovid

e inf

orm

atio

n ne

cess

ary

to at

tract

fore

st in

dustr

y. In

crea

se

gove

rnm

enta

l and

bus

ines

s sup

port

for u

tiliz

atio

n of

easte

rn re

dced

ar b

iom

ass.

Pittsburg

Leavenworth

Kansas City

Hays

Colby

Salina

Topeka

Liberal

Wichita

Emporia

Lawrence

Manhattan

Dodge City

HutchinsonGarden City

Priority LandscapesModerate-High PriorityHigh Priority 0 50 10025

mi● Cities« State Capital

KFS DistrictsCountiesMajor Highways

2

8 9

5

6

7

4

1

3

Smoky Hill

Cimarron Breaks

Loess and Glacial Drift Hills

Missouri River Corridor

Flint Hills

I-70 Metro Corridor

1

2

3

4

5

6

Wooded Plains

Greater Wichita & Southern Arkansas River

Cross Timbers

7

8

9

l Kansas

A r k a n s a s

C o l o r a d o

I l l i n o i s

I o w a

K a n s a s

M i s s o u r i

N e b r a s k a

N e w M e x i c oO k l a h o m a

T e x a s

W y o m i n g

KansasCityTopeka

Wichita

Multi-State/Regional Issues and Priority Areas

0020010 50mi

Neosho River/Grand Lake Watershed

Republican River Watershed

Cross Timbers Ecoregion

Flint Hills Ecoregion

Thousand Cankers Disease Positive Counties

Tamarisk and Other Invasives Present

Emerald Ash Borer Positive Counties

Missouri River Corridor

Eads

Kansas Forest Action Plan Priority LandscapesAfter identifying seven key

issues facing Kansas forests, woodlands, and windbreaks, it was necessary to determine where to focus strategies and best use resources. This was accomplished by collecting information from more than 36 different categories associ-ated with the issues.

Each issue includes a composite of multiple sources of information. For example, the issue of water quality and quantity included locations of watersheds, reservoirs, streams, and rivers with the highest levels of pollution and sediment.

Each issue was prioritized by stakeholders. To create the priority landscape map, information about each issue was consolidated into a map identifying high-priority and moderately

high priority areas included in nine priority land-scapes. These priority landscapes are the focus of technical services and financial assistance.

Multi-state or Regional Issues Identified by the Kansas Forest ServiceNatural resource issues are not

confined to jurisdictional boundaries. It is efficient and effective to collabo-rate on shared, multistate issues.

With assistance from stakeholders, seven multistate and regional issues and priority areas were identified. For example, the Flint Hills priority area has the potential to create strong part-nerships across Kansas and Oklahoma to minimize wildfire risk, reduce woody encroachment, and improve habitat for rare upland game birds whose populations have declined.

Potential for the development of prescribed fire cooperatives, smoke management strategies, and other initiatives can be accomplished through regional planning.

Key Messages about Kansas Forests, Woodlands, and Windbreaks

1. Kansas Forests, woodlands, and windbreaks are critical to public health and well-being.a. They filter air and water.b. Forests, woodlands, and windbreaks near

homes are peaceful places for recreation, which families can enjoy now and in the future.

c. They are places our children and grandchil-dren can enjoy nature.

2. Forests, Woodlands, and Windbreaks are under threat and need our protection. a. Insects, disease, and risk of fire threaten

5.5 million acres of forests, woodlands, and windbreaks. If we do not act soon to protect forests, they could be damaged forever.

b. Healthy forests, woodlands, and windbreaks are as important to our infrastructure as roads and bridges. The jobs and products they produce are worth protecting.

c. Most forests, woodlands, and windbreaks are owned by families (95 percent in Kansas) not the government. They are at risk of develop-ment and landowners need help from forestry professionals.

3. The Kansas Forest Service at Kansas State University provides the right solutions to these critical problems.a. Through the Kansas Forest Action Plan

(www.kansasforests.org/about/about.shtml) the Kansas Forest Service addresses problems before they arise based on broad public input and experts’ best thinking. The plan targets resources efficiently, especially in these tough economic times.

b. Since 1887 the Kansas Forest Service has been carrying out the legislative mandate to protect and manage the forest, woodlands, and wind-break resources of Kansas and the prevention and suppression of wildfires.

4. The Kansas Forest Service at Kansas State University does not have adequate state financial support to carry out its mission.a. In 2015, total state funding was $365,560,

which was 13 percent of its total budget, the most poorly funded and staffed state forestry agency in the nation.

b. Federal sources fund 74 percent of the agen-cy’s total budget; the U.S. Forest Service alone provides 63 percent.

c. The mission and existence of the Kansas Forest Service is extremely vulnerable to federal priorities and funding.

Brand names appearing in this publication are for product identification purposes only. No endorsement is intended, nor is criticism implied of similar products not mentioned.

Contents of this publication may be freely reproduced for educational purposes. All other rights reserved. In each case, credit Robert Atchison, A Road Map for Kansas Forests, Woodlands, and Windbreaks, Kansas State University, October 2015.

Kansas State University Agricultural Experiment Station and Cooperative Extension ServiceK-State Research and Extension is an equal opportunity provider and employer. Issued in furtherance of Cooperative Extension Work, Acts of May 8 and June 30, 1914, as amended. Kansas State University, County Extension Councils, Extension Districts, and United States Department of Agriculture Cooperating, John D. Floros, Director.

This publication is made available in cooperation with the USDA Forest Service.

A copy of the Kansas Forest Action Plan is available at

www.kansasforests.org/about/about.shtml. A hard copy of the plan, GIS data, or additional information may be obtained by contacting

Robert L. Atchison, 785-532-3310 or

by e-mail at atchison@ksu.edu.