This year, the National Science and Technology Center (NSTC) marked 

its 10th anniversary. Established as the National Applied Resource 

Sciences Center on October 1, 1995, our name was changed on 

October 1, 2000, to better reflect our mission. During the past 

10 years, the Center has completed over 3,000 individual projects 

serving all BLM states and the Washington Office. We are very proud 

of the work that we have accomplished and take pride in knowing that the work we do helps the 

requesting office meet its mission.

Our annual report reflects the many ways that NSTC supports both the Bureau of Land Management’s 

(BLM’s) science and technology needs and the Department of the Interior’s emphasis on science. It 

provides a sampling of projects that illustrate how we have worked in partnership with others to further

the Department’s goals of resource protection, resource use, recreation, and serving communities.

As we move into our second decade, we look forward to assisting all offices in meeting whatever 

technical challenges are presented. Our objective will continue to be to take on the highest priority 

work in support of the Bureau’s mission.

Lee Barkow, Center Director

Director’s Message
1

The Department of the Interior cares for thousands of upland, wetland, and aquatic areas, many with 

special designations such as national monuments and wilderness areas. It also protects thousands of 

native plant and animal species, including more than 1,200 with special status under the Endangered 

Species Act. In addition, the Department preserves thousands of Native American archaeological and 

cultural sites, as well as other objects and properties significant in our nation’s history. Many NSTC 

projects helped protect the Nation’s natural, cultural, and heritage resources and supported BLM and 

the Department in this mission:

• Supported the Alaska Native subsistence program by developing site-specific locational information 

that will be used to permit commercial mining activities within the Platinum mining site on Alaska’s 

Salmon River. The highly detailed topographic and aerial photography products created will be used 

to reroute the Salmon River in an effort to recreate a viable fisheries habitat at the site.

• Helped 10 field offices in Idaho, Montana, Wyoming, Utah, and Colorado collect, manage, and 

analyze data on forest lands for resource management plan revisions and fuels assessment projects.

• Provided site characterization, engineering evaluation/cost analysis (EE/CA), risk assessment, cleanup design, technical oversight, and contracting support, at 54 hazardous waste and abandoned 

mine sites on public lands. These sites, which posed a threat to public safety and the environment, 

included Poorman-Balm Creek abandoned mine site in Oregon, Saginaw Hill abandoned mine site in 

Arizona, Topock Compressor Station in California, Pryor Mountain abandoned uranium exploration 

sites in Montana, Anvil Point abandoned oil shale facility in Colorado, Sunrise Mountain municipal 

landfill in Nevada, and Excell Helium Plant in Texas.

Each year, federal funds are used for emergency stabilization and rehabilitation 

treatments for lands burned by wildfires. In response to concerns by the Government Accountability Office about the success of those treatments and the most 

effective use of federal funds, NSTC reviewed hundreds of projects and constructed 

a database containing projects implemented between 2001 and 2003. NSTC then 

analyzed the data to determine the treatments applied, success rates, and types 

of monitoring implemented. The database will help promote standardized 

project submissions and improve the management and utility of treatment and 

monitoring data, thus resulting in more efficient reporting and, in the long term, 

substantial fiscal savings.

Resource Protection
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• Provided digital mapping support for seven Land and Water Conservation Fund projects to be 

incorporated within a Congressional submission for appropriations funding.

• Completed the redesign, upgrading, and construction of the entire water system at the Desert 

Tortoise Conservation Center for the Las Vegas Field Office. The new, automated system supplies 

water to approximately 2,000 desert tortoises currently protected within the Center.

• Provided copies of court cases, laws, Interior Board of Land Appeals decisions, and other legal 

documents through subscriptions to the WESTLAW and LEXIS-NEXIS legal databases. Copies 

provided to the National Training Center (NTC) were used to convert a five-volume notebook of 

paper materials on mining law, which is normally handed out to students in the Mining Claim 

Validity Examination Procedures course (3800-01), into a space-saving, convenient CD.

As a result of increased shoreline erosion along the Arctic coast and other areas, 

there is a significant potential for releases of hazardous substances, pollutants, 

and contaminants from wastes associated with historic oil operations within the 

National Petroleum Reserve in Alaska. Releases of waste from these sites pose a 

substantial threat, particularly to sensitive marine environments. NSTC assisted 

the Northern Field Office with the inventory and evaluation of these oil operations 

by completing an expanded preliminary assessment of the J.W. Dalton well site 

and providing site mapping and characterization for 38 other sites. This work will 

be essential for preventing future releases from these historic sites.

• Provided support to the National Riparian Service Team, including technical editing and publishing 

of Riparian and Wetland Classification Review and Application, Technical Reference 1737-21, which 

compares several classification procedures, including the BLM’s ecological site approach.

• Completed the design, in collaboration with the Utah State Office, to upgrade the Cleveland-Lloyd 

Dinosaur Quarry building, construct a major addition to the existing visitor center, and upgrade the 

aging exhibits. The addition will be respectful of the original structure, which was built in the 1960s.

• Assisted with Comprehensive Environmental Response, Compensation, and Liability Act (CERCLA) 

cost recovery and enforcement actions, such as potentially responsible party (PRP) searches, settlement agreements, cost recovery strategies, and coordination with the Department of the Interior 

Solicitor, for eight hazardous waste and abandoned mine sites, including Topock Compressor Station 

in California, La Sal Creek abandoned uranium mine in Utah, Saginaw Hill abandoned mine site in 

Arizona, and Poorman-Balm Creek abandoned mine site in Oregon. 
3

By law, the BLM must manage the wild horses and burros that roam the west 

as part of the natural system of the public lands; ensure humane care of excess 

animals through their capture, removal, shipment, and adoption; and transfer 

titles of adopted animals to individual citizens. The Wild Horse and Burro Information System (WHBIS) is currently used to track these activities; however, the 

system and the technology supporting it are outdated. In addition, the system 

does not address all the business processes and requirements of the program 

and, therefore, users are forced to rely heavily on paper records. NSTC is currently 

developing a replacement system, the Wild Horse and Burro Program System 

(WHBPS). The new system will rehost existing functions and add functionality to 

provide more effective, automated support for all components of the wild horse 

and burro business processes. WHBPS will be an internal, Web-based application 

that incorporates the latest technology and is in full alignment with the existing 

Bureau architecture.

• Completed BLM Technical Note 417, Assessing Big Sagebrush at Multiple Spatial Scales: An Example 

in Southeast Oregon, which documents an assessment process that can be used for developing land 

use plan objectives and evaluating standards for rangeland health.

• Continued to assist with natural resource damage assessment and restoration (NRDAR) activities 

at eight sites where public land resources sustained damage from releases of hazardous substances 

or oil spills: New Carissa in Oregon, Clark Fork in Montana, Summitville Mine in Colorado, Coeur 

d’Alene Basin in Idaho, California Gulch/Upper Arkansas in Colorado, Yerington Mine in Nevada, 

Iron Mountain in California, and Gila River in Arizona. Assistance included scoping site needs, 

assessing natural resource damages, coordinating with other agencies, representing BLM on 

natural resource trustee councils, and planning and implementing restoration actions.

• Awarded a phase 1 contract for general cleanup and stabilization of the lightkeeper’s quarters at 

Turn Point Light Station in Washington, prepared a development concept plan for the entire resource 

area, and, in collaboration with the U.S. Coast Guard, awarded a design/build contract to provide 

photovoltaic power to the site.
4 

NSTC is developing an approach to describe and report the location and extent 

of terrestrial habitat connectivity and fragmentation in regional landscapes. This 

approach is spatially explicit and repeatable, thus allowing for monitoring and 

reporting of changes in landscape conditions over time. Geographic information 

system- (GIS-) based technology and information is used to link regional habitat 

(land cover) data with land use activities, disturbances, and associated management actions. This approach is being applied in a prairie/grassland region 

analysis, the Green River area/Wyoming basin region sagebrush analysis demonstration, the Owyhee area/northern basin and range region sagebrush analysis 

demonstration, and the rangewide sagebrush/greater sage-grouse region 

analysis. The regional habitat connectivity and fragmentation analysis work 

supports BLM’s national strategies for assessment, inventory, and monitoring; 

sage-grouse conservation; planning (National Environmental Policy Act); and 

vegetation management.

• Researched and developed an online water law course, in cooperation with the National Training 

Center, that complements state-specific water rights courses by providing a foundation of 

knowledge upon which those courses can build.

• Designed, edited, and laid out Law Enforcement Year in Review 2004, which identifies specific 

issues and highlights the role of BLM rangers and agents in protecting natural resources and 

visitors on public lands.

• Designed the Jordan fire station in Montana, one of nearly a dozen facilities to use the standard fire 

crew quarters design developed 7 years ago. The design continues to be improved and adapted for 

each specific site.
5

In 2005, NSTC completed work leading to the revision of the federal reserved 

water rights claim for the San Pedro Riparian National Conservation Area (NCA). 

The Arizona-Idaho Conservation Act of 1988, which created the NCA, clearly recognized riparian health as the primary purpose of the reservation and contained 

strong water rights language for the conservation, protection, and enhancement 

of this unique riparian ecosystem. Upon the recommendation of the U.S. Department of Justice, the Sierra Vista Field Office and NSTC initiated, conducted, 

and reviewed several years of studies and data to revise the claim. The revised 

claim amends the amount of streamflow sought at three San Pedro River stream 

gauges and one major tributary in the NCA. It also includes claims to ground 

water use and levels needed to maintain riparian communities, as well as point 

sources of water for administrative and resource protection purposes.

• Provided a large-area erosion analysis and related map products, using an erosion model interfaced 

with GIS capabilities, for the Miles City Field Office to help establish the water quality status of 

Thompson Creek in Montana and for the Ely Field Office to analyze a pilot vegetation restoration 

project in Nevada. Technology transfer sessions were also provided to help the field offices develop 

their own erosion modeling capabilities.

• Led the BLM effort to establish protocols for the cyclic inspection of bridges and dams and the 

reporting and integration of the resulting information into the new Bureauwide Facility Asset 

Management System database. A diverse array of approaches historically used by each of the states 

was considered in creating the new guidance.

• Developed and refined a method for using photographs to precisely locate, measure, and document 

dinosaur tracks and other paleontological resources in the Grand Staircase-Escalante National 

Monument in Utah. This method allows resource managers to maintain, inventory, and monitor 

the tracksite and helps interpret this irreplaceable scientific resource for visitors.

• Developed a second-generation automated system to support BLM’s forest stewardship contracting 

authority. The Stewardship Contracting Information Database is Web-based and contains information on 118 projects, covering nearly 89,000 acres and involving approximately $10.5 million in 

service costs and $4.4 million in product value.
6 

The Department of the Interior has managed the vast resources of America’s public lands since it was 

founded in 1849. Many of the Department’s lands produce resources that are critical to the Nation’s 

economic health. The Department must determine where, when, and to what extent renewable and 

nonrenewable economic resources on public lands should be made available, and balance those needs 

with resource protection and recreational use. NSTC supported the Bureau and the Department in 

this mission, helping to manage natural resources to promote responsible use and sustain a dynamic 

economy:

• Continued populating a database for 1:100,000–scale map production and other GIS purposes. 

Automated data themes, including the Geographic Coordinate Data Base (GCDB), surface and 

minerals ownership, wilderness, transportation, hydrography, hypsography, and text labels, are now 

complete for 47 percent of the western United States.

• Provided technical assistance for implementing process improvements and user requirement 

specifications, such as page layout and basic editing conventions, for ePlanning, Version 2, which 

delivers integrated planning information to the public.

• Acquired and compiled current, accurate, peer-reviewed scientific information into bibliographies 

to support BLM land use decisions. For example, bibliographies were provided to Oregon on the 

effects of fire on pinyon juniper woodlands, risk assessment and analysis for natural resources land 

management, the jumping speed and height of juvenile salmonids, and the ecology of the Mardon 

skipper.

NSTC played a significant role in assisting the Washington Office with ongoing 

development of a national monitoring strategy for BLM. This effort is a multiyear 

approach to improve the efficiency and effectiveness of the Bureau’s inventory, 

monitoring, and assessment activities. The strategy will help BLM refine information gathering at the local level, improve reporting of land health conditions, and 

identify potential indicators for regional and national reporting. NSTC specialists 

supported numerous aspects of the initiative, including a local-level monitoring 

survey, regional-level air quality and habitat connectivity analyses, national-level 

reporting on land health, and off-highway vehicle- (OHV-) specific land health 

indicator development.

Resource Use
7

• Provided technical assistance for air and water quality issues, such as modeling, collection, and 

interpretation of analytical data; Clean Air and Water Acts compliance; litigation; and contract 

oversight and provided environmental impact analyses of energy development and realty actions 

for 19 land use or resource management plans. Sites covered by these plans included Granite Fox 

Power Project in Nevada, Jack Morrow Hills in Wyoming, and Canyons of the Ancients National 

Monument in Colorado. 

• Organized a legacy visit to Shoshone, Idaho, during which several members of the 1984 resource 

management planning team met with current staff to review their initial planning decisions, assess 

implementation efforts over the past 21 years, analyze the lessons learned, and formulate future 

planning and monitoring strategies.

At the request of the Rangelands, Soil, Water, and Air Staff in Washington, NSTC 

provided writing, editing, publishing, and technical assistance for the development 

of the Proposed Revisions to Grazing Regulations for the Public Lands: Final 

Environmental Impact Statement FES 04-39. The final EIS, which will affect the 

entire grazing industry and influence land management practices throughout the 

West, was developed using ePlanning. NSTC helped refine the ePlanning system 

and developed innovative ways to meet the challenges of publishing the final 

EIS. NSTC assisted with the logical and coherent presentation of technical 

information, coordinated the analysis of responses to the 18,000 comments 

received, and prepared the document for printing and electronic dissemination.

• Performed value analysis workshops for two new facilities, the Jordan Fire Station in Montana and 

Red Rock Canyon Desert Learning Center in Nevada, which yielded over $6.8 million in recommended 

savings.

• Provided support for the Rangeland Administration System and Rangeland Improvement System to 

users throughout the BLM.
8 

The Vernal Field Office in Utah is currently consolidating several resource 

management plans into a single plan and the Glenwood Springs Field Office 

in Colorado is initiating a land use plan for the Naval Oil Shale Reserve Lands 

received from the Department of Defense. The focus of both plans is the potential 

impact from energy development (primarily natural gas). NSTC provided technical 

support for the combined air quality analysis, including contractor oversight, 

dispersion modeling, and air quality documentation. The draft environmental 

impact statements for both areas have been issued, and NSTC is helping both 

offices respond to air-quality related comments and prepare the final documents, 

currently scheduled for release in late 2005.

• Revised and printed 79 surface/minerals management maps (1:100,000 scale) in support of 

multiple resource programs and recreational activities in 10 western states.

• Designed and prepared construction contract documents and assisted during construction of 

replacement bridges at Strawberry Creek and Red Creek in Wyoming. The bridges had been 

determined to be unsafe, resulting in road closures. 

• Edited and published Interpreting Indicators of Rangeland Health, Version 4 (Technical Reference 

1734-6), which describes a qualitative assessment protocol that allows for more consistent 

interpretations of rangeland health indicators and more comparable assessment results than 

in the past.
9

The lands managed by the Department of the Interior include some of the Nation’s most popular 

recreation destinations. These destinations provide for a variety of activities, such as hunting, fishing, 

hiking, biking, camping, rafting, and wildlife viewing, and they fulfill visitors’ desires for adventure, 

relaxation, and renewal. NSTC’s work helped the Bureau and the Department provide recreation 

opportunities for America:

• Completed the construction of a 130-car parking area, approximately 2,700 linear feet of boardwalk/ 

outdoor classroom/interpretive facilities, and picnic shelters at Red Spring within Red Rock Canyon 

National Conservation Area in Nevada. The redevelopment included extensive restoration to correct 

previous impacts to the sensitive environment around Red Spring, which is home to several special 

status species, including the Spring Mountains springsnail and the mariposa lily.

• Helped write, edit, and design Visitor Safety on BLM Public Lands, a brochure to be distributed at all 

BLM recreation sites to help visitors enjoy the public lands safely.

• Completed the design for the new California National Historic Trails Interpretive Center in Elko, 

Nevada. Pending favorable bids, construction on the building and interpretive plaza will begin early 

in 2006, with exhibits following in a future phase as funding allows.

Participation in OHV activities increased by 42 percent between 1999 and 2004, a 

trend that is expected to continue. This dramatic increase illustrates the need for 

a monitoring plan at the local and national level so that BLM can provide safe, 

quality OHV experiences for visitors while still sustaining the health of the public 

lands. At the request of the Washington Office recreation staff, NSTC is developing 

recommendations for a monitoring framework that can be integrated into the 

land health assessment process, and eventually, into BLM’s national monitoring 

strategy. NSTC has briefed Washington and Field Office staffs, drafted a synthesis 

of previous OHV monitoring efforts, and researched current efforts that can 

tie in to this project. NSTC is also working with USGS to conduct an in-depth 

literature review of the effects of OHVs on land health and with Northern Arizona 

University to study whether the land health assessment process is applicable for 

determining OHV travel impacts across various ecosystems.

Recreation
• Designed and assisted the Montrose Field Office in Colorado with the installation of an extreme 

close-range photogrammetric monitoring protocol to assess potential soil erosion impacts from 

heavy OHV use.

• Prepared construction contract documents and provided technical assistance during contracting and 

construction for the second phase of redevelopment at MacKay Reservoir recreation site in Idaho. 

Campground facilities, a boat ramp, a fish-cleaning station, and related site improvements and 

support infrastructure are included in the project.

• Created spatial data used to assess the effects of increased recreational activity in the Castle 

Garden Prehistoric Rock Art Interpretive Area in Wyoming. The data will help the BLM assess past 

impacts to the land, facilitate future developments, and prevent future negative impacts. 

• Prepared design drawings and specifications for interpretive kiosks to be constructed at seven key 

locations adjacent to the Old Spanish Trail in Nevada. In addition to functional performance and 

aesthetics, the primary design criteria included durability, vandal resistance, and ease of controlling 

quality during construction. 

Global warming may be causing glacial lakes worldwide to grow, while simultaneously their natural dams (glacial moraines) are weakening as the internal, 

structurally supportive ice melts. The eventual failure of the moraine to function 

as a dam often leads to catastrophic glacial lake outburst floods, such as the one 

that damaged portions of the Klondike Gold Rush National Historic Park northwest of Skagway, Alaska. NSTC assisted the National Park Service in investigating 

the integrity of the terminal moraine of the Nourse Glacier, which is located in a 

tributary to the park. NSTC initiated a geophysical survey to detect the existence 

of an ice core, which would be prone to melting and weakening since the Nourse 

Lake has more than doubled in size since 1979. The geophysical data indicated 

that the moraine is instead a well-supported layer of large boulders and gravel 

residing on solid bedrock and of sufficient size to function as a dam.

10
• Designed, edited, and produced Imperial Sand Dunes Recreation Area, a brochure that includes a 

map, an area description, and important safety rules for off-highway vehicle users and other visitors 

to this California site.

• Assisted with construction contracting and administration for new potable water wells in six 

separate developed areas and prepared construction contract documents for water storage and 

distribution in Fairbank Townsite within Las Cienegas and San Pedro Riparian National Conservation 

Areas in Arizona.

• Provided information to Nevada on disturbances to bighorns from human recreational use of the 

public lands for an environmental assessment and obtained copies of articles and books for various 

other policy decisions and assessments, often enabling those assessments to be completed ahead of 

schedule.

11
12 

The Department of the Interior protects lives, resources, and property from wildland fires and illegal 

activities. To improve decisionmaking and promote understanding of natural processes, the Department also collects, processes, integrates, archives, and provides access to scientific data. In addition, 

the Department fulfills responsibilities to American Indians, Native Alaskans, and residents of island 

territories. Many NSTC projects helped BLM and the Department safeguard lives, property, and assets; 

advance scientific knowledge; and improve the quality of life for communities we serve:

• Published the Desktop Guide to Cooperating Agency Relationships 2005, which describes a method 

for creating more effective governmental partnerships for planning and associated environmental 

assessments, and the Bureau of Land Management National Policy for the Federal Advisory Committee Act, which summarizes what BLM employees need to know when working with alternative 

dispute resolution-based, collaborative working groups.

• Helped design and instruct training courses related to evaluating and cleaning up abandoned mine 

lands and hazardous waste sites and conducting natural resource damage assessments. The courses 

included Hazardous Materials Management—The Basics (NTC course 1703-00), Characterization of 

Abandoned Mine Lands (NTC course 1703-14), Environmental Site Assessment (NTC course 1703-13), 

Hazardous Waste Operations and Emergency Response (HAZWOPER) required safety training, and 

NRDA case strategy development, presented at the Department of the Interior NRDA Restoration 

Program National Workshop.

• Created digital raster graphic (DRG) images from automated 1:100,000-scale surface management 

maps for 65 percent of Idaho and 57 percent of Colorado. DRG images can be manipulated and 

used for GIS purposes, such as for background images for firefighting applications.

NSTC continues to provide multiple architecture and engineering services, 

including development, planning, design, and construction management, for 

projects funded through the Southern Nevada Public Lands Management Act 

(SNPLMA). The projects, which are to be constructed over the next few years, 

are some of the most monumental in BLM’s history, and their cumulative value 

is more than $80 million. NSTC managed the architecture and engineering 

contracts as the contracting officer’s representative (COR) and project manager 

on the larger, more complex projects and served as project manager and designer 

on many of the smaller projects, including fire facilities and recreation sites.

Serving Communities
13

• Analyzed the risk of accelerated erosion and runoff and the risk of damage to private homes 

downstream from the Andrews Fire near Carson City, Nevada, using GeoWEPP, a geospatial, processbased erosion prediction model.

• Awarded five contracts, providing the BLM with a $50 million contract capacity for an array of 

architect and engineering services, including traditional planning, design, value analysis, life cycle 

costing, energy conservation, and construction management; condition and environmental assessments; business planning and facility maintenance; and compliance audits for environmental, 

occupational and health, seismic, or accessibility issues.

• Revised the CERCLA Response Actions Handbook; managed the national technical assistance 

contracts for abandoned mine lands, hazardous materials, and physical safety hazards; served on 

the BLM special cleanup fund team; coordinated the natural resource damage assessment and restoration and air quality programs; served as the BLM representative to five external air and water 

quality professional organizations; and assisted with the development of the BLM environmental 

liabilities report for the Washington Office.

Because of conflicting court rulings in the past, ownership of the bed of the Red 

River and distribution of royalties accruing from oil and gas production in the 

area are in dispute. NSTC produced photomosaics from historical aerial photography along the Oklahoma/Texas border. The data produced provided “snapshots”

of the position and course of the river through time. This data will help the New 

Mexico State Office’s cadastral program determine how changes in the river 

course affect complex ownership patterns and boundaries between Federal and 

State interests. The photomosaics may also be used as exhibits in any litigation 

that may result from this process.

• Performed value analysis studies, completed design development, and prepared construction contract documents for four phases of construction of fire facilities, including crew quarters, a dispatch/

administration building, a cache/operations building, and crew-staging facilities, near Moab, Utah.

• Facilitated team efforts to establish a Western Shrub and Grassland Science Information and 

Management Consortium to advance cooperative conservation of sage grouse and sagebrush/

grassland ecosystems through coordination and improved access to science information and 

expertise. The effort is expected to significantly advance on-the-ground conservation efforts of 

local working groups and support implementation of the Bureau of Land Management National 

Sage-Grouse Habitat Conservation Strategy.
14 

• Completed the schematic design and began design development for the proposed Red Rock 

Desert Learning Center and Wild Horse and Burro Facilities, located on the former Oliver Ranch site 

in Nevada. The project will include a residential science school for Clark County fifth graders, with 

dormitories, a dining hall, laboratories, an art studio, an observatory, trails, and teaching venues, and 

facilities to support wild horse and burro gathers and adoption events, including an arena, handling 

facilities, infirmary, and administrative areas.

Silver Maple Claims is a wetland and abandoned mine site near Park City, 

Utah, where many visitors come to hike and bike on the Rail Trail. It is part of a 

contaminated watershed that has a Total Maximum Daily Load plan under the 

Clean Water Act. NSTC helped the Salt Lake Field Office characterize the site and 

prepare a comprehensive removal site inspection (RSI), which is a preliminary 

CERCLA investigation. The RSI included a tracer injection study by USGS, groundwater modeling, a geophysical study, a macroinvertebrate study by Utah State 

University, a wetland assessment, and an evaluation of other studies conducted 

in the watershed. NSTC also assessed natural resources damage and restoration 

and evaluated ecological risks at the site. The final RSI, which was peer-reviewed 

by the Environmental Protection Agency, U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, and U.S. 

Geological Survey, summarized site risks and recommended removal actions, 

including the capping of an arsenic and lead hotspot near the Rail Trail, a timecritical action that was subsequently implemented. Additionally, NSTC supported 

a groundwater investigation and completed a draft cost recovery strategy for 

the site, which provided options for avoiding future costs to BLM and recovering 

what BLM has already spent.
15

• Edited, revised, designed, and laid out Public Rewards from Public Lands 2004-2005, a set of 

13 documents that highlight BLM programs and provide State and national statistical information 

on collections, financial transfers, investments, and commercial and recreational use of public lands 

and resources.

• Provided landscape planning and design, integrating cultural and natural values with aesthetics 

and functionality, for New Mexico’s El Camino Real International Heritage Center and surrounding 

grounds.

• Served as the product manager for 36 fire and aviation applications requiring national configuration 

management certification prior to BLM implementation and use and acted as a liaison with the 

principal interagency stakeholders in streamlining the Bureau’s National Test Lab and national 

configuration management process. 

Bureau of Land Management

National Science and Technology Center

Denver Federal Center, Building 50

P.O. Box 25047

Denver, CO 80225-0047

303-236-2772 nstc@blm.gov www.blm.gov/nstc

November 2005

The mention of trade names, company names, or commercial products does not constitute 

endorsement or recommendation for use by the Federal Government.

BLM/ST/GI-06/001+1213

Cover photo: Art Hayes, a natural resource specialist from the Gunnison Field Office (front cover), 

records data as Dennis Murphy, a hydrologist from the Uncompahgre Field Office (back cover), makes 

a stream discharge measurement. NSTC assisted with sampling design, data collection, and data 

interpretation for this flow characterization and water quality sampling effort in the Henson Creek 

Basin in Colorado.