Integrated Weed Management Plans
Thought Leadership Article By: Cindy Adams, MBA
Introduction:
I have been in the environmental consulting industry for almost twenty years in the arid west and intermountain west. I live on a 100 acre ranch near New Castle, Colorado and serve on the Garfield County Noxious Weed Advisory Board. I have an Integrated Weed Management Plan for my ranch that encompasses my gardens, greenhouse, landscaping, hay fields, and native areas. My career started in consulting on coal mine reclamation efforts and then expanded into other energy extraction industries including uranium mining, oil and gas extraction, rare earth mining, gravel mining, and wind energy. Reclamation practices have evolved over the years but one of the key factors to any successful reclamation is weed control.
Weed control includes the control of noxious species, invasive species, and bare ground treatments. Weed treatments improve the landscape by suppressing/ eliminating weedy species, controlling erosion, improving soil quality, and increasing biodiversity. A noxious weed is defined as a plant species designated by federal, state, or local law as generally possessing one or more of the following characteristics: aggressive and difficult to manage, parasitic, a carrier or host of serious insects or disease, or non-native, new, or not common to the United States.
Control of noxious and invasive weeds are a common goal among landowners, industry, regulators, and households. Every state has a noxious weed list that is designated by the Department of Agriculture. States often rank the severity of the noxious weeds into different categories of how the weeds should be managed. Utah has five ranked categories for noxious weed management while Colorado has four categories. Some county and local governments also have noxious weed lists that are more specific to their geographic area. Some counties and local governments also have their own enforcement policies related to noxious weed control methods and expectations. In 2024, Garfield County Vegetation Management, in association with the Garfield County Commissioners enacted the weed law enforcement as a way to motivate non-compliant landowners to manage their noxious weeds. Garfield County and associated Conservation Districts offer a noxious weed cost share program for landowners to support them in the control of noxious weeds on their properties.
Integrated Weed Management Plan and Weed Management Strategies
Integrated Weed Management (IWM) plans are a tool for anyone that needs to manage noxious/invasive species. Many regulatory agencies require the use of weed management plans or integrated weed management plans prior to any surface disturbance activities such as oil and gas development, mining, housing developments, and agricultural operations. IWM is a comprehensive approach to weed control that often partners other management techniques with chemical control. It focuses on a combination of strategies to effectively manage weeds while minimizing negative economic, environmental, and social impacts.
IWM plans include objectives, a variety of weed control methods, monitoring and evaluations, as well as timeline and budget. The most common weed control methods are preventative, cultural, mechanical, biological and chemical control. Monitoring and evaluations should occur throughout the growing season to assess the effectiveness of the weed control methods. Timing of weed control is essential for the best results, timing depends on phenology of the treated species, temperature, and access. Economic considerations are always an important topic and are different for every project.
Preventative Weed Control: In the arid west, where water is precious and every drop counts, preventing weeds is crucial. This starts with using certified weed-free seed and mulch, ensuring that you’re not introducing invaders from the start. Cleaning equipment and vehicles that move between sites is essential to avoid spreading weed seeds. Pre-emergent herbicides can be effective, but choosing the right product for the soil type and target weeds is vital. Maintaining healthy, native plant communities creates a competitive advantage against weeds. (extension.colostate.edu).
Cultural Weed Control: Timing of seeding post disturbance is key to desirable vegetative growth. Selecting species that are adaptable to the location and are part of the adjacent undisturbed vegetative community. Also creating a suitable seedbed by separating the topsoil and suitable subsoil from the unusable subsoil during construction and reclamation. Utilization of soil amendments to add nutrients back into the soil. Also utilizing weed-free mulch and wood chips to help retain moisture and suppress weed growth. Gravel on non-reclamation areas can also help suppress weed growth and provide a suitable driving surface to decrease erosion and settling.
Mechanical Weed Control: Hand-pulling and hoeing are effective for small-scale weed control, especially for young weeds before they establish deep roots. Mowing and line trimming can be useful for controlling annual weeds, preventing seed production, and controlling monocultures if the timing is right (before seed production). Some operations have utilized hand-pulling (grubbing) of cheatgrass on locations to help reduce the spread of this noxious weed throughout the field.
Biological Weed Control: Introducing natural enemies of weeds can be a sustainable approach in arid regions. Some insects and plant pathogens have been successfully used for biological control of invasive weeds in the West. Research is ongoing in the arid west to study biocontrol agents. The Utah Department of Agriculture has a Biocontrol Dashboard that shows the variety of biocontrol projects throughout the state as well as individual projects that have released biocontrol agents. For example, around Vernal, UT there have been three releases of biocontrol agents- gall midge targeting Russian knapweed and leafy spurge, and stem borer targeting leafy spurge. Factors such as land ownership can affect where and how biocontrol agents can be used.
Chemical Weed Control: Herbicides can be a valuable tool, but careful selection and application are crucial to minimize environmental impact. Choose herbicides that are specifically labeled for the target weeds and application site. Consider using selective herbicides that target specific weed species while minimizing harm to desirable plants. Apply herbicides at the correct rate and timing to maximize effectiveness and minimize off-target movement.
Challenges to Weed Management in Utah:
n the arid landscapes of Utah, oil and gas operations face unique challenges in managing weeds. The arid west poses significant hurdles for effective weed management. The environment itself presents a major challenge, with low rainfall hindering the establishment of desirable competitive vegetation and impacting herbicide effectiveness. Extreme temperatures further stress desirable plants and can degrade herbicides, while poor soil quality and strong winds exacerbate the spread of invasive species.
These environmental factors are compounded by the presence of highly adapted invasive species. These invaders thrive in arid conditions, outcompeting native plants for scarce resources and quickly establishing dense monocultures. Species like cheatgrass further degrade the ecosystem by increasing fire frequency.
Beyond these ecological challenges, logistical hurdles abound. The remoteness of many oil and gas operations makes access and treatment difficult. Water scarcity limits control options, and environmental regulations restrict some herbicide use. This confluence of factors necessitates a comprehensive and adaptive approach to weed management, thus IWP plans are a good approach.
Oil and Gas operators as part of the permitting process for a new location are required to submit a weed management plan. Some regulators require an IPW plan instead of a weed management plan. Both plan types are developed in accordance with federal, state, and/or local agency regulations, stipulations, and standards for control of noxious and invasive species. Some key regulations include the Federal Environmental Pesticide Control Act (7 USC 136 et seq.) and Plant Protection Act of 2000 (7 USC 7701 et seq.) as well as state noxious weed acts. Other plans also include requirements from other state regulators like the Colorado Energy and Carbon Management Program (Rule 1003.f.), BLM Resource Management Plans, BLM Integrated Vegetation Management Plans, County Noxious Weed Management Plans, and other local plans. Having professionals that specialize in this work is a great way to ensure regulatory compliance.
As part of the permitting process, several pre-disturbance environmental surveys are often required and can contribute information to development of cultural control methods. Cultural control methods focus on restoring the natural balance. The pre-disturbance environmental surveys may include vegetation community mapping, determination of vegetative cover prior to disturbance, species composition, weed pressure, presence of sensitive or threatened/endangered species and/or habitat are present in or near the planned disturbance. Other surveys also include topsoil protection plans and mapping, wildlife habitat/species surveys, and cultural surveys. Topsoil mapping will determine how much suitable soil is available for reclamation, in the arid west this suitable soil is often composed of both topsoil and suitable sub-soil, as there is limited amount of topsoil present.
After the pre-disturbance surveys are complete, the information from the vegetation and topsoil surveys will be most useful in drafting the IWM plan. Pre-disturbance vegetation surveys will provide pre-disturbance weed pressure, the percentage of desirable, noxious/invasive species, and total vegetative cover on the undisturbed areas as well as species diversity. This information will be used to develop a reclamation seed mix as well as adaptive weed management techniques to control the weeds present on the site prior to and after disturbance.
Topsoil mapping of the planned disturbance will show contractors how much soil to strip in different sections of the planned disturbance, thus providing the Operator with the best chance of suitable soil during the reclamation process. Quickly seeding the topsoil piles with a native seedmix can aid in the establishment of a good cover crop and less weed pressure on the topsoil stockpiles. The soil health will also aid in the planning of future weed pressures. For example, if the soil is saline to start, species such as halogeton are likely to be present after disturbance.
Encouraging the growth of competitive native vegetation through seeding, live planting, and proper land management practices that help suppress weeds is essential to post-disturbance control.
Grazing management is both a cultural and mechanical control method. Targeted grazing, utilizing sheep or goats, can be an effective option when closely monitored. The animal hooves may also create microclimates for reclamation, post seeding. On the other hand, operators may need to utilize fencing to remove grazing pressures on newly seeded reclaimed locations. (USDA Agronomy Technical Note MO-32 Biological Weed and Brush Control with Sheep and Goats).
Mechanical control such as mowing can be effective in monocultures and small infestations. Paired with chemical control is an effective method for controlling complex monocultures. Mowing should only be considered when timing is appropriate, as to not spread undesirable seeds.
Chemical control is the primary tool for many oil and gas operators. Certified commercial applicators should always be employed. Certified commercial applicators have the expertise in safe and effective use of herbicides, reduce risk, they have access to restricted use pesticides, and they adhere to best practices. Bareground control around facilities is important to stay in compliance with state/federal regulations and can occur in the spring, summer, and fall to maintain compliance. Noxious/invasive species applications should occur throughout the growing season as well and are dependent on the phenology of the target species. Spot spraying should be utilized in reclamation areas to maintain vegetation diversity. Broadcast spraying can be utilized in monocultures of the noxious/invasive species. Chemical control should be partnered with another control method to achieve success.
Safety should always be a key factor in noxious weed management. Appropriate personal protective equipment (PPE) should be utilized. Pesticide storage, pesticide handling, and pesticide transporting will be in compliance with federal regulations and the pesticide labels. Remember that the label is the law. Application rates and spray mixtures will never exceed the limits on the chemical label(s).
Successful weed management plans include monitoring at each stage of development- pre-disturbance, permitting, well construction, completion, production, and reclamation. Monitoring helps to prioritize weed control methods and ensure that the weed control methods are working well. Monitoring also enables early detection of new infestations and rapid response to prevent widespread invasions.
EcoPoint’s Solution:
EcoPoint provides weed control monitoring in many of our other environmental surveys such as stormwater monitoring, qualitative reclamation monitoring, and quantitative reclamation monitoring. One of the innovations at EcoPoint is the use of our proprietary GeoStorm software to map, report, and recommend management actions. All noxious/invasive species populations are mapped using mobile devices. All chemical applications note times, locations, weather conditions, species, and chemicals used. This information can quickly be compiled into BLM approved pesticide application records (PAR) that are generated automatically from the data collected on site. EcoPoint also furnishes an online dashboard so operators can track real-time progress from a web browser. The dashboard serves as a seamless method for fulfilling reporting requirements for daily logs as well as a list of species treated. Dashboards will also provide near real time environmental compliance data representing weeds and vegetation mapped. This enables our clients to know which areas of concern have been treated as well as areas that may need further control measures.
Being agile with the IWM plan is key to overall success. Continuous monitoring of IWM strategies allows for adjustments based on observed results and changing conditions. Meticulous record-keeping informs future decisions. Recordkeeping can include PARs, population mapping, percent noxious/invasive species vegetative cover, and types of noxious/invasive species present.
For additional insights or information please reach out to EcoPoint and schedule a meeting.