Dune stability and integrity monitoring protocol for the gypsum dunefield in White Sands National Monument

Bozek, Michael; Story, Mike; Thoma, David; Isley, Mark; Bustos, David; Knapp, Jonathan

This protocol outlines the justification, objectives, and procedures for long-term monitoring of vital signs critical to ensuring the long-term stability and integrity of the White Sands dunefield at White Sands National Monument (NM), New Mexico. This protocol supplements a separate effort by Smith and others (2016), which uses LiDAR in a subset of the dunefield to assess geomorphological processes related to individual dune movements, sand transport dynamics, and morphological changes in dunes as they migrate across the dunefield. This protocol will assess the persistence, fate of, and changes to the entire dunefield by monitoring physical, locational, and vegetative changes that provide insight into dunefield stability and integrity. Together, these protocols will help identify conditions of concern for park managers at White Sands National Monument, the National Park Service, and the public at large. This protocol describes and assesses how serial remote-sensing images (from historical to future) can be used to detect and evaluate specific, large-scale changes to the size, location, and integrity of the dunefield at White Sands NM. It also describes a framework for imagery and image-analysis approaches that can help us to evaluate stability (e.g., movement, migrations, changes in size) and integrity of the entire dunefield through the maintenance drivers of dune movement, morphology, and function. Serial remotely sensed images can be used to obtain quantitative insights into whether the dunefield size, shape and/or location is changing over time and what those changes might represent (e.g., if the dunefield is expanding, declining, or oscillating in size, and if so, why). Monitoring these metrics will provide insight into the dynamics of the dunefield, whether it is changing in one direction (i.e., establishing a trend of concern) rather than oscillating, and into the ecophysiographic mechanisms that help maintain the current dunefield. Remote-sensing imagery can also be used to evaluate whether the integrity of the dunefield is intact, as indexed by changes in vegetation which, in turn, indexes other possible changes to the ecosystem. These metrics can be adapted for analysis of changes in other dunefields—in particular, gypsum dunefields that occur in Guadalupe Mountains National Park, Texas, and Quatrocienegas, Coahuila, Mexico. These metrics are also of concern to the adjacent Holloman Air Force Base and White Sands Missile Range. Destabilization of the White Sands dunefield would affect the operations of both facilities. This protocol contains (1) the background and rationale for monitoring the gypsum sand dunes in White Sands National Monument, NM, (2) program goals and objectives, (3) research sampling design, (4) analytical methods, (5) data management, (6) analysis and reporting, (7) personnel requirements and training, (8) operational requirements, and (9) procedures for revising and reviewing the protocol. Standard operating procedures that describe the implementation of all aspects of this protocol are provided in supplemental documents.

Dune stability and integrity monitoring protocol for the gypsum dunefield in White Sands National Monument

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