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'- 06015 Development of a Vegetation Management Plan with the following components: 1. Invasive species and native plant communities inventory, assessment, and treatment options 2. Listed T&E species, and other species of special concern 3. Vital signs identification as part of a network level effort. 4. Vegetation mapping - only focused on the completion of a grad sect analysis contract as current priority due to lack of funding. (No commitment to Inventory and Monitoring funding to continue these efforts). 5. Vegetation sampling and monitoring - preliminary draft only 6. Hazard tree management 7. Forest restoration (tied to park Fire Management Plan) Implement "Trans-canyon corridor planting and vegetation maintenance" compliance document which provides vegetation management guidelines for NPS and concession staff to follow. This project will include work at the developed areas (Indian Garden, Phantom Ranch, Cottonwood, and Roaring Springs) within the trail corridor, including those areas assigned through a concession contract (i.e. Xanterra at Phantom Ranch). There is a need for a larger comprehensive site plan for these sites that includes trail, vegetation and building maintenance. However, current staff and funding limitations prohibit this type of large-scale planning. In the interim, general vegetation maintenance will commence in September 2005 and will adhere to the guidelines set forth in the Indian Garden Cultural Landscape Report, with preparation for future vegetation planting beginning but only occurring on a limited basis until funding is acquired and additional interdivisional planning occurs. "Funding of the above projects, when available, comes from the 20% Fee Demo Park program. Continue "Tamarisk Management and Tributary Restoration" program. This work focuses on the park's tributaries and side canyons, with the removal of over 140,000 tamarisk trees removed from over 80 project areas to date. The current phase includes 35 project areas and expands the project to include other high priority species. An Arizona Water Protection Fund grant of $189,000 supports this phase, which is being completed in partnership with the Grand Canyon National Park Foundation. A new grant of more than $250,000 was recently submitted to continue the project and to expand the efforts onto Hualapai Tribal lands, with development of this partnership. The efforts would further expand the number of target species to include all known, or newly-discovered, populations of date palm (Phoenix dactylifera), ravenna grass (Saccharum ravennae), Russian olive (Elaeagnus angustifolia), Russian thistle (Salsola tragus), sahara mustard (Brassica toumefortil), sowthistles (Sonchus spp.) and tree of heaven (Ailanthus altissima) within the 30 target project areas and also within the main Colorado River corridor. Continue Rapid Site Inventory Program in the Colorado River corridor. Rapid site inventories are a fundamental tool for understanding backcountry recreation patterns, impacts, and issues. Because they provide a big picture examination and can be accomplished fairly quickly, they are typically the first recreation study recommended for evaluating use in a backcountry area. They also provide a baseline set of data for long-term campsite monitoring program. Each of 45 campsites is inventoried to record basic site information such as the presence of social trails, access trails, litter, human waste, archeological resources, invasive plant species, the number of tent sites, and site quality. The inventory also rates the appropriateness of the campsite by recording the site's distance from the main trail, water sources, and archeological sites. These data build upon the more detailed Rapid Site Assessment data that is available for a smaller subset of the campsites in the river corridor. This effort is funded, in part, by the CRMP implementation funds