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Powell Slough Sportsman Access
Region: Central
ID: 4542
Project Status: Completed
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Project Details
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Need for Project
Powell Slough is one of the only remaining areas alonng the east side of Utah Lake where people can still hunt and fish. Powell Slough was once a prime area for waterfowl hunting, pheasant hunting, and fishing. However, because of the thick phragmites and limited legal access points, Powell Slough on Utah Lake has been difficult to access for sportsman. There is currently a locked gate on one of the only access points on the north end of Powell Slough. People are currently driving around this gate and driving down to the water(See Photos). Land ownership questions have been resolved and now we would like to open up this gate, improve a two track road that folks are using with gravel road base, place a buck and pole fence and boulders along the road to prevent vehicles from going off road, and placing signage to inform public that this is a legal access point and what hunting and fishing activities are legal. This will greatly enhance the sportsman access and allow more opportunity.
Provide evidence about the nature of the problem and the need to address it. Identify the significance of the problem using a variety of data sources. For example, if a habitat restoration project is being proposed to benefit greater sage-grouse, describe the existing plant community characteristics that limit habitat value for greater sage-grouse and identify the changes needed for habitat improvement.
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Objectives
1. Improve access to Powell Slough for sportsman. 2. Improve hunting and fishing opportunity on Utah Lake. 3. Remove ambiguity about legal access points on Powell Slough for sportsman. 4. Remove ambiguity about hunting and fishing opportunity and regulations on Powell Slough.
Provide an overall goal for the project and then provide clear, specific and measurable objectives (outcomes) to be accomplished by the proposed actions. If possible, tie to one or more of the public benefits UWRI is providing.
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Project Location/Timing Justification (Why Here? Why Now?)
If we do not do this project people will continue to drive around gates and cause erosion and other damage to property. People will also be able to drive off-road through out the property and cause damage to the wildlife resources. There will continue to be a loss of potential hunting and fishing opportunity for the public. Utah Lake will continue to go underutilized.
LOCATION: Justify the proposed location of this project over other areas, include publicly scrutinized planning/recovery documents that list this area as a priority, remote sensing modeling that show this area is a good candidate for restoration, wildlife migration information and other data that help justify this project's location.
TIMING: Justify why this project should be implemented at this time. For example, Is the project area at risk of crossing an ecological or other threshold wherein future restoration would become more difficult, cost prohibitive, or even impossible.
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Relation to Management Plans
UDWR Goals and Objectives: Constituency Goal: 1. Increase public awareness of wildlife as a quality-of-life issue in order to expand our support base and achieve stable funding. This project helps to provide a greater opportunity for the public to experience nature close to the city and increase opportunity for city kids to experience hunting and fishing. 2. Expand programs to recruit and retain young hunters, anglers and wildlife watchers. This project will achieve this goal as well. Utah Lake Commission Plan Goals: 1. Encourage and promote multiple uses of the lake. This project will add value and encourage more uses of Utah Lake for sportsman by increasing access. 3. Promote resource utilization and protection. This project will help to increase the use of Powell Slough and protect the resources by preventing people from leaving the road and damaging the resource. 4. Maintain and develop recreation access. This project will increase and improve the access for sportsman to Powell Slough.
List management plans where this project will address an objective or strategy in the plan. Describe how the project area overlaps the objective or strategy in the plan and the relevance of the project to the successful implementation of those plans. It is best to provide this information in a list format with the description immediately following the plan objective or strategy.
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Fire/Fuels
There are lots of dry grasses and phragmites in the fields surrounding the road. Building this will help prevent people from driving off road and increasing the risk of starting a fire.
If applicable, detail how the proposed project will significantly reduce the risk of fuel loading and/or continuity of hazardous fuels including the use of fire-wise species in re-seeding operations. Describe the value of any features being protected by reducing the risk of fire. Values may include; communities at risk, permanent infrastructure, municipal watersheds, campgrounds, critical wildlife habitat, etc. Include the size of the area where fuels are being reduced and the distance from the feature(s) at risk.
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Water Quality/Quantity
This project will prevent vehicles from driving out into the mud and stream bank where they get stuck and contaminate the water.
Describe how the project has the potential to improve water quality and/or increase water quantity, both over the short and long term. Address run-off, erosion, soil infiltration, and flooding, if applicable.
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Compliance
All permits and permission will be acquired previous to implementation.
Description of efforts, both completed and planned, to bring the proposed action into compliance with any and all cultural resource, NEPA, ESA, etc. requirements. If compliance is not required enter "not applicable" and explain why not it is not required.
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Methods
We will use UDWR backhoe and bull dozer to smooth out the road, lay road base, and place boulders. We will pile dirt and boulders on edges of gate to prevent people from driving around and causing erosion when it is desired to be closed. We will use volunteers and UDWR personnel to build the buck and pole fence. Boulders will be placed along the parking area and boat access area to the stream. Signs will be placed at the entrance and parking area to inform people about hunting and fishing regulations.
Describe the actions, activities, tasks to be implemented as part of the proposed project; how these activities will be carried out, equipment to be used, when, and by whom.
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Monitoring
We will document changes in the surrounding vegetation and road with before and after photographs. (See Images)
Describe plans to monitor for project success and achievement of stated objectives. Include details on type of monitoring (vegetation, wildlife, etc.), schedule, assignments and how the results of these monitoring efforts will be reported and/or uploaded to this project page. If needed, upload detailed plans in the "attachments" section.
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Partners
The property on Powell Slough is a combination of FFSL and BOR property. The UDWR is partnering with these agencies to invest in this property and add value of it to sportsman and wildlife. The UDWR is also partnering with the Utah Lake Commission to plan and implement this project. Utah County will be a partner and several nearby companies will be brought in as well. Sportsman groups have expressed a great need for this and we will work with them to help with labor of installing fencing.
List any and all partners (agencies, organizations, NGO's, private landowners) that support the proposal and/or have been contacted and included in the planning and design of the proposed project. Describe efforts to gather input and include these agencies, landowners, permitees, sportsman groups, researchers, etc. that may be interested/affected by the proposed project. Partners do not have to provide funding or in-kind services to a project to be listed.
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Future Management
We are investing more up-front to build the fence out of buck and pole and boulders which will reduce the long term maintenance costs. This will be a very low maintenance project and will greatly improve future management of Powell Slough. If vandalism occurs or trash gets placed on the road there are local companies who are interested in maintaining the property and keeping it clean. Also, we can work with dedicated hunters and members of the community to keep the property clean and maintain fences and signs as they break or get vandalized.
Detail future methods or techniques (including administrative actions) that will be implemented to help in accomplishing the stated objectives and to insure the long term success/stability of the proposed project. This may include: post-treatment grazing rest and/or management plans/changes, wildlife herd/species management plan changes, ranch plans, conservation easements or other permanent protection plans, resource management plans, forest plans, etc.
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Sustainable Uses of Natural Resources
This fencing will also make it easier for livestock to graze powell slough without concern of cattle getting out into town.
Potential for the proposed action to improve quality or quantity of sustainable uses such as grazing, timber harvest, biomass utilization, recreation, etc. Grazing improvements may include actions to improve forage availability and/or distribution of livestock.
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