Project Details

Utah Division of Forestry Fire and State Lands is implementing ongoing vegetation and hydrologic improvements for the purpose of re-establishing and enhancing the regionally rare and critically important wetland and riparian habitat along the Jordan River. The proposed actions under this request include the expansion of existing riparian and wetland revegetation pilot-projects, implementation of bank-stabilization projects, ongoing fuel abatement and management of invasive vegetation. This work includes herbicide applications and mechanical removal of invasive phragmites, Russian olive and salt cedar, in addition to seeding native grasses and forbs and planting native willows and trees and installing conifer revetments and erosion control devices. The goal of this work is to enhance wildlife habitat, improve water quality, increase water quantity, mitigate wildfire potential, and increase recreation access (bird watching and interpretation about wildlife, aquatic habitat, native plants, and noxious weeds.)

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.

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.

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.

LINK TO EACH
Blueprint Jordan River
Jordan River Comprehensive Management Plan
Jordan River Commission Cooperative Weed Management Charter
Best Practices for Riverfront Communities

Blueprint Jordan River (2008) Goals /objectives: 
1) Restore the river channel and buffers to improve and protect water quality, enhance hydrologic function, and to support vegetation, wildlife, and habitat, 
2) Integrate storm water treatment into open lands to naturally filter water runoff, 
3) Enhance fish habitat, and 
4) Promote the river as a quality-of-life amenity and recreational destination by creating urban fisheries.

Jordan River Natural Corridor Report (2000) Goals/objectives: 
1) Provides recommendations for natural conservation corridors specially naming the restoration project, 
2) Addresses restoration to "ensure proper grading and stream bed elevation and supplemental irrigation to allow successful habitat restoration away from the immediate riverbank", 
3) Provides a physical and biological assessment, and 
4) Addresses improving water quality by restoring the river profile to reduce erosion.

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.

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.

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.

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.

Under the supervision and guidance of FFSL staff, two Utah Conservation Corps crews (10 individuals) will be scheduled for two hitches (16 days or 160 total work hours) in both the Fall of 2022 and Spring of 2023. These crews will perform streambank stabilization work along 3000 linear feet of the river, installing conifer revetments (secured with duck-bill earth anchors), coir jute, straw wattles, sod mats and willow poles. These installations will be implemented according to the specifications deemed appropriate according to the geomorphology of each stretch of river (inside vs. outside bend, bankful height, slope, etc) and based on the lessons learned from past projects on different stretches of the river.

Outside-bends with steep eroding banks will be planted with native trees grown in tall-pots and planted in holes augured >3' deep. Plantings will be located 15' OC and 10' in from toe of bank. The roots of these trees, once established, will armor the steep banks and prevent further river migration and erosion and sediment transport. These trees will also provide much-needed shade to the river, improving dissolved oxygen levels once established.

Inside-bends with low gradient bank slope and low elevation relative to water level will be planted with willow poles using a hammer-drill and a waterjet stinger. Willow poles will be harvested on site and planted with a 1:1 root to shoot ratio at a depth of >3'. Willow poles will be planted in a grid, 5' OC up to 15' from toe of bank. Each willow planting will be housed in a plastic shrub shelter. These shrub shelters prevent herbivory from beavers and voles, stabilize relative humidity, and most importantly, they prevent injury from herbicide drift resulting from future herbicide applications to phragmites, allowing us to continue weed abatement while establishing native plants to armor the streambank and prevent further erosion. Especially low-lying inside-bends will be planted with sod mats.

Incised straightaways will have conifer revetments installed at the toe of the bank. Steep eroding parts of the bank will have slope re-contoured to a gentler gradient, and loose soil will be stabilized with jute coir and straw wattles. Willow poles will then be planted throughout according to the specs above, and sown with a mix of hydric and mesic native grass and forb seed.

All of this work is to be performed along a 3000' stretch of the Jordan that has had two complete seasons of phragmites herbicide applications and repeated mowing. FFSL will continue weed abatement into the future.

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.

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.

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.

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.

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.