Project Details

The need for this project will consist of the rehabilitation of the Silver King Fire of 2024.  This fire consumed over 18,000 acres of critical winter range for mule deer, elk and turkeys within the Bullion, Beaver Creek and Deer Creek Drainages in Piute County.  A major concern for the restoration of this fire is the town of Marysvale that sits at the base of the three drainages, critical impacts of this fire will cause major flooding events for years to come. Due to the steepness of the Beaver Creek, Deer Creek and Bullion Watersheds opportunities are needed to reseed these areas along with doing mechanical treatments if possible within this fire scar.  Within the next several years as well as this fall unexpected rain events will likely cause catastrophic damages to roads. drainages and creek bottoms, plug culverts, and jeopardize existing homes and the base of these canyons.  Opportunities to reseed high elevations will allow for some opportunities to reduce soil erosion and help stabilize the burn scar moving forward.

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.

This project objectives will consist of aerially seeding approximately 12,000 acres of the burned areas within the Silver King Fire with suitable grasses, forbs and shrubs.  This will be done through the use of contracting through State Purchasing a contractor to seed a primary seeding. Opportunities are available on USFS and BLM properties after the primary seeding has been aerially applied to single chain the suitable areas to cover the seed and reduce erosion areas within the burn.  This aspect of the project will be done through renting two D8 tracked Dozers and the use of BLM or USFS Fuels Employees to complete the chaining portions of this project this fall.  Additional efforts will be to inventory all UDWR WMA , USFS and BLM fence lines in the area to see what needs to be replaced or fixed, UDWR will be working closely with the Beaver Forest Service and Richfield BLM Office to complete these tasks.  UDWR, BLM, and the Forest Service will work together as a partnership to accomplish these objectives and complete the restoration needs to ensure a diverse rangeland community of grasses, forbs, shrubs and browse species are reseeded through this effort.  We will also be working with the private landowners associated within the burn scar as well to reseed areas within the burned portion as well.

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.

Risk of not doing any restoration work will allow for invasion of noxious weed species, and little to no grasses, forbs and shrub recruitment, in the high severity burn scar.  In additional areas that had moderate to low severity will come back or should show a response in the future.  Erosion of soil will be present due to rain and snow precipitation allowing for flooding of lower elevation properties.  Rangeland plant health will be compromised due to lack reseeding efforts and covering the seed through proper implementation efforts. The need for soils to stabilize is critical within the next year or two.  Perennial grass, forb and shrub species that will become established in the future will benefit livestock and wildlife within the Beaver Creek, Bullion and Deer Creek Watersheds. Post Fire flooding also pose a risk to human life and safety.  Storm Patrols will be necessary to protect USFS values at risk and implementing early flood warning systems could significantly mitigate risks to human life and safety.   Severe risk to roads and trails is very likely as well, loss of soil due to erosion will be significant within the burn scar.

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.

This project is consistent with the Fishlake National Forest Plan (1986 as amended) for wildlife habitat enhancement, and fuels management.  This project is part of a larger effort by the Forest Service, Beaver District to improve sage grouse habitat, big game habitat, conserve sage-steppe, improve watershed condition, water quality,  reduce fuel loading, and protect against catastrophic wildfire.  Utah's WAP and other planning documents emphasize the importance of maintaining and improving current sage grouse and potential habitat.  Both the Utah Statewide deer and elk plans identify conserving and improving available winter range through removal of P/J and providing adequate and high quality winter range to support herd objectives for the Beaver Unit #25.   Deer and elk population levels are considered to be at or just under plan objectives (personal communication with Mike Wardle, DWR) Beaver County's Draft Resource Management Plan, adopted June 2017, states "Land management agencies shall take actions to control and eradicate harmful and invasive noxious weeds and aggressively treat pinyon-juniper encroachment on habitats which benefit wildlife.", on page 128 under "Wildlife... Objectives".  Please see letters of support from Beaver City and Beaver County attached.
Utah's Wildlife Action Plan (WAP): 
The WAP identifies the following key habitats to be addressed by the South Beaver Watershed Improvement Project: Aquatic Forested, Mountain sagebrush and Aspen-Conifer. The WAP lists Inappropriate Fire Frequency and Intensity a high level threat for BCT and Aspen-Conifer Ecosystems with the following as potential conservation actions.
2.3.14 Conduct upland vegetation treatments to restore characteristic upland vegetation, and reduce uncharacteristic fuel types and loadings.
Fishlake Land and Resource Management Plan (LRMP):
5. Reduce hazardous fuels
6. Identify and improve habitat for sensitive, threatened, and endangered species including participation in recovery efforts for both plants and animals (LRMP IV-4).
7. Improve or maintain the quality of habitat on big game winter ranges (LRMP IV-4).

National Cohesive Strategy: This project is in line with the strategy. By means of prescribed fire and mechanical thinning at a landscape scale, the resulting mosaic of early and late successional forests will work toward the goal of restoring and maintaining resilient landscapes.  
State of Utah Catastrophic Wildfire Reduction Strategy: The Beaver East Enhancement Project aligns with the mission of the State of Utah's Catastrophic Wildfire Reduction Strategy. The project reduces the risk of a catastrophic wildfire occurrence negatively affecting property, air quality and water systems.  The Mission: Develop a collaborative process to protect the health and welfare of Utahns, and our lands by reducing the size and frequency of catastrophic fires (pg. 4). Under number 5. Adopt Key Recommendations from the National Cohesive Wildland Fire Management Strategy (pg. 15); Encourage federal land management agencies to expedite fuels treatments. (pg. 15) Prioritize landscapes for treatment (irrespective of jurisdictional boundaries) (pg. 15).  This proposed treatment will bring potential canopy fire to the ground and allow for greater likelihoods of successful fire suppression or wildfire utilization for resource benefits.
Grazing Allotment Plans: The amount of forage available to livestock within the affected allotments in the Beaver East Project area is expected to increase significantly as a result of this project. With the removal of pinion/juniper, the amount of grasses, forbs and sagebrush is also expected to increase significantly. With increased forage, ungulate distribution is expected to improve. 
Strategic Management Plan for Wild Tukey-Division of Wildlife Resources (UDWR 2014).  Grasses provide food for adults and are especially important to poults as an environment where they can effectively forage for insects. Poults need an environment that produces insects and in which they can efficiently forage.  Poults need an area that provides enough cover to hide them but allows the adult hen unobstructed vision for protection from predators. Phase III treatment will help improve the sage brush and grass/forb vegetation types by removing pinyon/juniper.

Richfield Field Office RMP (2008) pg 76
- Manage for a mix of vegetative types, structural stages, and provide for native plant, fish, and wildlife habitats.
-Sustain or reestablish the integrity of the sagebrush biome to provide the amount, continuity, and quality of habitat that is necessary to maintain sustainable populations of Greater sage-grouse and other sagebrush-dependent wildlife species.
MANAGEMENT ACTIONS: a. Treat areas determined to need reseeding with a variety of plant species that are desirable for wildlife habitat, livestock, watershed management, and other resource values while maintaining vegetation species diversity. b.  implement additional treatments to achieve Standards for Rangeland Health and desired vegetation condition.  Vegetation treatments conducted up to 1,472,000 acres over the life of the plan.  These acreage figures include all vegetation and fire fuels treatments.

The proposed projects will address some of the habitat management strategies outlined in the deer and elk management plans for Herd Unit #22 (Beaver)

*Continue to improve and restore sagebrush steppe habitats critical to deer according to UDWRs Habitat Initiative. Maintain habitat quantity and quality at a level adequate to support the stated population objectives while at the same time not resulting in an overall downward trend in range condition and watershed quality.

*Work cooperatively with land management agencies and private landowners to plan and implement improvement projects for the purpose of enhancing wildlife habitat and range resources in general.

*The project also helps fulfill the state mule deer management plan section IV Habitat Goal: Conserve and improve mule deer habitat throughout the state with emphasis on crucial ranges.

*The proposed projects will address the following goals and objectives of the Division of Wildlife Resources most recent strategic management plan: 
*Resource Goal: To expand wildlife populations and conserve sensitive species by protecting and improving wildlife habitat.
Objective 1: protect existing wildlife habitat and improve 500,000 acres of critical habitats and watersheds throughout the state.
Objective 3: conserve sensitive species to prevent them from becoming listed as threatened or endangered.
Constituency Goal: Achieve broad-based support for Division programs and budgets by demonstrating the value of wildlife to all citizens of Utah.
Objective 2: improve communication with wildlife organizations, public officials, private landowners, and government agencies to obtain support for Division programs.

*UDWR SR critical big game winter range are important browse communities that need to be enhanced and improved.  The Division will employ a variety of methods to achieve this including prescribed grazing, prescribed burning, reseeding and seedling transplants, also mechanical treatments.  
*Priority areas will include treatments to improve sagebrush-steppe and mountain browse communities. 
*Falls within the rangeland focus area for WRI wildlife species for mule deer and elk. 
*Richfield Field Office RMP 
- Manage for a mix of vegetative types, structural stages, and provide for native plant, fish, and wildlife (including SSS) habitats.

*SITLA Management Plans:
Correspond with the  Utah Code Title  53C Chapter Five Section 101, 102 and 103 in accordance with Management of Rangeland Resources

**I have also included in the documents tab County Resource Plans from Beaver and Piute as well as information pertaining to the Utah Statewide Plan.

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.

The need to reseed and establish a improved community of grasses, forbs, shrubs and browse species is critical to support wildlife and livestock in the future. Through restoration efforts from the USFS, UDWR, Private Landowners, BLM, and Grazing Permitees this will be a partnership that can obtain the goals and objectives by working together to restore and maintain the area's effected by the Silver King Fire.  The extensive reseeding efforts will need to take place to ensure a successful establishment of perennial grasses, forbs and shrubs will establish in the future to allow for the future reduction in wildfire behavior.  This reduction would be due to the resilient seed species being reseeded and planted, which will contribute to and help suppress fire activity in the future.  The Beaver Management Unit has experienced several wild land fire over the past 10-15 years, which include but not limited to the Thompson Ridge Fire of 2023, the Little Twist Fire of 2024, Skull Flat Fire, and Twitchell Fire.  Fuel loading has transitioned to more of a grass and shrub community over this time adding lower concentrated fuels due to cheatgrass invasion over time.  With the implementation and reseeding efforts of perennial grasses and forbs we are hopeful we can establish grasses and forbs that can complete and resist or control large scale fire behavior.

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.

Methods will include the application of aerially seeding grasses, forbs and shrubs through the use of a fixed wing or helicopter.  We would like to implement planting browse species for wildlife which will be done with a dribbler attached to one of more tracked dozers.  Implementation of the browse species will likely be done within the lower elevations of the USFS, BLM and UDWR properties.  The implementation of a "single-way" chaining along with a treatment using a "chain harrow" will be utilized to cover the seed and prepare a "seed to soil" contact for improving germination in the spring.  In addition the BLM will be utilizing Bullhog Mastication treatments on BLM property to reduce/eliminate burned trees and create litter to cover the seed as well.  All aspects of this fire Rehab treatment will be done through State Purchasing Contracting they would include but not limited to the aerial seeding flight, chaining contracts if warranted and purchasing of additional seed from GBRC.  In addition and estimated 3,100' of range land fence may need to be replaces ads well on the UDWR/FS/BLM Boundary within the fire scar.  The BLM will treat their acres in house with the seasonal/fuel employees and work with the UDWR on renting equipment to complete the treatments.

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.

Fishlake Forest Service Beaver District, BLM and UDWR will be looking at utilizing photo points within the treatment site, along with wildlife monitoring from agency Wildlife Biologist that will include spring and fall classifications of deer and elk.  Forest Service and BLM Range Conservationist will be conducting and gathering rangeland data as grass, forbs and shrubs respond to the treatments within the Silver King Fire Restoration Project.  The BLM and USFS Beaver District will also be involved with the project and overseeing their properties, making sure establishment of the grasses, forbs and shrubs are growing before grazing will return.  UDWR Habitat Biologists will be looking at the need to re-establish and build fences that boarder BLM and the USFS along with re-seeding the UDWR WMA within the Silver King Fire, and manage them in accordance with UDWR Management Plans and objectives.  We will continue to work with the adjacent agencies making sure establishment of grasses, forbs and shrubs are suitable for grazing after the two years of deferred grazing. UDWR may provide additional "Grass Bank" type grazing on our WMA to help livestock producers that have been effected by the Silver King Fire.  Monitoring for noxious weed species will be critical across this fire, all federal and state agencies will need to monitor for invasive weed species due to the disturbance of the fire and restoration treatments that will occur.  Opportunities to add additional funding in the future will be critical in controlling invasive annual grass and noxious weed species.

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.

Future Management of this project will likely include the deferral of livestock grazing on the BLM, USFS and UDWR Properties.  Livestock grazing will be deferred for at least two growing seasons or until establishment of grass, forbs and shrubs are deemed ready to be grazed.  When grazing is re-established a grazing management plan will be developed and monitored by the Beaver Forest Service Range Conservationist, and BLM Range Conservationist allowing for proper grazing management of the reseeding efforts.  UDWR Representative will also work with to ensure the seeding efforts are successful on UDWR WMA that was effected.  We will be entering into Cooperative Agreements with the private landowner for the seed donation and equipment equipment rental as well if treatments are warranted.  BLM and USFS will conduct their own assessments of the treatment response in accordance with Land use Management plans.  In addition, public roads and trails will need to be evaluated for accessibility to the public.  USFS will need to repair and or replace several watering systems, troughs, pipelines and springs after the fire.  Future funding maybe requested to replace boundary fences, interior fences and or culverts associated with USFS, BLM and UDWR properties.  The ever needed attention will be placed on the debris basins as flooding will occur, causing heavy debris flows towards the town of Marysvale, associated with Bullion Canyon, Beaver Creek and Deer Creek tributaries.

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.

No direct livestock benefit as of right now due to the Silver King Fire, within the USFS, BLM, UDWR and Private properties that where effected by the fire.  Through Private, State and Federal Agencies Fire Rehab efforts and restoration work will prepare us for the future benefits in the years to come.  Through these restoration efforts we will be able to reseed and hopefully single chain portions of the Silver King Fire with perennial grasses, forbs, shrubs and browse species that will contribute to improved rangeland health conditions, increase water production for grasses species and improved water quality and quantity in the future as well. Overall grazing permittees should see improved forage production and better weight gain and overall, calf production in the future due to the restoration efforts that are to take place through this fire rehab effort.  Opportunities to improve the northeast side of the Beaver Management Unit will allow for additional forage and habitat for elk, mule deer and turkeys within this area.  Within the USFS opportunities to reconstruct and rebuilt recreation areas is critical, motorized roads and campgrounds where effected by the Silver King Fire and will need to be evaluated for public use in the future.

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.