City Creek and Parleys Canyon watersheds provide critical open space and drinking water to Salt Lake City. Roughly 25% of the culinary water supply for the 440,000 people in the Salt Lake City Department of Public Utilities' service area comes from these watersheds. City Creek Canyon also acts as an urban sanctuary located just one mile from the State Capitol. The project area provide critical summer and winter habitat for mule deer, black bear, ruffed & dusky grouse, elk, moose, turkey and their respective predators. Hunting is permitted in season, motor vehicle access is limited for watershed protection, and millions of visitors utilize these canyons each year. In addition, the Parleys Canyon project area borders an important brood stock population of Bonneville cutthroat trout in Parleys Creek and Little Dell Reservoir. A history of intensive grazing prior to watershed protection and early infrastructure development for pipelines, power lines, and communication towers created the opportunity for invasive plants to establish and spread in these canyons. In particular, Yellow Starthistle dominates open areas in City Creek and Parleys Canyons -- encroaching on native forb and grass communities which provide critical browse for wildlife and threaten the overall ecological condition and water quality of these watersheds. Yellow Starthistle is a Utah State listed noxious weed and can outcompete native range and forage plants. Its crown of toxic thorns makes the plant unpalatable to wildlife and stock and causes 'chewing disease' in several species if ingested. The thorns also severely restrict recreational use. Most importantly however Yellow Starthistle threatens water quality and quantity due to catastrophic changes in watershed vegetation, increased fire threat, and erosion. This project will provide invasive species control of 182 acres of concentrated Yellow Starthistle infestations in City Creek and Parleys Canyons. The project's main focus is stamping out the smaller fires of pioneering populations dispersed by wind, ungulates and humans for the purpose of improving biodiversity, big game wildlife habitat and forage, and protecting water quality while attempting to keep the larger populations in place and hopefully reduce their size. The project will also benefit Bonneville cutthroat trout and several non-game species. In addition to treating the uplands SLCDPU will partner with UDWR and Salt Lake County Flood Control to improve the riparian habitat along to catchment basins along City Creek. The basins will be dredged, phragmites mitigated, erosion issues fixed, wetland vegetation planted and angler access improved. This project will benefit bonneville cuthtroat trout and other fish species, improve the wetland habitat for birds and other wildlife, and improve angler access.

1. Treat 182 acres of concentrated Yellow Starthistle infestations in City Creek and Parleys Canyon. 2. Treat roughly 1 acre of phragmites near the mouth of City Creek Canyon in the riparian zone. 3. Install riprap to increase access near popular fishing access. 4. Reseed 12 acres of treated areas previously disturbed by Yellow Starthistle. 5. Release biocontrols specific to Yellow Starthistle in remote locations. 6. Target smaller pioneer populations in remote, hard to reach areas, to prevent these infestations from expanding. 7. Protect a critical drinking water supply area. 8. Restore and enhance wildlife habitat, recreation, and ecological conditions. 9. Prevent the spread of infestations into pristine waters supply areas and fish and wildlife habitat including habitat for a brood stock population of Bonneville cutthroat trout. 10. Continue efforts of control & remediation of past UWRI grants. 11. Continue monitoring and mapping of invasive species to evaluate changes over time as part of adaptive management plan. 12. Augment & coordinate with US Forest Service and Salt Lake County's efforts to control Yellow Starthistle in Parleys and City Creek Canyons. 13. Augment & coordinate with US Forest Service's efforts to control Yellow Starthistle in Davis County on federal land.

1. Decreased water quality and quantity due to catastrophic changes in watershed vegetation. 2. Altered fire regime and increased fire threat in a drinking water supply area. 3. Loss of biodiversity and ecosystem conditions due to invasive species monoculture. 4. Decreased habitat for wildlife and native plants. 5. Decreased recreation use in highly valued community open space. 6. Increased risk of infestation spillover due to high levels of recreational utilization of project areas. 7. Threat of phragmites spreading to other areas if not treated and loss of wildlife habitat. 8. Loss of fishing opportunity.

According to the Utah Comprehensive Wildlife Conservation Strategy Habitat Categories, this project is located within a transition zone of shrub steppe to Northern oak and mountain shrub habitats. City Creek is a narrow canyon covering a 19 square miles and Parleys Canyon is broader covering 50 square miles. Both watersheds peak at elevation 9,400 ft. These high quality watersheds provide critical habitat and forage for big game including mule deer, elk, and moose. The Utah Wildlife Action Plan The treatments within the riparian areas of City Creek are located on the border of aquatic forested aquatic scrub/shrub habitat as identified in the WAP. Parleys Creek, Lambs Creek, and Little Dell Reservoir are managed for Bonneville cutthroat trout and all project areas provide drinking water for the Salt Lake City metropolitan area. The Yellow Starthistle infestations targeted in this proposal seriously compromise these critical shrub steppe habitats and wildlife forage, and threaten the integrity of the riparian habitats as well. This project will further two of three goals of Utah Watershed Restoration Initiative by restoring and managing these diverse watersheds to enhance "wildlife and biological diversity" and "water quality and yield for all uses." Salt Lake City Department of Public Utilities owns 30,139 acres of land in City Creek, Emigration, Parleys, Mill Creek, Big Cottonwood, and Little Cottonwood Canyons for the purpose of protecting drink water quality. To further this goal, the Department of Public Utilities focuses on land stewardship and invasive species control in City Creek and Parleys Canyon and works cooperatively with the US Forest Service, Utah Department of Transportation, Salt Lake County, and Cottonwood Canyons Foundation to ensure that invasive plant species are also controlled within all areas of the protected watershed. This project is beneficial to Salt Lake City Department of Public Utilities' efforts to create and implement a watershed wide, collaborative integrated invasive species management plan. The City's invasive species management plan was developed and is implemented as part of the Bonneville Cooperative Weeds Management Area (BCWMA) and its participants. Watershed Wasatch Legacy Partnership -- Priority Project The Wasatch Legacy Partnership is a collaborative effort between the Uinta-Wasatch-Cache National Forest, Snowbird, Brighton, Alta, Solitude, The Cottonwood Canyons Foundation, the Friends of Alta, the Salt Lake Climbers Alliance, the SLC Department of Public Utilities, SL County, the National Forest Foundation, the Town of Alta, Save our Canyons along with other organizations. Focusing on collaborative projects as both stewards of the landscape and existing recreational opportunities, eradicating Yellow Starthistle was selected as a project and priority for the collective. This prioritization had funding in years past but will most likely not see funding from the USFS in summer 2015 due funding shortages. SLCDPU will still continue its control efforts. Utah Mule Deer Plan Corresponding (past) goals that this grant application supports: Habitat Objective 1: Maintain Mule deer habitat throughout the state by protecting and enhancing existing crucial habitats and mitigating those for losses due to natural and human impacts. Strategy b: Work with land management agencies and private landowners to identify and properly manage crucial mule deer habitats, especially fawning and wintering areas. The project area is a wintering area for mule deer. Habitat Objective 2: Improve the quality and quantity of vegetation for mule deer on a minimum of 500,000 acres of crucial range by 2013. Strategy C: Initiate broad scale vegetative treatment projects to improve mule deer habitat ... Utah Elk Plan Corresponding goals that this grant application supports: Habitat Objective Goal 2. "Improve the quality and quantity of forage and cover on 250,000 acres of elk habitat with emphasis on calving habitat and upper elevation elk winter range by the end of this plan" and Strategy N, "Work with state and federal land management agencies and county weed boards to control the spread of noxious and invasive weeds throughout the range of elk in Utah," and Strategy D, "Initiate broad scale vegetative treatment projects to improve elk habitat with emphasis on calving habitat and winter ranges." City Creek is a heavily utilized wintering ground by elk herds, as evidenced by the fact that game retrieval permits are regularly issued in winter months during late season cow elk hunts. Forest Plan of the Uinta Wasatch Cache National Forest Service: Desired Condition Established noxious weed infestations are not increasing or reduced to low densities. New invader species are not becoming established. New infestations of species are contained or reduced. New populations of existing noxious weeds are eradicated or reduced in highly susceptible, often disturbed, areas. Native plants dominate most landscapes that have been rehabilitated. Forest-Wide Goals and Objectives: Goals: 2a. Identify areas not in properly functioning condition. Improve plant species composition, ground coverand age class diversity in these areas. 2b. Maintain and/or improve water quality to provide stable and productive riparian and aquatic ecosystems. 2f. Maintain water in streams, lakes, and wetlands of adequate quantity and quality to provide for instream flows and existing downstream uses including support of healthy riparian & aquatic habitats, stability & effective function of stream channels, ability to route flood discharges, and to maintain recreation opportunities. 2i. Maintain and/or restore soil productivity to improve watershed functioning through managing groundcover, soil compaction, and vegetation. 2j. Maintain and/or restore habitat to sustain populations of well distributed native and desired non-native plant, vertebrate, and invertebrate populations that contribute to viability of riparian dependent communities. 3b. Maintain pollinators and minimize impacts to pollinators or their habitats. 3d. Restore or maintain fire-adapted ecosystems (consistent with land uses, historic fire regimes, and other Forest Plan direction) through wildland fire use, prescribed fire, timber harvest or mechanical treatments. See Forestwide Guideline (G for desired landscape structure and patterns. 3f. Maintain or restore species composition, such that the species that occupy any given site are predominantly native species in the kind and amount that were historically distributed across the landscapes. 3l. Provide suitable habitat for prey species such as hares, squirrels, and small mammals. 3n. Maintain or restore aquatic and riparian habitats, through recognition and management of Riparian Habitat Conservation Areas (defined in Glossary) for metapopulations of cutthroat trout, recognizing the relative degree to which these fish depend on National Forest lands and conditions of these habitats off-forest. 3o. Provide adequate habitat components for sustainable big game populations coordinated with State wildlife management agencies, private lands and other resource needs and priorities. 3q. In revegetation projects establish a variety of native species (avoiding monocultures). 3s. Greatly reduce known infestations of noxious weeds and rigorously prevent their introduction and/or spread. 4d. Reduce hazardous fuels (prescribed fire, silvicultural and mechanical treatments) with emphasis on interface communities (wildland/urban) and increase proactive participation of communities at risk. Objectives: 1.b. Develop key messages for focus areas within 1 year and set measurable education/enforcement goals. Focus areas are: OHV use, recreation user ethics, role of fire and fuels hazards, noxious weeds, and watershed health. 4.a. Treat approximately 2,000 wildland urban interface acres annually for a 10-year total of 20,000 acres. 4.c. Expand community participation in fuels treatment and restoration and assist in the development of community fire plans by assisting State and private groups to develop 3 to 5 fuel reduction plans annually. 5.f. Assess and prioritize noxious weed infestations for appropriate treatment within 1 year. Finally, when the UWRI Yellow Starthistle Management Project was initiated in FY10 outreach to the Salt Lake City community began immediately. Salt Lake City staff met with community councils and City Creek Canyon recreation user groups. The project was presented to the City Council, Public Utilities Advisory Council, and the Greater Avenues and Capitol Neighborhood Councils. These groups have been consistently supportive of Salt Lake City's and the BCWMA's invasive species control efforts. Community approval of this new project was mandatory and was achieved. In addition, Salt Lake City Public Utilities has kept neighborhood councils up to date on the progress and successes of the project with annual reporting and presentations. The broader community was also receptive to the project with the Deseret News, Salt Lake Tribune, KUTV, KSL, FOX, KCPW Radio and KUER Radio positively covering the initial helicopter spray in 2010. The Deseret News, Salt Lake Tribune and KUER Radio also followed up with stories on the success of the helicopter spray in November 2011. This community support provides the foundation for success in implementing our invasive species control plan and achieving watershed restoration in City Creek and Parleys Canyons.

The expansive presence of yellow starthistle elevates the wildfire danger within invaded habitats it occupies. The plant has a tendency to become 100% cover class, if left alone, and even outcompetes cheat grass. Given that this plant all senesces at the same time and subsequently cures in the late summer heat, it contributes the risk of wildfire in the culinary watershed area for SLCDPU. US Forest Service cited research indicates that while the plant is green, it does not carry fire as well but when in senescence, is an aggressive fine fuel. In consideration of the fact that this project proposes to treat 182 acres but many more are infested, this is an important plant of which to mitigate its impacts. The phragmites along this riparian area raises the threat of fire. These plants are very large and when dried out create a dangerous fuel source to carry fire through the riparian zone. By removing this phragmites we will be restoring green vegetation along the wetland area and providing a better fuel break to stop fire from crossing the creek. At the start of 2017, Salt Lake City is in the beginning phases of both drafting a Community Wildfire Prevention Plan as well as updating its Watershed Management Plan. In relation to the increase threat of fire, these weed populations will be considered as a threat to mitigate, especially as wildfires in the Denver region have severely impacted both water quality and quantity.

SLCDPU is a provider of culinary water for 440,000 customers on a daily basis, year round. For the past 100 years, it has been both encouraging the protection of culinary source water areas that led to the creation of the Wasatch Forest Reserve, now part of the Uinta-Wasatch-Cache National Forest, as well as purchasing land for conservation purposes. SLCDPU's land portfolio now exceeds 32,000 acres, most of which is checkerboarded between both private and public (mostly USFS lands) throughout the culinary watershed. The maintenance of the ecosystem services these canyons provide, including the minimization of catastrophic wildfires brought about by invasive plants, is one of SLCDPU's main goals. SLCDPU is highly concerned about both the water quality and quantity impacts to our source water areas that invasive weeds and their associated threats bring to the existing ecosystem services that provide a large percentage of the drinking water supply to the second most arid state in the nation's population center. Significant time and financial investments have been made by increasingly redirecting seasonal & permanent staff away from pre-existing tasks to map, spray and reseed the areas impacted by not only Yellow Star Thistle, but also other invasive weeds.

SLC Watershed Protection Ordinance 17.04 Herbicides to be used must be compliant with the approved list of herbicides outlined by Salt Lake City Watershed Protective ordinance 17.04. In addition, any plants found within 100 feet of water will be mechanically treated, compliant with ordinance requirements. The herbicides Milestone and Escort are slated for use, both are allowed via 17.04. Wasatch-Cache Noxious Weeds EIS All activities, if performed on federally managed lands, are compliant with this EIS. Phragmites Removal & Riprap Installation: -Salt Lake County Flood Control Permit required -Utah State Stream Alternation Permit not required (via Chuck Williamson) -SLC Riparian Corridor Ordinance permit required All of the areas that are treated have been previously disturbed and there will be no need for cultural surveys. If needed we will have cultural clearances before project implementation.

1. Small/Remote Populations: Ground spot spray herbicide in project area infestations June & July 2017. Due to exceedingly difficult working conditions of summer heat and steep mountainous terrain, project priority is placed on these harder to reach, pioneering populations. This is the bulk of the work for the project area. 2. Larger Populations: Ground spot spray herbicide in project areas utilizing UTVs, truck sprayers, etc. These larger populations include the main road in City Creek Canyon, Little Dell Reservoir Recreation Area and Little Dell Reservoir Mitigation Parcels. Preference is for contractor to map both treatment areas and amount of herbicide placed in these areas. 3. Reseeding: For FY 2018, the priority will be on the remote small infestations and getting other species established in these infestations. Both SLCDPU and UCC will hike to the priority remote populations in the fall. Scarification will be employed with rakes and broadcast seeders in these infestations. This will follow up Fall 2016 efforts 4. Monitor, photograph and map of Yellow Starthistle effects within the treatment areas to document effectiveness of treatments and outline priorities for 2018. 5. Phragmities treatment will involve dredging the existing detention ponds. Herbicide spot spray application will be used on remaining plants in July. The plants will then be cut with brush hogs and physically removed from the site once they have died a few weeks later. Additionally, rip rap will be placed along access points and drainage problem area. All wetland plantings will be done by hand and seed will be hand broadcast and raked into the soil. Notes: Herbicide applications will be facilitated by the Utah Conservation Corps and the Salt Lake City Department of Public Utilities. Mapping and project management will be provided by Salt Lake City Department of Public Utilities. Salt Lake City Public Utilities will provide a truck mounted herbicide sprayer, ATV herbicide sprayer, herbicide for SLCDPU efforts and backpack sprayers as well as GIS mapping hardware (iPads & collector in the field) and 4x4 trucks. SLCDPU and UCC crews will document treatment parcels and surveyed areas utilizing iPads and ESRI Collector using standardized weed mapping/treatment data dictionaries. SLCDPU will supply herbicide, surfactant and dye for the project. UCC and SLCDPU crews will use their respective backpack sprayers.

1) Treatment areas will be monitored for herbicide efficacy and to ensure that plants have reacted to application 2) Repeat applications of herbicide may be necessary, other methods of treatment may be attempted 3) Areas immediately adjacent will be surveyed for presence/absence of Yellow Starthistle and mapped 4) Photos of the riparian pond improvements will be taken prior to project implementation and one year post to determine success of project. Phragmites will continue to be watched by all partners and re-sprouts will be re-treated.

Utah Department of Transportation: Roadway control & treatment of Yellow Starthistle on SR 65. Uinta-Wasatch-Cache National Forest: Summer weed control via budgeted spray crews & applications for grants to contract with Utah Conservation Corps. Salt Lake County & Bonneville Coordinate Weed Management Association: Mowing & spot spraying along Emigration Canyon road in right of way. Purchase, release & monitoring of biocontrols in Emigration Canyon. Davis County Weed Supervisor: Coordination of awareness & spray efforts on Davis County side of the City Creek Canyon/Davis County ridgelines. Utah Division of Wildlife Resources Dedicated Hunter Program : Volunteer hours from Dedicated Hunter Program members that participate in the mechanical control of Yellow Star Thistle Populations in Parleys & City Creek Canyon. Utah Division of Forestry, Fire and State Lands: Long-term planning and coordination looking into the way in which SLC handles wildfire planning, including fuels management. Utah Division of Wildlife Biologists will help to conduct work on the riparian improvements. Salt Lake County Flood Control Dredge detention basins, review rip rap stabilization & revegetation plans to ensure compliance with storm water management master planning.

The long term goal is to reduce the need to spray the existing populations of Yellow Starthistle, restore all disturbed areas and shift into an Early Detection, Rapid Response model. Short term goals are to continue eradicating via herbicide treatment and mechanical methods while continuing the roll out of reseeding efforts with both staff and community volunteers. Reseed methodologies will be adjusted Fall 2017 based on the results observed from Fall 2016 efforts. Additionally, more biocontrols will be deployed on SLCDPU properties during 2017. However, programmatic self-analysis and field employee feedback are one of the highest priorities in facilitating this process. Both annual and period after action meetings are held with program staff to ensure goals are realistic and achievable. For example, based on employee feedback, SLCDPU is in the depths of assessing & providing more accurate numbers of what acreage is realistic to treat in drought years via this program. Re-sprouts of phragmites and other erosion issues will continue to be monitored and future re-treatments may be necessary to ensure the success of this project.

There is currently no livestock grazing allowed within the project area because of the protective ordinances for the watershed areas (Salt Lake City 17.04, Salt Lake County Health Department Regulation #14, etc.) which do not allow domestic livestock in these areas. However, the project greatly benefiting livestock by preventing the spread of starthistle to areas where grazing is allowed. If this plant continues to spread in these areas it is more likely to reach other areas where grazing is allowed. This weed will be greatly detrimental to the forage availability of these areas as it takes over and becomes a mono-culture.

08/01/2017

06/30/2018

2018

Methods 1. 110 Acres of Yellow Starthistle treated with herbicide 2. 22.23 acres reseeded post treatment 3. 16,240 bugs specific to Yellow Starthistle released 4. 1 angler access enhancement, combined with restoration via wetland plantings and phragmites removal.

Salt Lake City Department of Public Utilities (SLCDPU) is the fortunate recipient of funding to implement UWRI Project #4040, Salt Lake County Yellow Starthistle Mitigation. This project focused extensively on the treatment of Yellow Starthistle (YST) in targeted locations, along with some work to enhance angler opportunity on a detention basin on City Creek by creation of a platform and phragmites removal. SLCDPU treated more YST infestation acres this year through focusing on prioritized areas based on GIS analysis of 2015, 2016 and 2017 seasons. The better availability of contracted youth corps and weather window also contributed to more success. The weather window greatly impacts ability to treat YST, which goes dormant after growth in drought conditions. Additionally, project partners sprayed phragmites in City Creek catchment ponds in the fall of 2017 with Aquaneet herbicide. Wetland species seedlings were then planted along the banks in the spring of 2018. Cobble rock material was also placed along the banks of the pond to reduce erosion and improve fisherman access.

The larger challenge with current YST infestation remains the lack of funding, labor resources and time to treat all known infestations in the project area. As a result, SLCDPU is collaborating with partners to document entirety of infestation in Salt Lake County. This will help broader strategizing with partners and leverage community resources. Additionally, given that YST is a winter annual, based on the success of experimental winter treatments suggested by agency partners, treatment windows will be shifted. Re-seeding efforts will continue to be experimental. Based on the failure of the majority of fall reseeding and the small successes of spring reseeding, timing will be shifted. The use of blankets and mats have also shown small glimmers of hope in this endeavor. Development of this methodology continues, any input is welcome. All program activities will continue to be methodically documented with ESRI collector.