We will be installing 25 beaver dam analogue structures (See Attached Documents for More Info on BDAs) in the Vernon and Little Valley Creeks to improve the habitat for wildlife. The sage-grouse population in the Sheeprocks SGMA is struggling to survive and particularly needs this project to help benefit chick production and survival. Population numbers have dropped so low that there is concern that this population will be extirpated in the near future unless we do something to help them. This year the UDWR translocated birds to the area to augment the population, but the root causes of the population decline need to be addressed in order to ensure the future of this population. One of the likely causes for their decline is habitat loss and degradation. One of the most important habitat types for sage-grouse is wet meadow habitat with lots of forbs. This habitat type provides high nutrient vegetation and insects which are crucial, especially for young chick development. Because sage-grouse have high mortality rates and are not long-lived birds, it is important to recruit as many new individuals to the population every year to maintain population numbers. Vernon Creek and Little Valley Creek are located within prime brood-rearing habitat. Vernon Creek has been degraded and channelized in spots from human causes, livestock damage, and erosion. The stream historically likely had beavers that would dam the stream and create meanders, thus flooding the stream. This flooding would water a larger area and produce more forb species along the banks. These forbs would produce more food for wildlife like sage-grouse. The loss of this habitat has likely attributed to the decline in sage-grouse. We plan to use beaver dam analogues to replace the lost ecological function that would exist if beavers were in the system and to repair damage that has been caused by other means. This action will greatly enhance the habitat for sage-grouse and many other wildlife species.

1. Increase the amount and quality of green high protein content vegetation in sage-grouse brood rearing habitat. 2. Restore the vegetation around the Vernon Creek to provide greater insect quantities for sage-grouse to consume during critical developmental stages. 3. Improve the riparian and aquatic habitat surrounding spring habitats associated with the riparian corridor 4. Improve the water quantity and quality. 5. Restore the ecosystem surrounding the creek. 6. Create a larger fire break to protect important habitat by increasing the width of the green vegetation around the creek. 7. Reduce invasive weeds from establishing in disturbed areas.

If we do not conduct this project we: 1. Risk of losing the Sheeprocks Sage-grouse population. 2. Will continue to see degradation of Vernon Creek and this may increase costs of future restoration. 3. Will continue to see loss of value to aquatic species of the main spring in the corridor 4. Risk reducing water quality and quantity. 5. May see increase fire risk from not increasing the green vegetation along the stream bank as a fire break.

Wildlife Action Plan 1. Under the threats, data gaps, and action section of the plan it identifies a list of Essential Conservation Actions. It states the need to restore and improve degraded wildlife habitats. species and others. 2. The habitat type that this project is located in as identified in the WAP is the aquatic scrub/shrub type. We will be improving the habitat in this key habitat and addressing the threats to this habitat type. 3. The plan identifies sediment transport imbalance as a medium threat to this habitat type and this project will help to reduce sediment transport by stabilizing the banks with vegetation and rocks. 4.It identifies channel down-cutting as a high threat and this project will help to remove the channels in the stream and make a more subtle gradient. This project will raise the water levels to restore the floodplain and reduce this channel down-cutting. 5. The plan mentions a management strategy that this project addresses to help improve this habitat type through 1.( restoring more natural water and sediment flow regimes) Utah State Sage-grouse Management Plan Beaver Management Plan Watershed Restoration 1. Support restoration of beaver and adequate protection where establishing 2. Consider using beaver as a stream restoration tool 3. Beaver are a good tool that could be used to restore degraded riparian communities that could benefit many other wildlife species 4.Need to consider the site characteristics of the locations where beaver will be relocated/re-introduced enough vegetation to support a beaver population 5. Potential benefits of aspen/cottonwood restoration in improving beaver habitat Outreach and Education Objective 1: Increase awareness of and appreciation for the role of beaver in Utah's ecosystems in 10% of stakeholders (landowners, educators, recreationalists, sportsmen, water rights holders) by 2020. We will be working with private landowners and citizen scientists to educate them about importance of beavers in ecosystem. 4. Establish at least one showcase beaver management area in each UDWR Region. Objective 2: Improve the understanding of all UDWR and other governmental agency employees involved in beaver management and assure consistent transmission of information and application of management actions through 2020. Watershed Restoration Objective 1: Work to improve riparian habitats, associated streams and wetlands in a minimum of 10 tributaries through translocating beaver into unoccupied suitable habitat on public and/or private land by 2020. This project will not be translocating beavers at this time to this area, but through the use of BDAs we will be re-introducing the functionality of beavers in the system. Also we will be improving the habitat and preparing an area so that in the future beavers can be re-introduced. Statewide Mule Deer Management Plan Habitat Objective1: Maintain mule deer habitat throughout the state by protecting and enhancing existing crucial habitats and mitigating for losses due to natural and human impacts Habitat Objective 2: Improve the quality and quantity of vegetation for mule deer on a minimum of 500,000 acres of crucial range by 2019. Statewide Elk Managment Plan 1. Increase forage production by annually treating a minimum of 40,000 acres of elk habitat. 2. Maintain sufficient habitat to support elk herds at population objectives and reduce competition for forage between elk and livestock. Statewide Turkey Managment Pan III. ISSUES AND CONCERNS High Priority: Urgent and Important Issue H2. Insufficient Winter Habitat Concern A. Starvation during severe weather. Concern B. Winter overutilization of urban and agricultural areas Objective 1.Stabilize populations that are declining outside of natural population fluctuations; especially through catastrophic events (i.e. following fires, severe winters, etc.). Strategy c:ess limiting factors. Objective 2ƒ Increase wild turkey habitat, quality and quantity, by 40,000 acres statewide by 2020.Strategy d:Conduct habitat improvement projects in limiting habitat(s). Habitat Objective1: Maintain mule deer habitat throughout the state by protecting and enhancing existing crucial habitats and mitigating for losses due to natural and human impacts Habitat Objective 2: Improve the quality and quantity of vegetation for mule deer on a minimum of 500,000 acres of crucial range by 2019.

This project will increase the sinuosity of the stream, raise the water table, slow water movement through the system and reconnect the channel with its historic floodplain. This will increase the amount of riparian vegetation which will create a larger fuel break to stop fires from spreading and destroying more critical wildlife habitat. It will also create a location where firefighters can more easily combat the fire.

Currently in areas where the stream-bank has been stripped of vegetation due to erosion, resulting in more downcutting, this leads to further erosion and diminished water quality. This project will help to raise the water levels and allow for more vegetation to be growing near the water to stabilize the banks. This will help increase the water quality and quantity in the system. This project will also slow the flow of water which will decrease the amount of erosion that will occur in big flood events. Slowing the water will also increase the quantity of water that is able to seep into the soil and benefit the system. This will also hold water longer upstream and increase the length of time that the reservoir downstream can hold water, thus increasing its capacity and water quantity.

NEPA analysis or other types of assessments will be carried out prior to the implementation of the project. We are working with the U.S. Forest Service to complete these impact assessments. The UDWR will conduct the archaeological clearances in-house for this project. They will be conducted in early spring, when snow has melted, and prior to project implementation.

We will conduct monitoring with the Utah Wild Project of sites prior to BDA installation to assess their condition. Following this we will construct the BDAs with sharpened lodgepole fence posts, approximately 3-4" diameter. They will be driven into the ground will a gas post pounder into the stream channel. The posts will extend about 1 m above the channel bed. The posts will be spaced approximately 0.5 - 0.8 m apart, and driven to a depth of approximately 1 m into the streambed. We will then weave willow branches or other tree branches that are available onsite between the posts to create a structure that will look like a beaver dam. The willows will help to slow the water but will also allow fish to pass through. We will then reinforce the posts with stream bed material at the base of the posts. The idea is that the dams will last until sediment is piled up at the dam and vegetation begins to grow and the stream channel rises and floods. We will place dams about 30 - 100 m apart, depending on where they need to go. After a year we will assess the health of the stream again and determine what progress has been made.

In this proposal we are asking for funds to help do extensive monitoring of the success of this project. Allison Jones from the Wild Utah Project has been a co-author in developing a Rapid Stream-Riparian Assessment (RSRA) monitoring methodology (See Attached). She along with Dr. Peter Stacey will be coming to train UDWR biologists to conduct the assessment and will help conduct the "pre-BDA" assessments to gather data on instream and riparian habitat function and conditions prior to project implementation. They will also be bringing many citizen scientists that are interested in helping the ecosystem to help conduct the pre-BDA assessments. Post project implementation, the UDWR will be able to replicate the assessments with some of those same citizen scientist volunteers and determine success of the project. RSRA is a comprehensive method of measuring multiple factors attributing to stream and riparian health, and uses both qualitative and quantitative field indicators that contribute to the final score of stream and riparian health and function

The Utah Division of Wildlife Resources is partnering with the U.S. Forest Service which is the primary land owner where these BDAs will be placed. We will also work with adjacent private landowners to place a few BDAs and work with the NRCS to help partner in that effort. The Wild Utah Project is also partnering to provide expertise in monitoring the health of the stream prior to project implementation, as well as post impelmentation. They previously have come to onsite visits to determine need for BDAs in this area. The BLM has also provided their aquatics specialist to do a prior site visit of the stream.

We will continue to monitor the success of these BDAs in the future and make any repairs or adjustments as needed to ensure their success. We may do future plantings or seeding if necessary as well. The Forest Service will work with the UDWR to continue to build upon these improvements to benefit the habitat in this area. There may be further work to introduce aquatic species. There will also be further translocations of sage-grouse to this area to augment the SheepRock population. The U.S. Forest Service will monitor grazing to see if fencing will need to be built in the future, or whether reductions in livestock grazing will be needed, to ensure the success of the project.

Livestock that utilize this area will benefit by having an increase in vegetation around the stream which will increase the amount of available forage. They will also be able to access the water more easily without causing added damage to the stream bank.

09/01/2017

03/01/2018

2018

We first got all the NEPA and Stream Alteration Permitting done to build BDAs on the Vernon and LIttle Valley Creeks. We began Rapid Stream Health Assessment monitoring on the Vernon and Little Valley Creeks in the Sheeprock Mountains in the spring of 2017. We monitored 5 different locations where we planned to put a series of Beaver Dam Analogs (BDAs). So we have a stream health assessment prior to Beaver Dam Analogue construction. We began construction of BDAs in the fall of 2017 and continued through the winter and the following spring of 2018. In total we built approximately 25 BDAs on the Vernon and Little Valley Creeks.

We installed 25 beaver dam analogue structures (See Attached Documents for More Info on BDAs) in the Vernon and Little Valley Creeks to improve the habitat for wildlife. The sage-grouse population in the Sheeprocks SGMA is struggling to survive and particularly needs this project to help benefit chick production and survival. Population numbers have dropped so low that there is concern that this population will be extirpated in the near future unless we do something to help them. This year the UDWR translocated birds to the area to augment the population, but the root causes of the population decline need to be addressed in order to ensure the future of this population. One of the likely causes for their decline is habitat loss and degradation. One of the most important habitat types for sage-grouse is wet meadow habitat with lots of forbs. This habitat type provides high nutrient vegetation and insects which are crucial, especially for young chick development. Because sage-grouse have high mortality rates and are not long-lived birds, it is important to recruit as many new individuals to the population every year to maintain population numbers. Vernon Creek and Little Valley Creek are located within prime brood-rearing habitat. Vernon Creek has been degraded and channelized in spots from human causes, livestock damage, and erosion. The stream historically likely had beavers that would dam the stream and create meanders, thus flooding the stream. This flooding would water a larger area and produce more forb species along the banks. These forbs would produce more food for wildlife like sage-grouse. The loss of this habitat has likely attributed to the decline in sage-grouse. We plan to use beaver dam analogues to replace the lost ecological function that would exist if beavers were in the system and to repair damage that has been caused by other means. This action will greatly enhance the habitat for sage-grouse and many other wildlife species.

We will continue to watch dams and add willow branches to build the dams higher as they fill up with sediment. The idea is to bring the stream bottom back up to where there is no steep banks to allow more vegetation to grow along the floodplain. We will also continue to build BDAs in area that need them in later phases of this project. After about 5 years we will go back and to stream health assessments again to see how we have changed the health of the stream.