The West Valley Fire burned mainly within the Pine Valley Mountain Wilderness Area. Along the peripheral edges of the burn and in the surrounding valley bottoms there is undesirable annual grasses (cheatgrass) present. The purpose of this treatment is that aerial seeding native and non-native grasses into these areas at highest risk for invasive plant invasion may provide perennial cover where they establish in the burned area and reduce some of the relative frequency of these invasive plants. This would provide a buffer to the Pine Valley Mountain Wilderness to protect against further proliferation of invasives. In burned areas below approximately 8,000 feet elevation there is a need to seed with species that can compete with invasive and undesired plant species and provide bank stabilization to reduce the amount of sediment runoff into perennial streams. Reservoir canyon contains a remnant population of Bonneville cutthroat trout.

The main objectives are to; re-establish a desired grass/forb vegetation component to portions of the burned area to help maintain and increase the diversity of plants, to reduce the amount of undesirable encroaching annual grasses and noxious weeds in these areas, and to provide bank stabilization to reduce the amount of sedimentation into perennial streams.

If left untreated the burned area may be highly encroached with undesired annual grasses such as cheat grass. This area is highly used by mule deer in the spring for fawning and summer for cover and foraging. Risk to agricultural water supplies is High to Very High based on a Likely to Very Likely probability of damage or loss, and Moderate magnitude of consequences. Impacts of recent flooding on Grass Valley Diversion have already occurred.

1) Utah Division of Wildlife Resources Statewide Management Plan for Mule deer. Section IV Statewide management goals and objectives. This plan will address 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 (p11-12). Strategy C. Initiate broad scale vegetative treatment projects to improve mule deer habitat with emphasis on drought or fire damaged sagebrush winter ranges, ranges that are being taken over by invasive annual grass species, and ranges being diminished by encroachment of conifers into sagebrush or aspen habitats. Burned area is in crucial summer and winter range. Seeding the project area will help mitigate potential annual grass species encroachment. 2) Pine Valley Deer Herd Management Plan, Deer Herd Unit # 30 (April 2006) -Habitat management objectives: Maintain and/or enhance forage production through direct range improvements throughout the unit on winter and summer range to achieve population management objectives. Seeding burned area will help maintain forage production in summer and winter range to maintain population objectives. 3) North American Mule Deer Conservation Plan (Mule Deer Working Group 2004). A) Mule deer habitat Objectives and Strategies-Develop and implement habitat treatment protocols that reduce the impacts of cheatgrass or other invasive plants. B) Manage mule deer habitat in a fashion to control type conversions (i. e., conversion of rangeland to croplands, and shrublands to monotypic pinyon-juniper stands) (Pg. 7). Seeding burned area will help reduce the impacts of cheatgrass in this area by establishing desired grasses and forbs. 4) National Fire Plan (NFP) - Primary Goals: 1) Improve fire prevention and suppression; 2) Restore fire adapted ecosystem. 5) Accompanying (NFP) 10 year Comprehensive Strategy - Guiding Principles: 3) Prevent invasive species and restore watershed function and biological communities through short-term stabilization and long-term rehabilitation; 4) Restore healthy, diverse, and resilient ecological system to minimize uncharacteristically severe fires on a priority watershed basis through long-term restoration. Seeding the burned area will help mitigate encroaching invasive species. 6) State of Utah-Catastrophic Wildfire Reduction Strategy-Protecting the health and welfare of Utahns and our lands. Priority Action Areas- Southwest Region 6, Iron County. 7) Utah Comprehensive Wildlife Conservation Strategy- A) Conservation actions-Protect and rehabilitate remaining low elevation habitat for Mule Deer (pg. 6-60). B) Key Actions- Control invasive vegetation and plant desirable plants (Pg. K-11). 8) Strategic Management Plan for Wild Tukey-Division of Wildlife Resources (UDWR 2000, Publication 00-25). 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. Seeding will help establish desirable grass and forbs to provide insect habitat for wild turkey's. 9) Dixie NF Noxious Weed Management Plan (EA 2000). Scotch Thistle and other invasive plants.

This project will help to prevent the establishment of annual grasses and noxious weeds that are more prone to fire and will change the fire frequency. Seeding will also help to reduce the risk of future fires by having vegetation that holds more moisture later into the summer.

The fire burned in portions of Main Canyon and Mill Canyon that flow to Grass Valley Creek, the upper headwaters of Santa Clara River that flow to Pine Valley, Anderson Valley, and minor portions of headwaters to Comanche Canyon.The canyon walls are steep with 50-90 % slopes on the mid-slopes. Slopes in the higher elevations above 8,000 ft. are less than 40% on average with frequent steep cliffs of rock outcrops. The majority of fire area is located in the Grass Valley Creek (150100080701) and North Ash Creek (150100080403) 6th HUC watersheds. 6th HUC watersheds with minor areas affected are Headwaters of Santa Clara River (150100080702), Wet Sandy-Ash Creek (150100080405), Ash Creek Reservoir-Ash Creek (150100080404), and Pinto Creek (150100080401). Risk Assessment: Risk to agricultural water supplies is High to Very High based on a Likely to Very Likely probability of damage or loss, and Moderate magnitude of consequences. Impacts of recent flooding on Grass Valley Diversion have already occurred. Seeding the proposed burned areas will help to reduce the amount of run-off, sedimentation and provide soil stabilization.

NEPA compliant under wildfire rehabilitation.

Aerial seed approximately 1,793 acres of the burned area using helicopter or fixed wing aircraft. These proposed seeded areas are within roadless, steep, rocky terrain making other treatments such as harrow, mastication and rangeland drill etc. not feasible.

The Forest Service will set up photo plots on different slopes, elevations, and vegetation types to monitor representative areas within this proposed seeding area during the growing season following the treatment. This will help to determine the initial success of this treatment.

U.S. Forest Service-Dixie National Forest, Utah Division of Wildlife Resources-Southern Area, NRCS, Pine Valley Allotment Permittees.

Will work with allotment permittees on resting after seeding. Most of the acres that are proposed for seeding are within steep, rocky slopes.

The fire burned area is within the Pine Valley grazing allotment for cattle. Seeding the burned area with desirable grass and forbs will maintain and/or improve the available forage for domestic livestock.

12/20/2018

12/21/2018

2019

Approximately 1,793 acres of the West Valley Fire burn area was seeded using a fixed wing aircraft.

The West Valley Fire started June 27, 2018 within the Pine Valley Mountain Wilderness area on the Pine Valley Ranger District, Dixie National Forest. The fire burned approximately 11,771 acres. Most of the burned area is located within remote, rugged country with access limited to non-motorized trails. On December 20, 2018 approximately 1,793 acres of the West Valley Fire burned area was seeded using a fixed wing aircraft. Two seed mixes were used for seeding efforts, one for the wilderness areas and one for the non-wilderness areas. The Forest Service completed a participation agreement with the Utah Division of Wildlife Resources, the contracting was completed through the State and awarded to Chuck Hammond. A fixed wing aircraft was used to seed the burned areas. The staging area was out of the Hurricane, UT. Airport. This particular airport was used based on the centralized area between the other contracts that this company was completing at the same time in the same vicinity. The seed was delivered to the Hurricane airport by GBRC out of Ephraim UT, on a semi-trailer. A Forest Service representative was on site to tie in with the operator. The weather was optimal that morning, with little wind. The overall treatment went as planned as outlined in the project proposal and contracts. Shortly after the seeding was completed, we had a light snow cover within the next couple of weeks which we felt was good timing to help the seed to germinate and give it the best opportunity for success. The only changes from the original proposal was the cost of the seed mix. The Non-Wilderness seed mix was proposed at roughly $61,745 and when mixed to ship came out at $45,662. The Native Wilderness seed mix was proposed at roughly $88,315 and came out at $59,371.

The Forest Service coordinated with the permittees on the Pine Valley Mountain Allotment prior to the proposed seeding rehabilitation treatment. An agreement was made to rest the associated pastures to allow for optimal success of the seeding. The Forest Service will continue to monitor the success of the seeding by photo plots and long-term vegetation monitoring sites that are within and near the treatment areas.