The Strawberry Valley is a very important area for sage grouse. There are large expanses of sagebrush that provide great nesting and brood-rearing habitat. Within the 803 acre polygons, the sagebrush is very thick and is out competing the grasses and forbs that are important during brood-rearing. Approximately 500 acres will be treated mechanically, creating a mosaic of dense sagebrush areas with open spaces that have diverse grass/forb community.

-Decrease sagebrush cover from >35% to 15% or less within the treated polygons. -Increase native forb cover by 5%. -Increase native perennial grass by 5%.

The main risk that this project addresses is the risk of sage grouse nesting and brood-rearing habitat turning into non-habitat. As the sagebrush canopy cover increases to 40% or more, the area is considered non-habitat for sage grouse. This project would reduce the density of sagebrush canopy and will promote grasses and forbs.

This project will help reach 8 goals, objectives and/or strategies of the following planning documents. This project is consistent with the recommendations outlined in the Utah Sage-grouse Management Plan Early brood-rearing habitat generally occurs relatively close to nest sites, but movements of individual broods may be highly variable (Connelly 1982, Gates 1983). Early brood-rearing habitats may be relatively open (14 percent canopy cover) stands of sagebrush when compared to optimum nesting habitat (Martin 1970, Wallestad 1971), but sage-grouse prefer > 15% canopy cover of forbs and grasses (Sveum et al. 1998, Bunnell et al. 2000). High plant species richness with abundant forbs and insects characterize brood areas (Dunn and Braun 1986, Klott and Lindzey 1989, Drut et al. 1994, Apa 1998). Insects, especially ants and beetles, are an important food component of early brood-rearing habitat (Drut et al. 1994, Fischer 1996, Baxter 2003). As herbaceous plants mature and dry, hens usually move their broods to mesic sites during June and July where more succulent vegetation and greater insect abundance is available (Gill 1965, Klebenow 1969, Connelly and Markham 1983, Connelly et al. 1988, Fischer et al. 1996, Bunnell et al. 2000). Sage-grouse broods occupy a variety of habitats during summer including sagebrush, relatively small burned areas within sagebrush, wet meadows, farmland, and other irrigated areas adjacent to sagebrush habitats (Savage 1969, Martin 1970, Connelly and Markham 1983, Gates 1983, Connelly et al. 1988, Pyle and Crawford 1996). Late brood-rearing habitats are highly variable. Patterson (1952) reported that sage-grouse move from summer to winter range in October but during mild late fall weather some birds may still use summer range. Fall movements to winter range are slow and meandering and occur from late August to December (Connelly et al. 1988). Wallestad (1975) documented a shift in feeding habits from September, when grouse were consuming a large amount of forbs, to December when birds were feeding only on sagebrush. The need for this action is identified in the sage-grouse conservation strategy of the Strawberry Valley Adaptive Resource Management Local Working Group. Strategy 2: Maintain and where possible, improve grass/forb component in the understory in nesting and brood-rearing areas. Action 2.3: Conduct vegetation treatments to improve forb diversity. This project is consistent with the following sub-goals of the 2003 Land and Resource Management Plan for the Uinta NF: * Sub-goal 2-6: "Ecosystems on the Forest provide and maintain viable and well-distributed populations of flora and fauna. New listings of threatened, endangered, and sensitive species as a result of Forest Service management activities are avoided." * Sub-goal 2-8: "Ecosystem resilience is maintained by providing for a full range of seral stages and age classes (by cover type) that achieve a mosaic of habitat conditions and diversity to meet a variety of desired resource management objectives. Recruitment and sustainability of some early seral species and vegetation communities in the landscape are necessary to maintain ecosystem resilience to perturbations." Statewide Mule Deer Management Plan -Continue to support and provide leadership for the Utah Watershed Restoration Initiative, which emphasizes improving sagebrush-steppe, aspen, and riparian habitats throughout Utah. -Seek opportunities through the Watershed Restoration Initiative to improve aspen communities that provide crucial summer habitat for mule deer. Deer Herd Unit #17 Management Plant (Wasatch Mountains) -Work with public land management agencies to develop specific vegetative objectives to maintain the quality of important deer use areas. -Cooperate with federal land management agencies and private landowners in carrying out habitat improvement projects.

Fire risk and threats are low in this area. The way that this project could affect fire is that the sagebrush will be broken into patches so the fire won't spread as quickly through the area. Also, the decrease the flame lengths and fire intensity will decrease the difficulty of suppression.

Increasing the perennial herbaceous understory in this area will protect the many tributaries that flow into the Strawberry Reservoir. As the sagebrush cover increases, the understory is out competed, decreases in quantity, and allows more sediments to move into the stream.

NEPA was completed in spring of 2019, and the cultural clearance was completed in the summer of 2019.

Within the polygons, a mosaic pattern within the dense sagebrush will be created using a variety of mechanical treatments. Of the 803 acres identified, approximately 500 will be actually treated. Each small polygon will be harrowed 2-ways. A buffer of 1-way harrowing will surround each polygon. In areas immediately next to any tributaries, the sagebrush will be removed with a mower to prevent a short period of sedimentation into the rivers. This treatment will be done in the fall (Late August - October) of 2020 to avoid impacting nesting birds. This project will be monitored for three years after implementation for noxious weeds. If any noxious weeds are found, treatments will occur to prevent any outbreaks.

Habitat Assessment Framework (HAF) studies were done in FY16-17. These studies will help determine where treatments are needed. Additional photo points may be establish in areas that are not covered by the HAF studies. These photo points will give us a long term look at these treatments and how effective the treatments are in meeting our objectives. The Strawberry Valley Pre-treatment Project was accomplished in FY19. The purpose of this project was to go into Horse Creek area and pre-treat for noxious weeds. Pre-treating would help prevent the spread of weeds as we mechanically treat the area.

DWR and USFS will continue to plan out the treatment areas and crews from both agencies will be used to flag the polygons this summer. Implementation will occur in the fall. DWR will be coordinating the implementation, with the help of USFS. The USFS will take the lead on post-treatment weed monitoring, but DWR will remain in the loop and will assist, if needed. The Strawberry Valley Adaptive Resource Management group (SVARM) has also been very instrumental in the planning of this project. This group has met in the field to discuss the current condition of the sagebrush community in Strawberry Valley, the success/lessons learned of past projects, and where we should proceed to next.

As we monitor the project over the next 10 years, we will be able to determine if we need to do any additional treatments. Re-treatments will to be discussed and employed to ensure the maintenance of the sage grouse habitat. Other treatment methods will be accessed to maintain high quality sage grouse habitat. Noxious weeds will be monitored and treatments will occur, when needed. Future management for livestock, recreation, wildlife, and fishing will remain the same.

A portion of this project is within an active livestock allotment. Any treatments conducted within the allotment will increase forage for livestock. This project will not disrupt any livestock operations. The portions outside the allotment will serve as a grass bank for any potential future livestock usage. This project should help increase the sage grouse population in this management area. Currently, sage grouse are not allowed to be hunted in this management area, but increasing the population may provide future hunting opportunities. These treatments are between a travel route and the reservoir. Reducing the density of sagebrush will allow for easier walking access for anglers.

08/02/2020

10/13/2020

2021

The West Strawberry Sagebrush treatment project chained harrowed 407 acres of thick sagebrush near Strawberry reservoir. A 24 foot chain harrow was used to 2-way harrow sagebrush habitat. The 2nd harrow pass was done in the opposite direction from the first pass. Horse creek and Chipman creek areas were the 2 areas where treatments were focused. Treatment polygons varied in size from a few acres to 61 acres. Treatment borders are irregular in shape to look more natural. This treatment was done to enhance the herbaceous understory and improve brood rearing habitat for sage grouse. No seed was applied. Past harrow projects in this area have shown a good response of the existing perennial grasses and forbs.

Treatment areas were identified by the U.S. Forest Service. Proposed treatment polygons were drawn using aerial imagery then flagged on the ground using geo referenced PDF maps on smartphones. Changes were made to proposed treatment polygons due to unforeseen obstacles and patches of thick low rabbitbrush which were avoided if possible. The contractor was furnished with a referenced PDF map and the polygon borders were flagged.

The U.S. Forest Service, Heber Ranger District is responsible for managing the project area.