The Sheeprock population of greater sage-grouse is in peril. Declining population trends over the past 9 years have left managers with little choice but to augment the population with translocated birds. Part of the process of stabilizing the population will be aggressive predator control and vegetation treatments to improve habitat. Key threats to GRSG include conifer expansion, invasive species and fire. Since 2004, the BLM has done extensive vegetation treatments throughout the nearby Government Creek area to reduce fire threat, remove encroaching juniper and restore ecosystem resiliency. During the last two years nearly 20,000 acres of BLM and Private land have been treated to remove juniper and expand GRSG habitat. This project is designed to build on previous efforts by creating and expanding useable habitat that could used as a corridor between nesting/brood rearing habitat and winter range. To accomplish this, trees will be removed and areas where perennial understory is lacking will be seeded. A total of approximately 6,000 acres have been identified for cultural clearance. These acres will be treated over the in fall of 2020.

1) Create/expand sagebrush habitat for GRSG that could be occupied immediately after treatment. 2) Create travel corridors between brood rearing and winter habitat. 3) Mitigate the 3 major threats to GRSG: fire, conifer expansion and invasive species. 4) Increase available moisture for residual and seeded plant species by removing competition from trees. 5) Reduce crown fire potential and fuel loading by decreasing juniper cover to less than 5% immediately post treatment. 6) Improve ecosystem resiliency and meet habitat objectives defined in the BLM Utah Approved Resource Management Plan Amendment by increasing perennial grass and forb cover to >10% and >5% respectively by 3 years post treatment.

The southern side of the Sheeprocks has a high likelihood of sagebrush habitat loss due to increased fuel loading from juniper and cheatgrass which in turn elevates the risk of fire. Because of the declining GRSG population it is imperative that proactive steps be taken to minimize these threats. This project will decrease the risk of high severity wildfire by reducing fuel loading and promoting the growth of perennial understory species which are critical to maintaining ecosystem resilience.

13 management plans are referenced, some with multiple objectives. Relation to Management Plans The proposed action and alternatives are consistent with federal, state and local laws, regulations, and plans to the maximum extent possible. 1) Conservation Plan for Greater Sage-grouse in Utah, February 14, 2013. Sage-grouse Management Goal: Protect, maintain, improve and enhance sage-grouse populations and habitats within the established Sage-grouse Management Areas. 5.4.1 Aggressively remove encroaching conifers and other plant species to expand greater sage-grouse habitat where possible. 2) U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, Greater Sage-grouse (Centrocercus urophasianus) Conservation Objectives: Final Report. U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, Denver, CO. February 2013. General Conservation Objectives: 1. Stop population declines and habitat loss. 2. Implement targeted habitat management and restoration. Specific Conservation Objectives: 1. Retain sage-grouse habitats within PAC's. 3. Restore and rehabilitate degraded sage-grouse habitats in PAC's. Conservation Objective: Maintain and restore healthy native sagebrush plant communities within the range of sage-grouse Conservation Objective: Remove pinyon/juniper from areas of sagebrush that are most likely to support sage-grouse (post-removal) at a rate that is at least equal to the rate of pinyon/juniper incursion. - Prioritize the use of mechanical treatments. - Reduce juniper cover in sage-grouse habitats to less than 5% but preferably eliminate entirely. - Employ all necessary management actions to maintain the benefit of juniper removal for sage-grouse habitats. 3) Secretarial Order 3336 -- Implementation Plan: Rangeland, Fire Prevention, Management and Restoration. Section 7b(iii) -- Expand the focus on fuels reduction opportunities and implementation Section 7b(iv) -- Fully integrate the emerging science of ecological resiliency into design of habitat management, fuels management, and restoration projects. 4) Utah Greater Sage grouse Management Plan, 2009 Publication 09-17, State of Utah, Department of Natural Resources, Division of Wildlife Resources, - Specifically the plan addresses goals outlined in part B-1.3 Public land habitat objectives; A Vegetation management, D Fire Management, and E Conifer Encroachment - 1. Reduce conifers that are encroaching on sagebrush habitats using appropriate methods, which may include: masticators, chains, chain saws, prescribed fire, etc (pp45-48). In addition it addresses goals in section B-2.3 Public land habitat restoration objectives (p 49-50). 5) Bureau of Land Management - Greater Sage-Grouse Interim Management Policies and Procedures (2011) -- This plan meets the guidelines for conservation policy and procedures in both the "Preliminary Priority Habitat" (PPH) and "Preliminary General Habitat" (PGH). Which call for implementation of vegetation treatments (e.g., pinyon/juniper removal, fuels treatments, green stripping) and associated effectiveness monitoring between Resources, Fuels Management, Emergency Stabilization, and Burned Area Rehabilitation programs to promote the maintenance of large intact sagebrush communities. 6) (2 Objectives listed) Utah Conservation Strategy (Utah Wildlife Action Plan), DWR Publication Number 15-14, State of Utah, Department of Natural Resources, Division of Wildlife Resources, Effective 2015-2025. The proposed action supports mitigating threats to Lowland Sagebrush including: Promoting policies and management that allow fire to return to a more natural regime. * Promoting policies that reduce inappropriate grazing by domestic livestock, feral domesticated animals, and wildlife. * Promoting and funding restoration that reduces the Uncharacteristic class, including cutting/mulching/chaining of invading pinyon and juniper trees, herbicide or mechanical treatment of non-native invasive species such as cheatgrass and secondary perennial weed species, and rehabilitation of burned areas following wildfire. * Promoting management that includes seeding a diversity of grasses, forbs and shrubs that will lead to increased resiliency and resistance in the plant community 7) 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. Strategy f. Encourage land managers to manage portions of pinion-juniper woodlands and aspen/conifer forests in early successional stages. 8) West Desert Deer Herd Management Plan Unit #19 (2006) - Habitat Management Objectives - Provide a long-term continuing base of habitat quantity and quality sufficient to support the stated population objectives. Habitat management Strategies include; Continue to restore and improve sagebrush steppe habitats critical to deer according to DWR's Habitat Initiative, Cooperate with federal land management agencies and private landowners in carrying out habitat improvements such as reseedings, controlled burns, [mechanical juniper removal], and water developments on public lands. Maintain and/or enhance forage production through direct range improvements throughout the unit to achieve population management objectives. Work with private and federal agencies to maintain and protect critical summer ranges from future losses or degradation. 9) The Utah Smoke Management Plan (1999, 2006 revision). By using mechanical mastication this plan will accomplish Goal #5, Use of alternative methods to burning for disposing of or reducing the amount of wildland fuels on lands in the State (p3). 10) State of Utah Hazard Mitigation Plan (March 2011) this plan accomplishes statewide goals including 1) Protection of natural resources and the environment, when considering mitigation measures and 2) Minimize the risk of wildfire (p12). http://publicsafety.utah.gov/emergencymanagement/documents/IntroductionMarch2011.pdf 11) Rangeland Health Standards and Guidelines for Healthy Rangelands Utah State Office (1997). Standard 3. Desired species...are maintained at a level appropriate for the site and species involved. As indicated by: frequency, diversity, density, age classes, and productivity of desired native species necessary to ensure reproductive capability and survival. 12) The Fire Management Planning (FMP) for the Fillmore Field Office (FFO) 2005 EA UT-050-04-045 (Richfield Fire Management Plan Environmental Assessment). This project is within the Fire Management Unit C4 Eureka. Within this Unit vegetation management would include a wide variety of management activities including widespread use of prescribed fire activities to attain desired resource and ecological conditions. Fire and non-fire fuel treatments would also be utilized to reduce the hazardous effects of unplanned wildfire. 13) BLM Land Management Plan, House Range Resource Area, Resource Management Plan-EIS (1987) Record of Decision (p 93), Objectives -- Reduce human and ecological losses; complement resource management objectives and sustain productivity or biological systems through fire management

One of the major threats to sagebrush habitat is fire. The Government Creek and McIntyre Meadow leks are near the proposed treatment and sage-grouse regularly occupy the surrounding area. This project will help protect and preserve brood rearing and winter habitat by decreasing both fuel loading and fire potential. Although the Government Creek and McIntyre Meadow areas appear to be within historic values for fire regime (the Fire Regime is currently classified as IV which is defined as a "replacement" fire occurring between 35-200 years) the condition class (CC; III) is highly departed from historic norms (LANDFIRE 2016). Removing the juniper will help improve the condition class and bring the vegetation back to where it should be.

A recent publication by Roundy et al. 2014 (Pinyon-juniper reduction increases soil water availability of the resource growth pool. Range Ecology and Management 67:495-505) showed that phase 3 juniper removal can increase available moisture for more than 3 weeks in the spring. And removing juniper from phase 1 and 2 stands can increase water from 6-20 days respectively. Because juniper are prolific water users they readily outcompete understory species which eventually die off. Removing juniper is critical for restoring sagebrush habitat and ecosystem resilience because of the water available to other species once they're gone. The majority of the project area is phase 2 transitioning to phase 3 juniper stands.

Cultural surveys will be completed for this area. The Greater Sheeprocks Sage-grouse Habitat Restoration and Hazardous Fuels Treatment EA was completed in August 2017.

Up to 100% of existing juniper will be removed through mastication. Trees with old-growth characteristics will be avoided. The work will be contracted and will likely begin in fall 2018. Areas where perennial grasses and forbs are lacking will be seeded prior to mastication to increase perennial plant cover and diversity.

Multiple 3-spoke monitoring plots will be established and read within the project area. Vegetation and ground cover data will be collected using the line-point intercept method and nested frequency. Photos will be taken and a qualitative site condition assessment completed. Sagegrouse occupancy will also be assessed within our plots. Data will be collected pre, 1, 3, and 5 years post treatment. Monitoring reports will be updated as data is collected and summarized and uploaded to the WRI database.

Coordination with local permittees and SITLA will occur.

This area will be maintained as sagebrush habitat. Potential threats include noxious weed invasion, cross country OHV use, and reinvasion of juniper. Periodic visual inspection, photo points, and vegetation monitoring will occur to assess current conditions and track trends over time. The longevity of the treatment will be maintained by slashing young junipers that resprout within the project area. Slashing could occur in 10 to 15 year intervals post-treatment.

Where junipers dominate they outcompete understory vegetation for water and nutrients. Over time, these understory species become less productive and vigorous and eventually die out. Removing juniper releases understory grasses and forbs from competition which increases plant vigor and rangeland productivity. Juniper removal treatments alone help increase forage quantity and quality for livestock but are especially effective when combined with seeding perennial grasses and forbs where depleted. These treatments will increase forage value within the Cottonwood East, Meadow Creek, Desert Mountain, and Sheeprock allotments.

07/08/2019

08/11/2021

2022

EPG was awarded the contract for $30/acres to complete 6,219 acres of Class III survey. Two separate reports were required for different project areas, Erickson Knoll and Mud Springs. SHPO concurrence was received for Erickson Knoll on 6/29/20 and Mud Springs on 8/11/2021.

EPG was awarded the contract in July 2019 and was instructed to complete the survey on the Erickson Knoll area first so that treatments could be implemented in Fall 2020. The surveys were completed on time and treatments were implemented on schedule. The Mud Springs treatments were also scheduled for implementation in Fall 2020 but due to many setbacks and delays, including their BLM permit lapsing, EPG was not able to complete the field work until early May 2021 with the final report being done in July 2021. Final SHPO concurrence for the Mud Springs area occurred on 8/11/2021.

The project area will be maintained as sagebrush habitat.