Tie Fork has historically suffered from stream bed incision events. Channel is currently in a incised (no flood plain connectivity) yet stable healing state, but fish habitat (Bonneville cutthroat trout and Southern leatherside chub) is reduced from historic levels. In areas with beaver activity, habitat quantity and quality are mark-able increased. Unfortunately beaver are not occupying all available habitat on this stream.

Our objective with this project is to create starter dams and beaver dam analogs in beaverless areas to entice beaver to spread out. If beaver do not occupy starter dams the dams will mimic beaver activity. With the overall objective of having beaver dams or our analogs aggrading the stream bed for flood plane connectivity, fish habitat enhancement and intraining sediments for increased water quality. This last point is especially valid post Tank Hollow fire. Side benefits to deer, elk and other wildlife (bats, neotropicals, etc.) will also be realized with a healthier riparian corridor

Southern leatherside chubs have been surveyed in this stream in the recent past and may still be present outside of studied reaches, any improvement to the system may benefit this imperiled population and the longer we wait the more likely they are to disappear. Bonneville cutthroat are retreating into headwaters in this system to avoid brown trout. Habitat benefits will provide increased competitiveness to BCT and once habitat benefits are realized Phase II of this project sphere will be to remove brown trout and exclude them from this system. Tank Hollow fire was a managed wildfire that burned much of the upper and west sides of this drainage. Most of the fire is not expected to significantly impact the drainage, but some areas are expected to produce higher than normal sedimentation. This is an excellent opportunity to capture a new sediment source; aggrading the channel more rapidly and mitigating the post fire erosional effects.

CONSERVATION AGREEMENT AND STRATEGY FOR SOUTHERN LEATHERSIDE (LEPIDOMEDA ALICIAE) IN THE STATE OF UTAH. 2010. Utah Division of Wildlife Resources, Publication Number 10-19, Salt Lake City, UT. RANGE-WIDE CONSERVATION AGREEMENT AND STRATEGY FOR BONNEVILLE CUTTHROAT TROUT (Oncorhynchus clarki utah). Utah Division of Wildlife Resources, Publication Number 00-19, Salt Lake City, UT. Both plans cite that loss of habitat and habitat alteration are one of the main contributors to species decline. Total Maximum Daily Load (TMDL) Water Quality Analysis of the Soldier Creek Watershed. 2006. Utah Department of Environmental Quality, Division of Water Quality, Salt Lake City, UT Discusses the water quality effects of sediment and associated nutrients to downstream water quality and identifies Tie Fork as a contributor with a needed reduction. BDA's reduce downstream sediment transport. Uinta Forest Plan - 2003 Land and Resource Management Plan, Uinta National Forest: https://www.fs.usda.gov/detailfull/uwcnf/landmanagement/planning/?cid=stelprdb5076960&width=full -Plan sites management of riparian areas (pg 2.2), management of aquatic species (pg 2.3), wildlife (pg 2.5), and vegetation (pg 2.5).

During tank Hollow Fire the existing riparian corridor was used as a containment line, but fuels had to be removed from the edges to produce a wider fuel-free break. With increased riparian width this would have been unnecessary. With the proximity of the road and the possibility of future ignitions this may be important. During Tank Hollow Fire some portions in Tie Fork burned as a very hot wildfire. These areas have been modeled to have a high likely hood of large increases in sediment movement from hill slopes to the stream. Post fire sediment retention would be realized with a wider riparian buffer to halt debris flows and BDA's to capture sediment that does enter the stream.

A significant portion of this project is geared at improving water quality. BDA's retain sediment which contains micro-nutrients. These nutrients are contributing to downstream pollution which is identified in the Soldier Creek Watershed TMDL (cited and referenced in Relation to Management Plans). Monitoring will quantify success' of the project. Water Quantity will be enhanced as near bank storage increases at dam site. This water is retained in the system and is usable by fish (drought mitigation), wildlife and vegetation. Down stream water users benefit by an extended hydrograph as the Spanish Fork River system is unregulated.

All compliance's are in hand.

We are expecting to install 50-60 BDAs/Starter dams via Conservation Corp crews. Explanation of BDA install: "A complete construction sequence for a BDA would be to first install a line of posts using a hydraulic or pneumatic post pounder, followed by weaving branches in between the posts. An upstream face is then constructed first using cobble and other large material placed at the upstream base to prevent underscour, followed by successive layers of vegetation and finer-grained material until the structure has achieved the desired level of flow permeability and upstream pool depth." from The Beaver Restoration Guidebook. Pollock, M.M., G. Lewallen, K. Woodruff, C.E. Jordan and J.M. Castro (Editors) 2015. The Beaver Restoration Guidebook: Working with Beaver to Restore Streams, Wetlands, and Floodplains. Version 1.0. United States Fish and Wildlife Service, Portland, Oregon. 189 pp. Online at: http://www.fws.gov/oregonfwo/ToolsForLandowners/RiverScience/Beaver.asp

Pre and post treatment surveys will be conducted to define channel characteristics including dimension, pattern and profile. These datum will be used to ascertain if channel aggrades, fish habitat is created, fish population responses and if sediments are retained in the stream.

UDWR - Central Region Habitat Section is partnering with the USFS to install and analyze effectiveness of BDA's in two regional stream. Aquatics Section and USFS partner to monitor fish populations and their associated habitats. USFS, UDWQ, USU Ext. and Utah Water Watch are developing a Citizen Scientist monitoring program to assess effectiveness of the treatments.

This will be a test of how well BDA's work to aggrade stream bed, increase water quality and aquatic habitat on Tie Fork. If this treatment is successful future BDA's will be installed to further benefits to the system. The recent burn of the tank Hollow fire will add benefit to this project in analyzing the effectiveness of BDA's to retain post fire sedimentation and reduction of downstream impacts. Once BDA's have raised habitat quality to a level that will support BCT the stream will be treated to remove non-natives and a native assemblage will be added. Larger long term plans are to remove the road from the riparian area of Tie Fork, replacing it with a connecting atv train on upland areas - making a loop route that connects to Unicorn Ridge, Diamond Fork area, Indian creek (Strawberry) and White River. Greatly increasing the usability for recreationalists, hunters and fishermen.

The majority of this drainage is a grass bank and may be used in the near future as planned RxB in Indian Creek (adjacent watershed) may displace grazing as the burns heal. The portion currently grazed by sheep will benefit by increased riparian vegetation and a less incised channel making water access easier and reducing bank sloughing.

11/16/2020

12/16/2020

2021

The Utah Division of Wildlife Resources in partnership with the USFS hired a contractor to come in and build 70 beaver dam analogs in Tie Fork, UT. Through Utah's Watershed Restoration Initiative funding and collaboration we were able to help restore the health of this stream. We constructed 70 BDAs in November and December of 2020. These BDAs were made of 2" X4' wood stakes, coconut fiber erosion control blankets, and natural woody materials. These BDAs were no more than 2' tall to reduce the risk of blow outs. So far they have been very successful at holding more sediment and creating deeper pools of water for fish habitat.

Tie Fork has historically suffered from stream bed incision events. Channel is currently in an incised (no flood plain connectivity) yet stable healing state, but fish habitat (Bonneville cutthroat trout and Southern leatherside chub) is reduced from historic levels. In areas with beaver activity, habitat quantity and quality have mark-ably increased. Unfortunately beaver are not occupying all available habitat on this stream. Our objective with this project is to create starter dams and beaver dam analogs in beaverless areas to entice beaver to spread out. If beaver do not occupy starter dams the dams will mimic beaver activity. With the overall objective of having beaver dams or our analogs aggrading the stream bed for flood plane connectivity, fish habitat enhancement and entraining sediments for increased water quality. This last point is especially valid post Tank Hollow fire. Side benefits to deer, elk and other wildlife (bats, neotropicals, etc.) will also be realized with a healthier riparian corridor.

This will be a test of how well BDA's work to aggrade stream bed, increase water quality and aquatic habitat on Tie Fork. If this treatment is successful future BDA's will be installed to further benefits to the system. The recent burn of the tank Hollow fire will add benefit to this project in analyzing the effectiveness of BDA's to retain post fire sedimentation and reduction of downstream impacts. Once BDA's have raised habitat quality to a level that will support BCT the stream will be treated to remove non-natives and a native assemblage will be added. Larger long term plans are to remove the road from the riparian area of Tie Fork, replacing it with a connecting atv train on upland areas - making a loop route that connects to Unicorn Ridge, Diamond Fork area, Indian creek (Strawberry) and White River. Greatly increasing the usability for recreationalists, hunters and fishermen.