Many tributary streams in northern Utah have experienced channelization and incision resulting in lack of floodplain connectivity, impacting wildlife and fish habitat and water quality. Low-tech, process-based restoration (e.g., beaver dam analogues) improves stream conditions. In 2019, stream restoration in the Chalk Creek watershed was completed with numerous partners, including the landowner. This project is a continuation of the Phase I work and increases the scale and scope of the project. In the Chalk Creek area, winter habitat for mule deer and stream habitat for Bonneville cutthroat trout is critical. Juniper densities are increasing and the understory is gradually degrading. This project will take approximately 70 acres of lopped juniper. Multiple animal species identified in the Utah Wildlife Action Plan will benefit from this project. Aspen is one of the most valuable forest types in Utah, not so much from a timber standpoint, but for its scenic, beauty, grazing opportunities, wildlife habitat, and it's contribution to landscape diversity. The identified priority aspen treatment areas are at a climax stage in succession and have very little to no aspen regeneration present. This project is needed to encourage aspen regeneration, improve wildlife habitat, and increase understory plant health and condition before this resource is further degraded. Finally, through extensive collaborative efforts guided by the South Fork Chalk Creek CRMP, we have worked with several of the agricultural producers in the South Fork of Chalk Creek to improve livestock management practices in the watershed. The improvements have included off-channel livestock water development, pasture fences, and BDAs. They are all complementary to the past fish passage efforts completed in the past and continuing into the next 3-4 years.

The project objectives are to: 1) Maintain or enhance floodplain connectivity to reduce the stream energy during flash floods and high water events. 2) Store fine sediment in the upper watershed and prevent from being deposited into Echo Reservoir. 3) Improve instream fish habitat and connectivity. 4) Work with landowners to improve sustainable resources of rangeland management, improve upland and big game wildlife habitat covering 70 acres of juniper removal. 5) Enhance wildlife habitat, understory vegetation, and ecological diversity in aspen by treatment of 45 acres promoting aspen regeneration. 6) Increase aspen suckering to >1,000 stems/ac in identified priority treatment areas. 7) Improve rangeland through improved livestock practices and off-channel watering

Primary threats addressed by this project include: 1) Continued headwater tributary degradation. This project is needed to begin reversing the trend of habitat degradation within the proposed areas. Continued degradation may result in increased restoration costs with future restoration. 2) Habitat for native fish is currently very degraded in these low-mid elevation low-order tributaries. BDA's reincorporate important habitat variability elements that provide habitat diversity. 3) BDA's function very effectively to store fine sediment on the floodplain. Fine sediment filtering is important for maintaining water quality and quantity for reaches downstream. 4) Understory vegetation in juniper is degrading each year with the encroachment of more juniper. 5) No treatment of aspen would result in further loss of the aspen resource in the South Fork Chalk Creek watershed. Risks of not completing this project include: (i) continued decrease in quality of wildlife habitat, (ii) a loss of aspen as a valuable watershed component. 6) Past grazing practices have degraded the sagebrush habitat throughout the mid-elevation rangeland. Developing a rotational grazing system with off channel watering will improve both rangeland and stream habitat. 7) Fragmented stream habitat is a critical threat to the sustainability of BCT within the watershed.

This proposal is within the WRI Region Focus Area. 1) The 2014 Weber River Restoration Plan indicated that the impacts from land development and management were major challenges to habitat and water quality in the South Fork of Chalk Creek. 2) Chalk Creek and its tributaries are currently listed as impaired waters by the Utah Division of Water Quality for elevated levels of Phosphorus, fine sediment and physical habitat degradation. In addition to the listed impairments, sections of Chalk Creek reach elevated temperatures during the summer, sometimes exceeding the known lethal limit for Bonneville cutthroat trout. Nevertheless, the strong cutthroat trout population is sustained through a partially connected network of habitat with thermal refugia throughout the watershed. The South Fork of Chalk Creek has the potential to be a significant coldwater refuge for Bonneville cutthroat trout, however past and current land management patterns result in significant heating along the longitudinal gradient of the creek and its tributaries during the summer. This is partially due to unmanaged livestock grazing in riparian areas and degraded stream conditions. 3) This project supports the Bonneville Cutthroat trout (BCT) conservation agreement, which identifies the BCT population in Chalk Creek as a high priority watershed. 4) In 2015 the local landowners and stakeholders in the South Fork Chalk Creek watershed completed a CRMP, which identified a wide variety of resource concerns. Wildlife habitat and water quality being top concerns. 5) Project falls within the Uinta Priority Area in the 2016 State of Utah's Forest Action Plan, which identifies (a) aspen is on a steady decline statewide, and meets (b) forest stewardship objective: identify and target private forest landowners located in important forest resource areas for assistance with stewardship. 6) DEER HERD UNIT MANAGEMENT PLAN. Deer Herd Unit # 6. (Chalk Creek) HABITAT MANAGEMENT OBJECTIVES: 1. Maintain and/or enhance forage production through direct habitat improvements throughout the unit on winter range to achieve population management objectives. 2. Work with private landowners and federal, state and local government agencies to maintain and protect critical and existing winter range from future losses. HABITAT MANAGEMENT STRATEGIES: 1. Work cooperatively to utilize grazing, prescribed burning and other recognized vegetative manipulation techniques to enhance deer forage quantity and quality. 7) Utah State Coordinated Implementation Plan for bird Conservation in Utah: (a) aspen is identified as a Priority B habitat as importance to birds and (b) 19 species of birds in Utah are found in aspen habitats. 8) Six Feathers Ranch 2017 Forest Stewardship Plan: (a) Optimize timber stand improvement in aspen stands by promoting aspen regeneration. (b) Maintain or enhance wildlife use, for a variety of big games species. (c) Maintain favorable aesthetics. (d) Maintain, improve and utilize range resources for long-term, sustained sheep grazing management, forage production and wildlife habitat.

Healthy and robust riparian areas can provide a significant buffer against catastrophic effects of fires. The project area is critical wildlife habitat and a large portion does have existing sagebrush. Reducing the juniper fuel loading will decrease the fire severity/intensity in the event of a fire within the area. Reducing the juniper fuel load will decrease the fire rate of spread as well as decrease the potential for invasive grasses to outcompete native vegetation. Reducing fuel loading will also decrease potential of sediment flows into Fish Creek and South Fork Chalk Creek. Promoting aspen regeneration will increase the understory grass and forbs habitat benefiting wildlife, and reducing the risk of loss from wildfire by making a more resilient forest.

We expect to see the following water quality benefits: 1) Improved (colder) stream temperatures. 2) Reduced fine sedimentation. 3) Reduced potential for seasonal stream de-watering. This project will result in short to moderate term impacts to water quality (increase grasses, forbs), but project design features will prevent long-term degradation. Aspen treatments will lessen the risk of catastrophic large scale high severity fires that could result in long-term watershed degradation.

Several clearances will be needed for this project and are underway. Archaeological clearances have been completed for the lower Fish Creek BDAs phase 2, and for the Winter Quarters Creek Culvert. New archeaological clearance will be needed for upper Fish Creek BDAs, the juniper and aspen treatment sites. A stream alteration permit will be required for instream work. A temporary water right may be required for this project. Vegetation treatments will be conducted outside of the breeding bird season for compliance with the Migratory Bird Treaty Act.

Past efforts to construct BDAs have relied on volunteer labor to complete 18 BDAs on Fish Creek. Phase II proposes to use both volunteer and hired contractors to increase the scale and scope of impact. Stream restoration will be done following the methods published in "Low-Tech Process-Based Restoration of Riverscapes: Design Manual" (attached). Juniper cutting will be performed by FFSL staff utilizing a skid steer with a Marshall saw attachment. Cut juniper will be utilized as material for beaver dam analogues. Dominant aspen will be clear felled with trees removed from the forest. A few of the younger co-dominant aspen that are not damaged from falling larger trees will remain uncut and help provide stand age variation. Felled aspen trees will be stacked and burned later when burning conditions permit. Successful regeneration of aspen is more likely if stands are harvested or treated in the dormant season when nutrient reserves in aspen roots are highest. Cutting will likely occur in the the fall or early spring season. Fencing will be installed by the landowner under an existing NRCS contract and built to wildlife friendly specs. The water system will be installed along natural topographic features using an existing pump system that will transport livestock water to the East of the South Fork and South of Fish Creek.

Effectiveness of stream restoration (e.g., BDAs) will be monitored with the Rapid Stream-Riparian Assessment (RSRA) survey (see attached). The RSRA generates a score for water quality, hydrogeomorphology, fish and aquatic habitat, riparian vegetation, and terrestrial wildlife habitat. This method was selected because it is a time and cost efficient means to monitor restoration projects. GPS photo points in aspen stands will be identified at numerous locations throughout the treatment and revisited by FFSL on an annual basis for four years. In addition, annual forest inventory surveys will be conducted within the treated stands to determine regeneration numbers. Overall aquatic habitat conditions will continue to be measured via serial placement of stream temperature loggers throughout the South Fork watershed.

Utah Division of Wildlife Resources Trout Unlimited Wild Utah Project Backcountry Hunters and Anglers Private landowners Utah Division of Forestry, Fire & State Lands

Phase III of the project will include adding another 60 restoration structures on additional stream reaches in the Chalk Creek watershed. For Phase III, we will continue to maintain Phase I and II restoration structures. Other areas on this ownership and surrounding private ownership will be evaluated further to determine if other areas of juniper removal and aspen cuttings will be appropriate.

We expect the project to improve riparian area productivity by enhancing the water table and improving vegetation. This serves as a local example of rangeland/riparian practices that can be beneficial to livestock, especially because the project is paired with livestock management techniques such as off-channel watering, riparian area fencing, and rotational grazing techniques.

07/01/2020

06/30/2021

2021

WRI funds were used to pay FFSL for permanent employee, fuel, and equipment supplies to cut juniper and partially pile a portion of the cut unit into burn piles. A total of 68 acres were cut and approximately 30 acres were piled where juniper density was high. Piles will be burned by FFSL during early winter 2021. FFSL contracted for an aspen regeneration project on private ownership. WRI funds were used to hire heavy equipment to cut, skid and pile within four units for a total of 52 treated acres. Piles will need to cure two summers, and will later be burned by FFSL staff. Weeds will be treated by the landowner utilizing a cost-share grant from the Summit Conservation District. We completed phase 2 of the Fish Creek BDA project. This involved the construction of 25 additional BDAs along the middle reach of Fish Creek. Due to COVID issues, we hired a contractor to install the posts, and then implemented a volunteer project of weaving willows and branches. Although we did not experience any snowmelt this year, monsoon-driven flash floods delivered a large amount of water and sediment to the watershed. Both Phase 1 and 2 BDAs captured a large amount. We are working to quantify the sediment storage in the BDAs. We have been coordinating closely with the G Bar Ranch on implementing a rotational grazing strategy. They currently manage cattle in a 12,000 acre pasture. With this project, we constructed a 4.68 mile long fence and implemented a 2-pasture rotational grazing plan. The pastures are still large, but implementation has allowed half the range to be rested for half the summer. In tandem with the BDAs in Fish Creek, we expect water quality and rangeland resiliency to improve. We completed the fish passage improvements at the South Fork of Chalk Creek. Landowners were concerned about the passability in the pond outlet below WRI project 311. We regraded the creek with strategically-placed boulders to ensure that Bonneville cutthroat trout are capable of moving into the ponds. We may need to modify the outlet between the ponds to ensure that fish passage is ensured there as well. TU staff will assess that reach in the fall of 2021. Finally the Winter Quarters Creek culvert has been purchased, but we are awaiting permits so we can implement the project; an expected completion date is October 2021.

In the juniper removal area, there are large numbers of mule deer that winter here. Winter habitat is a premium. Within the project area, the junipers densities are increasing and the understory is gradually degrading. Juniper encroachment into sagebrush dominated understory were cut, piled and will be burned the following winter. This will improve water retention, understory plant habitat for wildlife, and critical winter range habitat. Aspen is one of the most valuable forest types in Utah, not so much from a timber standpoint, but for its scenic, beauty, grazing opportunities, wildlife habitat, and it's contribution to landscape diversity. The identified priority aspen treatment areas are at a climax stage in succession and have very little to no aspen regeneration present. This project is needed to encourage aspen regeneration, improve wildlife habitat, and increase understory plant health and condition before this resource is further degraded. The land management improvements are the beginnings of a significant change within the South Fork Chalk Creek watershed. Paired with the irrigation diversion and fish passage improvements of the past, we hope that the grazing improvement practices, aspen regeneration, juniper removal, and BDAs will all combine to greatly improve water quality in the watershed. There is still a lot of work to do, as this is a highly erosive watershed. The rotational grazing plan was a good first step, but but we hope to continue establishing additional chapters to ensure that the rangeland is resilient to drought and monsoonal rain events.

There are still many needs within the South Fork Chalk Creek watershed. The key is full implementation of rotational grazing within the Fish Creek subwatershed and along the South Fork upstream of the confluence with Fish Creek. In order to fully implement the grazing strategy, a number of activities are still needed. First. We need to design and implement an off channel water system for the "upper pasture" which is basically the area of land to the South of Fish Creek. We also need to implement additional pasture fences, and then implement revegetation in key areas. We also hope to improve the riparian health along the lower sections of the South Fork, which have historically been degraded by overgrazing, and flood control in the 1980's. This will include the removal of several old car bodies, and possible BDA construction on the South Fork. The landowner will coordinate as needed with NRCS to control noxious weeds within the juniper treatment area. The landowner is interested in treating another section of juniper in years to come. Other areas on this ownership and surrounding private ownership will be evaluated further to determine if other areas of juniper removal and aspen cuttings will be appropriate.