As demonstrated by catastrophic wildfires such as Seely and Coal Hollow as well as the early 2000 beetle epidemic, lack of appropriate fire return intervals have allowed the watersheds on the North Zone of the Manti La Sal national forest to reach late seral stages and are highly susceptible to catastrophic wildfire, insects, disease, and drought. These late seral stands provide minimal forage production for big game and wildlife. Resulting catastrophic fires threaten critical fisheries, sage grouse habitat, as well as human life, infrastructure, and property. This project aims to treat approximately 9000 acres on the North Zone of the Manti-La Sal National Forest within three critical watersheds utilizing a variety of treatments at multiple elevations to improve wildlife and fish habitat, improve forage production, restore areas damaged by beetle kill, reduce chances of future catastrophic fires, restore riparian areas, rehabilitate stream function, and restore overall watershed health. In 2012 the Seely Fire led to flash flooding and landslides resulting in severe impairment of the Huntington Creek drainage. This threatens to permanently damage fish habitat, riparian areas, and overall watershed health. This project will work with the UDWR to facilitate rehabilitation of fisheries, stream function, and riparian areas along the Huntington Creek Drainage and tributaries by installation of BDA's, and adding structure to the streams to provide for stream bed aggradation, to provide fish habitat, and rewet adjacent riparian areas. High elevation areas within the Huntington Creek Watershed adjacent to Electric Lake will also be treated to restore healthy aspen and spruce stands. During the early 2000's the North Zone of the Manti La Sal National forest experienced approximately 90% mortality of spruce stands due to beetle infestation. This high mortality led to an increase of hazardous fuel loading and potential for catastrophic fires as shown by the Seely and Coal Hollow Fires within critical watersheds on the Manti-La Sal. To restore these watersheds the Manti-La Sal National Forest has increased commercial logging to remove this hazardous fuel loading. Post logging, undesirable subalpine fir regeneration can limit the return of desired species composition. This project will look to remove subalpine fir from approximately 1500 acres to allow for restoration of healthy aspen and spruce stands to restore watershed health. The Horn Mountain sage grouse complex within the Straight Canyon Watershed (Mahogany Point/Joes Valley area) include priority sage grouse habitat. The threat or risk of not treating this area would be a continued decline of the habitat quality and diminished use by sage grouse. Sage grouse mortality may also increase by not removing the pinyon juniper and larger mountain brush resulting in the availability of raptor perches. If left untreated a high intensity stand replacing fire could occur resulting in a loss of sage brush, grassland, and forb communities within this priority greater sage grouse habitat, opening the door for noxious/invasive species to dominate the landscape. This project will work towards maintaining and restoring these critical habitats. High elevation areas within this same watershed will be treated for aspen regeneration. As demonstrated by catastrophic wildfires such as Seely and Coal Hollow these late seral conifer stands are highly susceptible to catastrophic wildfire and drought. These stands also provide minimal forage production for wildlife and reduce the overall water available within the watershed. This project will restore these stands to early seral aspen utilizing prescribed fire. Returning these conifer stands to early seral aspen will reduce the threat of wildfire, insects, disease, and drought to the watershed as well as increase the forage and water production within the treated areas. This will also reduce the risk of a catastrophic wildfire and thus, reduce the risk to firefighters, public, and infrastructure. Middle to low elevation areas dominated by ponderosa pine communities and adjacent to sage brush communities within the Muddy Creek Watershed contain the largest concentration of ponderosa pine on the North Zone of the Manti La Sal National Forest. These adjacent sagebrush stands are within the Wildcat Knolls sage grouse priority habitat management unit. To maintain healthy ponderosa pine, these stands require fire return intervals of 5-15 years. Maintaining this fire return interval is critical to reduce ladder fuels and raise canopy height in order to prevent the loss of these stands during wildfire. This is also critical to preserving healthy aspen component in the adjacent drainages. Maintaining these fire return intervals is also critical to improving forage production for wildlife and grazing as well as preventing catastrophic fire. In addition, these low intensity burns will increase early season grasses that attract insects that are vital to sage grouse. These areas will be treated with prescribed fire utilizing low severity hand ignition to restore appropriate fire return intervals within ponderosa pine stands; to recruit aspen, improve big game habitat, improve forage production, and protect the Wildcat Knolls sage grouse leks. These low severity hand ignitions will avoid sage grouse seasonal habitat and not be introduced into sage brush communities as advised by the 2015 sage grouse record of decision.

1) Rehabilitate stream function in the Huntington creek drainage including: Improve fish habitat, increase distribution of fish throughout Huntington Creek and tributaries, decrease erosion at strategic locations, improve riparian vegetation, and increase recreation in Huntington Canyon and it's tributaries. 2) Maintain and restore critical sage grouse habitat near Mahogany Point by removing pinyon/juniper within curl leaf mahogany and ponderosa pine stands and to open up existing mature, dense, curl-leaf mahogany stands, allowing seeding for younger age class on approximately 3500 acres. 3) Restore healthy aspen and spruce forests damaged by beetle kill by removing subalpine fir from approximately 1500 acres adjacent to Electric Lake within the Mine timber sale to restore appropriate species composition following salvage logging operations. 4) Restore healthy aspen component within the Cottonwood drainage by utilizing prescribed fire on approximately 2000 acres to return late seral conifer to early seral aspen to restore critical big game habitat and increase forage production. 5) Maintain appropriate fire return interval within approximately 2000 acres of ponderosa pine stands within the Muddy Creek drainage to maintain critical big game habitat, increase forage production, and protect adjacent sage grouse leks from catastrophic fires.

The Huntington Creek Watershed faces multiple threats and risks as demonstrated by the Seely fire and early 2000 beetle epidemics. The Huntington Creek drainage contains several small isolated populations of Colorado River cutthroat trout. Native cutthroat are found in Tie Fork, Crandall, and Scad Valley Creeks. These native cutthroat trout populations play a critical role for the UDWR Colorado River Cutthroat Trout Conservation and Management Strategy. A population of Colorado River cutthroat trout in Nuck Woodward Creek was extirpated by the Seely Fire and its aftereffects. Maintaining or improving fish habitat within the mainstem will provide refuge and security for long term persistence of fish populations when fires, droughts, and habitat changes displace fish. If sufficient connectivity is not maintained within a watershed between mainstem and tributary habitats the threat of extirpation increases. Additionally, the high elevation late seral conifer stands have increased the risk of fire, droughts, insects, and disease affecting overall health and stability of the watersheds. As shown by the Seely fire, these threats can have major impacts to the drainages, riparian areas, and negatively impact communities that rely on the resources for commercial and municipal water sources. The Straight Canyon drainage including Joes Valley, Straight Canyon, Cottonwood Creek, and other tributaries are a critical watershed values at risk for surrounding communities. These areas also include critical sage grouse and big game habitat (mule deer) and provide summer range for ranchers and recreation opportunities. Areas for treatment include priority sage grouse habitat directly adjacent to two sage grouse leks. The threat or risk of not treating this area would be a continued decline of the habitat quality and diminished use by sage grouse. Sage grouse mortality may also increase by not removing the pinyon juniper and larger mountain brush resulting in the availability of raptor perches. If left untreated a high intensity stand replacing fire could occur resulting in a loss of sage brush, grassland, and forb communities within this priority greater sage grouse habitat opening the door for noxious/invasive species to dominate the landscape. Other areas for treatment include declining aspen stands and that are being replaced by late seral conifer trees. Aspen stands provide valuable biodiversity, wildlife habitat and forage, and resistance and resiliency to severe wildland fire. Furthermore, treating these aspen stands that are valuable summer habitat areas for mule deer would introduce early seral stages of vegetation critical to mule deer fawning habitat. Unless the succession is set back to early seral (young) aspen stands and conifer tree competition is removed, some areas of aspen may be lost for wildlife & watershed benefit. Dense conifer stands are susceptible to severe stand-replacing fire, particularly in conjunction with climate change (drought and increasing temperatures). This can impact watershed values, vegetative conditions, wildlife habitat, and other resource values if large stand replacing fire events occur. Loss of aspen and increase in conifers in this landscape could result in loss of valuable nesting and forage habitat for northern goshawk, as well as habitat for elk, mule deer, and other species such as birds were fire can create young forest conditions and a heterogeneous canopy structure that can increase breeding bird relative abundance and richness by attracting disturbance-adapted species while retaining most other forest species. Native ponderosa pine stands in the Joe's Valley Reservoir area have several basal fire scars. These scars are common on thick-barked stems in old growth ponderosa pine forests. Uncontrolled fire was common before European colonization. These surface fires consumed branches, fallen trees, under-story vegetation, and some living trees. These fires burned mostly at a 5-20 year return intervals. Low-intensity fire kept many pine forests open and park like. Removal of fire from these ecosystems has lead to an increased build up of hazardous fuels which may lead to catastrophic fires and damage to overall watershed health. Through prescribed burning, a mosaic of burn conditions will allow for greater biodiversity thus allowing for multiple species benefit. In 2016 the Southeast Catastrophic fire committee has classified the Joes Valley/Cottonwood Canyon as one of the top priority areas (values at risk) to focus efforts in addressing high fire risk and intensity. Joes Valley/Cottonwood Canyon ranked high due to the potential impact to wildlife, municipal watershed, and homes in the area.

This document tiers to the Manti-La Sal National Forest Plan Final Environmental Impact Statement. The proposal has been reviewed to identify conformance with Forest Plan management direction. It complies with the Forest Plan and meets specific direction to: 1. Minimize hazards from wildfire (LRMP III-5). Human life (firefighter and public safety) is the highest priority during a fire. Once firefighters have been assigned to a fire, their safety becomes the highest value to be protected. Property and natural and cultural resources are lower priorities (Utah Fire Amendment). 2. Maintain a healthy forest by applying appropriate silvicultural treatments (LRMP III-3). The desired condition for this landscape and its component stands provides for healthy stands with varied successional stages of trees and stands (LRMP III-2). 3. Reduce hazardous fuels. The full range of fuel reduction methods is authorized, consistent with forest and management area emphasis and direction (III-43). 4. Ecosystems are restored and maintained, consistent with land uses and historic fire regimes, through wildland fire use and prescribed fire (LRMP III-5). 5. Manage stands in a manner that promotes properly functioning conditions and habitat conditions suitable for the northern goshawk (LRMP III-3). 6. Use timber management to meet other management or resource needs (LRMP III-4). Utah Division of Wildlife Resources Elk Management Plan: This project will help introduce species diversity back into the Sanpete Face area. A mosaic design is part of the implementation strategy to create a pattern of treated and un-treated acres that will create an increase of biodiversity. Habitat fragmentation should not be an issue for wildlife as care has been taken to have leave areas, old growth areas, and treatment areas in good juxtaposition across the landscape to promote species diversity. Implementation of this project will benefit those species that favor early serial communities and early serial vegetation (elk). This project will provide increases in habitat effectiveness and benefit species such as ungulates. Mosaic patterns created by the project will distribute ungulate herbivory across the landscape minimizing overuse to current key areas and allow newly treated areas to have favorable responses to treatments. There will be some short-term (3-5 years) temporary impacts to plant and animal uses of these areas during the implementation phase of the project; however, the overall outcome will provide much needed plant species diversity across the landscape that will last well into the future. Increased vegetation through implementation of this project that will be created through primary succession methods will greatly benefit elk. Utah Division of Wildlife Resources Mule Deer Management Plan: This project will help introduce species diversity back into the Sanpete Face area. A mosaic design is part of the implementation strategy to create a pattern of treated and un-treated acres that will create an increase of biodiversity. Habitat fragmentation should not be an issue for wildlife as care has been taken to have leave areas, old growth areas, and treatment areas in good juxtaposition across the landscape to promote species diversity. Implementation of this project will benefit those species that favor early serial communities and early serial vegetation (deer). This project will provide increases in habitat effectiveness and benefit species such as ungulates. Mosaic patterns created by the project will distribute ungulate herbivory across the landscape minimizing overuse to current key areas and allow newly treated areas to have favorable responses to treatments. There will be some short-term (3-5 years) temporary impacts to plant and animal uses of these areas during the implementation phase of the project; however, the overall outcome will provide much needed plant species diversity across the landscape that will last well into the future. Increased vegetation through implementation of this project that will be created through primary succession methods will greatly benefit mule deer. The Northern goshawk in Utah: habitat assessment and management recommendations: In Forest Plan direction for the Northern goshawk, forest vegetation structural stage classes are discussed and how they relate to preference by goshawk for nesting, post fledgling family areas, or rearing and teaching of young and foraging. Careful consideration has been given to Northern goshawk territories found within the project boundaries. Territories will be part of the mosaic pattern designed as "leave" areas for prescribed burn and mechanical treatments. Creating age class diversity through the implementation of this project will ensure future habitat as well as habitat for prey used by goshawk is maintained. National Cohesive Strategy: By means of prescribed fire and mechanical thinning at a landscape scale, the resulting mosaic of early and late successional forests will work toward the goal of restoring and maintaining resilient landscapes, one of the three goals described in the National Cohesive Strategy. State of Utah Catastrophic Wildfire Reduction Strategy: The project aligns with the mission of the State of Utah's Catastrophic Wildfire Reduction Strategy. The project has developed a comprehensive and systematic approach toward reducing the size, intensity and frequency of catastrophic wildland fires on the Sanpete Face through a collaborative process. The project reduces the risk of a catastrophic wildfire occurrence negatively affecting property, air quality and water systems. State of Utah Forest Action Plan: The Manti La Sal Healthy Forest proposal addresses all three of the key goals laid out in the Forest Action Plan: conserve and manage working forest landscapes for multiple values and uses, protect forests from threats and enhance public benefits from trees and forests. Wood products will be available through firewood permits, timber sales and stewardship contracts in accordance with the project NEPA documentation and the Manti-La Sal National Forest Land and Resource Management Plan. Increased forage production will improve big game and grazing habitat. Maintaining the watershed will increase fish habitat and increase potential for recreation. All actions called for in the in the project work together to reduce wildfire and forest health threats to the surrounding forests and reduce the potential for long-term degradation of forested watersheds on the Manti La Sal. County Resource Management Plan: Objective A. Healthy forests are managed for multiple uses, most importantly water quality and watershed protection. Additional support and direction listed throughout this document defining county objectives, policies and desired management practices. Goal B: Community will work with county, state and federal fire officials to decrease fuels on adjacent public lands to reduce wildfire intensity and impact in and around the community. This project works to achieve Goal B of the Ephraim and Willow Creek CWPP by reducing fuel loading and lowering the potential of wildland fire spread across the Sanpete Face. UTAH GREATER SAGE-GROUSE MANAGEMENT PLAN *Rehabilitate or restore large contiguous intact sagebrush communities within the state. *Restore degraded sagebrush habitats through appropriate treatment methods which will retain sagebrush while incorporating native and non-native perennial grasses and forbs. *When conducting any habitat improvement/enhancement project, make sure to monitor, evaluate, and document the sage-grouse response as well as the other species response to habitat treatment projects. *In all vegetation treatments designed to enhance or restore sagebrush habitats and increase sage-grouse populations, establish vegetation and wildlife objectives and monitoring procedures prior to treatments which will provide the data necessary to determine treatment effectiveness. Greater Sage Grouse Record of Decision (2015) *Trees or other tall structures are absent to uncommon within 1.86 miles of leks. *Adjacent protective sage brush cover within 328 ft. of lek. Manti-La Sal National Forest Land and Resource Management Plan (1986) *Provide an optimum cover to forage ratio for deer and elk habitat (III-19) *Maintain/improve habitat and habitat diversity for populations of existing wildlife species (III-22) *Maintain/improve habitat capability through direct treatment of vegetation (III-23) *Under a proactive approach, manage for diverse forest cover types with strong representation of early seral tree species. DEER HERD UNIT MANAGEMENT PLAN Deer Herd Unit # 16 Central Mountains *Cooperate with land management agencies in carrying out habitat improvements such as controlled burns *Management efforts should focus on improving deer habitat and carrying capacity Enhance forage production through direct range improvements throughout the unit on winter range to achieve population management objectives. *Provide improved habitat security and escapement opportunities for deer. *Provide a long-term continuing base of habitat quantity and quality sufficient to support the stated population objectives. STATEWIDE MANAGEMENT PLAN FOR MULEDEER (2014) *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. *Continue to support and provide leadership for the Utah Watershed Restoration Initiative, which emphasizes improving sagebrush-steppe, aspen, and riparian habitats across all landownerships. *Encourage land managers to manage portions of pinyon-juniper woodlands and aspen/conifer forests in early successional stages. UTAH DIVISION OF WILDLIFE RESOURCES STATEWIDE MANAGEMENT PLAN FOR MULE DEER *Maintain mule deer habitat throughout the state by protecting and enhancing existing crucial habitats and mitigating for losses due to natural and human impacts. *Work with land management agencies and private landowners to identify and properly manage crucial mule deer habitats, especially fawning and wintering areas. *Improve the quality and quantity of vegetation for mule deer on a minimum of 500,000 acres of crucial range by 2013. *Utah Elk Statewide Management Plan (2015) *Initiate broad scale vegetative treatment projects to improve elk habitat with emphasis on calving habitat and winter ranges *Remove pinyon-juniper encroachment into winter range sagebrush parks and summer and transitional range mountain brush communities *Encourage land managers to manage portions of forests in early succession stages through the use of controlled burning. 7. Conservation Strategy for Colorado River Cutthroat Trout, June 2006 Project meets objectives in the Colorado River Cutthroat Trout Conservation Agreement with the USFWS by improving, restoring and protecting existing and potential cutthroat trout habitat. The goal of the plan is to assure long-term viability of CRCT throughout their historic range. This project helps to meet the following objectives by improving habitat in increasing numbers. *Objective1: Identify and characterize all CRCT core and conservation populations. Identify all waters with CRCT populations and monitor known populations to detect changes. Complete genetic analyses on known or potential CRCT populations. *Objective 3: Restore populations increase the number of populations by restoring CRCT within their native range. Local restoration goals and approaches will be developed to meet this objective. Objective 4: Secure and enhance watershed conditions strive to improve watershed conditions for CRCT, including development of protocols for monitoring *Strategy 1: Characterize CRCT populations. Monitor CRCT populations to detect changes Continue monitoring CRCT populations, with emphasis on accurate assessment of total adult cutthroat population size and relative abundance of native non-game species. *Strategy 2: Secure CRCT conservation populations. Regulate angling and enforce regulations Use special regulations to promote persistence of CRCT populations, and provide a concerted law enforcement presence to ensure compliance. *Strategy 3: Restore or enhance CRCT populations. *Strategy 7: Improve habitat conditions for CRCT. Manage the entire watershed Impacts outside the riparian zone should be considered as part of CRCT management. Land management agencies should work to mitigate adverse impacts of watershed activities on water quality, instream habitat, channel morphology, riparian areas, and population stability. Improve lake and stream habitat Habitat improvement techniques will be used where appropriate to provide missing habitat components or improve existing ones. Examples of these techniques include building instream structures to improve pool to riffle ratios, stream bank stabilization, riparian management, instream cover, pool or spawning gravel enhancement, and provision of fish passageways. 8. State of Utah Resource Management Plan. This plan specifically talks about maintaining fisheries and riparian areas. This project will help to achieve the following objectives *The State will seek to protect, conserve, and improve Utah's fish and aquatic wildlife and the habitats upon which they depend. *The State will seek to provide for the varied demands of fish and aquatic wildlife recreationists. *The State supports ensuring the persistence of the diversity of native fish and aquatic wildlife in Utah while at the same time providing excellent opportunities for anglers and other recreationists. *Encourage the use of flood structures, dams, catch basins, gully plugs, and reseeding of grass ways to help reduce erosion during and after storm events. *The State supports implementing active management and restoration projects on federal lands to restore sinuosity, vegetation, and to re-seed/revegetate burn areas as soon as possible post-fire to mitigate sedimentation in streams and riparian areas *Active management should be used to improve and enhance riparian resources to provide for appropriate physical, biological, and chemical function. *Prioritize and manage riparian areas to attain desired future conditions for riparian related resources (e.g. fishery habitat, water quality, wildlife and livestock forage, and soil stability). *The State supports the use of structural and non-structural improvements in unstable water courses to restore riparian areas properly functioning/desired future conditions. *The State will engage with federal land manage agencies to support active management of healthy riparian areas on federal land.

As demonstrated by catastrophic wildfires such as Seely and Coal Hollow as well as the early 2000 beetle epidemic, lack of appropriate fire return intervals have allowed the watersheds on the North Zone of the Manti La Sal national forest to reach late seral stages and are highly susceptible to catastrophic wildfire, insects, disease, and drought. Treatments within this proposal would be implemented to effectively restore resilient, fire-adapted aspen ecosystems on a landscape-scale and across boundary by moving the stands toward properly functioning condition in terms of composition (species diversity) and density (crown spacing and fuel loading). In addition the treatments would improve structural diversity, promote browse species and recruitment, reduce the hazardous fuel loading, and reduce the continuity of fuels across the Sanpete Face landscape; thus mitigating the risks and damage associated with a high intensity, high severity, uncharacteristic/catastrophic wildfire and where appropriate, expand opportunities to manage fire for resource benefits and meet Manti-La Sal Land and Resource Management Plan objectives. The current condition of aspen/conifer stands within the project boundaries are highly susceptible to intense stand replacing fires which presents a hazard to fire personnel, the private citizens, structures and infrastructure, as well as ecosystems and watersheds. The current Fire Regime Group (FRG) is 5 (200+ year frequency and high (stand replacement severity). The current Fire Regime Condition Class is 3 high due to Spruce/fir encroachment and bug kill. Following treatment, the FRCC would be converted back to a mosaic of aspen with FRCC of 1-2. Ponderosa pine stands within the proposed areas are at FRCC of 2 with a buildup of under-story fuels and encroachment of pinyon/juniper. Prescribed burning at desired return interval of 5-15 years will return these stands to FRCC of 1 with open under-stories. The current fire regime condition class within the Mahogany Point and South Horn project area is moderate (2), and would be reduced to low (1) immediately after treatment. Condition Class 1 is a 0-35 year fire frequency and low (surface fires most common) to mixed severity (less than 75% of the dominant overstory vegetation replaced). Condition class 2 is a 0-35 year fire frequency and high (stand replacement) severity (greater than 75% of the dominant overstory vegetation replaced). Additionally, treatment of mahogany will initiate varying age classes and protect this critical wildlife component from future wildfire impacts. Within Huntington Creek and tributaries, riparian areas can act as a fuel break. Since riparian areas are green and have high fuel moisture throughout the whole growing season unlike the uplands which can be very dry and flammable at time of the year. Throughout the North Zone of the Manti La Sal riparian areas need to be enhanced to create suitable fire breaks for any future fires in the area. The upland areas within the project area map as moderate to moderate/high in the Utah Forestry Fire and State Lands Wildfire Risk Portal.

The Seeley fire resulted in portions of Huntington Creek downcutting, the result of this erosion is large pulses of sediment being transported downstream. As a tributary to the San Rafael, sediment flows during flooding are carried through to the main river channel. The San Rafael River is currently 303(D) listed as an impaired waterbody with a Total Maximum Daily Load for Total Dissolved Solids (TDS). Reduction in erosion and trapping sediment to aggrade the streambed will effectively reduce the amount of both suspended and dissolved solids. Adding complexity and roughness to a stream through large woody debris (log structures) has been shown to trap sediment and promote healthy sediment transport. Aggrading the streambed through these activities will reduce the salt loading and TDS in lower Huntington Creek and the San Rafael River. Areas treated using mastication can also increase overall water available in the watershed. 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 out-compete Prescribed fire treatments may result in short to moderate term impacts to water quality, but project design features will prevent long-term degradation. Project treatments will considerably lessen the risk of uncharacteristic large-scale high severity fires that could result in long-term watershed degradation. By increasing aspen component in the watershed long-term water quality and overall watershed function will be maintained or enhanced. Fire behavior over the last 2 decades have illustrated the potential for large uncontrollable fires across the Manti-La Sal with current fuel loading and conifer stand densities. A large wildlife would likely lead to large flood events. Water quantity could increase but most increase would be associated with storm events or early snow melt. This would likely lead to channel instability and downcutting. Ash, erosion from the fire, and erosion from channel adjustments would decrease water quality by increasing water turbidity and sediment loads. These effects could lead to extirpation of fish populations if the area burned was large enough. Water quantity (and quality) would return to near baseline levels as vegetation recovered over time, but channel adjustments such as down-cutting post-fire would likely have long-term consequences such as reduced areas of riparian habitat and wet meadows. By treating these areas using prescribed fire we can minimize these impacts by treating these areas over multiple years instead of losing them all at once to catastrophic wildfires.

All areas with the project comply with direction in the Manti-La Sal Forest Plan, and have been through the NEPA process. All treatment areas have had BA/BE reports, archaeological clearance and SHPO concurrence (see attached NEPA documents). A biological assessment was completed and determined there would be no effect to any federally listed species, proposed species, or critical habitat. The project complies with the Endangered Species Act consultation requirements using Counterpart Consultation Regulations and the Endangered Species Act (USDA Forest Service 2015a). A biological evaluation was completed for sensitive species. This project may impact individuals or habitat of the northern goshawk and three-toed woodpecker but will not likely contribute to a trend towards Federal listing or loss of viability to the populations or species of these Forest Service sensitive species. There was a no impact determination on other Forest Service sensitive species (USDA Forest Service 2015b). Although there are wetlands and floodplains or flood prone areas in the project area, no adverse effects are anticipated. Design features have been included in the proposed action that minimize disturbance in these areas and provide for protection. The practices controlling operations are effective in minimizing disturbance when fully and properly implemented. Implementation is typically good for timber sale operations and road construction. No adverse effects are expected to the municipal supply watershed or drinking water source area (USDA Forest Service 2017a). The action meets the intent of the Clean Water Act and Executive Orders 11988 and 11990. The project area is not within or adjacent to any congressionally designated areas, such as wilderness, wilderness study areas, or national recreation areas. The project area is not within a research natural area. The project contains Inventoried Roadless Area (IRA). Regional staff reviewed the project for consistency with the 2001 Roadless Area Conservation Rule (RACR) and concur the project is compliant with the 2001 RACR (USDA Forest Service 2015c). Cultural resource surveys have been completed for the proposed project. Consultation has been conducted with appropriate tribes. Design features for the management and protection of cultural resources have been included (USDA Forest Service 2016b). The State Historical Preservation Office (SHPO) was consulted and has concurred with the determination of No Historic Properties Affected. This proposal is consistent with to assess forest lands, develop a management program based on multiple-use, sustained-yield principles, and implement a resource management plan for each unit of the National Forest System. The EA and supporting documents, including specialist's reports in the Project Record, document interdisciplinary review as required by NEPA. The Migratory Bird Treaty Act implements various bilateral treaties and conventions between the United States and four other counties for the protection of migratory birds. Under the act, taking, killing, or possessing migratory birds is unlawful. No adverse impacts would occur to any of the potentially occurring migratory bird species as a result of the Proposed Action. A wildlife specialist's report is included in the project record (USDA Forest Service 2015b). A stream alteration permit with Utah Division of Water Rights will be applied for during the winter or 2021.

This project aims to treat approximately 9000 acres on the North Zone of the Manti-La Sal National Forest within three critical watersheds utilizing a variety of treatments at multiple elevations to improve wildlife and fish habitat, improve forage production, restore areas damaged by beetle kill, reduce chances of future catastrophic fires, restore riparian areas, rehabilitate stream function, and restore overall watershed health. Tributaries of Huntington creek will be treated to increase fish habitat and improve riparian areas. Dead trees located on site will be used for construction of log structures including, J-hooks, cross vane and log roller structures. Angular / flat rock will be delivered to each site and used along with rock already present to construct rock weirs, boulder cross vanes, and converging rock clusters. Sod mats and willow clumps will be transplanted from off channel locations to the structures as needed. Work on Huntington Creek will be completed by DWR personnel and project partners. BDAs will be constructed in Nuck Woodward by driving 6 foot non-treated posts into the channel with a hydraulic post pounder. The posts create a foundation for weaving and tie the structure to the stream bed. Materiel for weaving will be juniper bows collected from nearby lop and scatter projects. Labor for BDA implementation will be contracted out using equipment and materials provided by DWR. Additional work may be completed in Rilda and Crandall Canyons as determined by USFS biologist. Approximately 3,200 acres of critical Sage Grouse habitat within the Mahogany Point and South Horn project areas will be treated using a combination of hand cutting and mechanical mastication. Approximately 700 acres have already been treated by USFS force account. USFS force account will utilize USFS equipment to treat an additional 1000 acres. Funding through WRI will be utilized to contract the remaining 2,200 acres. The Proposed Action would apply mechanical treatment to remove PJ, serviceberry, and mountain brush encroaching within sage grouse habitat. Areas of old growth mahogany will be cut in narrow bands to encourage sprouting and restore younger age class to protect the stand from wildfire and maintain overall stand health. Approximately 1500 acres of high elevation subalpine fir will be treated within the Huntington creek drainage above Electric Lake. These areas have been treated using commercial salvage logging to remove beetle killed Engelman Spruce. Post logging an increase in subalpine fir requires hand thinning to remove sub-alpine fir and restore desired spruce and aspen component. Approximately 300 acres will be treated by USFS force account or IDIQ contract. The remaining 1200 acres will be treated through WRI contract through the state. Future jackpot burning may be required in certain areas to remove additional slash and encourage aspen response. Future tree planting may be required to restore desired species composition as determined by forest silviculturist. The proposed project would apply prescribed burning to approximately 2000 acres of late seral aspen stands within the Trail Mountain project area. Within the Trail Mountain project area stands with a remnant component of aspen will be targeted for high severity burn to allow for greatest success of aspen regeneration. Vegetation further away from the aspen component will be targeted with a low to moderate burn to minimize the dead and down component and allow for smaller group torching to create openings in the canopy. Approximately 700 acres have been treated with slash lines to facilitate ignitions both earlier or later in the season to avoid impacting any nesting goshawks as well as reduce holding concerns. Ignitions will likely take place in late October or early November but may happen in the spring if conditions and timing allow. The proposed project will apply prescribed burning to approximately 2000 acres of ponderosa pine stands with the Pines project area. These areas will be targeted with low to moderate fire intensities to maintain appropriate fire return intervals and remove dead and down component to protect the vegetation from uncharacteristic high intensity wildfires, improve forage production, and initiate aspen response within the small drainages. Most of these stands have been burned previously and re-entry of prescribed fire within ponderosa stands will generally occur at 5-15 year intervals. This will also protect the adjacent Wildcat Knolls Sage grouse lek from potential wildfire impacts. Rim areas with mahogany will be excluded from direct ignitions to maintain mahogany component and critical snow retention areas. Ignitions will likely take place in late spring when ground fuels are available to burn but grass and sage fuel moistures prevent spread outside of the intended units. Units with adequate holding features such as roads, may be burned in the fall.

Historical/long term vegetation monitoring/Habitat assessment framework (HAF) studies in the treatment area provide baseline data which may be used to assess vegetation response and treatment longevity. Post treatment long term vegetation monitoring sites will be installed within treatment areas. Methods to be used to quantify habitat condition include photos, ocular macro plot (OMP), line-intercept (tree/shrub canopy cover), and line-point intercept (effective ground cover). Each site will then be assessed based upon rangeland condition ratings. This project has two greater sage-grouse leks within the boundary. Annual lek counts will continue and will address current conditions as well as the response of the treatment through population increase/decrease. Fuels Specialist, Fire Management Officer, and Siliviculturist periodically assess the treated areas for compliance with management objectives and are consulted on a case by case basis by the implementation crew when special situations arise. Migratory bird, Northern Goshawk, and Golden Eagle surveys to be conducted prior to implementation and breeding areas buffered in order to minimize disturbance. Post-treatment photo points, video documentation, migratory bird surveys. Approximately 5 years after completion of a cutting unit, the treatment sites are reviewed for maintenance treatment needs by the Silviculturist, Fuels Specialist, FMO, or wildlife biologist. Pre-treatment vegetation surveys were completed. Post-treatment vegetation surveys will be conducted 1 and 5 years after treatment to identify results from the proposed action such as aspen recruitment, noxious weeds, and resource damage. Yearly fish population surveys have been competed on Huntington Creek since 2002 (See report in document section). According to the DWR Southeast Region Strategic Sampling Plan, the Huntington Creek drainage is scheduled to be surveyed in 2020. This will allow biologists to collect pre-project fish population data. A drainage wide fish population survey is scheduled again in 2026, allowing biologists to collect post-project fish population data. Additional electrofishing sites will be added to estimate fish densities and metrics of fish health before and after project implementation. Other monitoring data collected will include a summary of macro-invertebrates, and channel monitoring including cross sections and longitudinal profiles. Channel monitoring will occur before and after construction and after flooding events.

US Forest Service - Manti-La Sal National Forest. The MLF has provided all NEPA, archeological clearances and wildlife surveys for proposed treatment areas. The MLF has invested millions of dollars and numerous years of work in order to facilitate commercial logging with areas that cannot easily be treated through prescribed fire. The MLF will provide contract oversight for all hand and mechanical treatment contracts. The MLF will also provide most of the personnel and equipment needed for the large scale prescribed burns. BLM--The BLM will provide fire personnel and aerial resources to support prescribed burning through local agreement funded through USFS. Utah Division of Forestry, Fire, and State Lands, will provide additional support for prescribed burning through local agreements. Additionally, FFSL has provided funding and contract work for mechanical treatments within the Straight Canyon watershed around the Joes Valley area in previous projects. Utah Division of Wildlife Resources has worked with the Forest Service, Trout Unlimited and other partners to implement the first phase of Huntington creek in the fall of 2020. DWR is very invested in the upland treatments and had helped contract in earlier phases. DWR helped with post fire rehabilitation needs. Trout Unlimited (Huntington Creek Restoration) worked with DWR and the Forest Service in 2020 (FY21) to implement the first phase of the Huntington Restoration. Trout Unlimited will continue to help with project management and and work documentation on the stream restoration portion of the project. Additionally, Trout Unlimited will provide media in the form of blog posts, social media, and local media outreach. Additionally, contracting for most mechanical treatments within these projects will be provided through DWR.

These project areas will be managed in the future to provide for multiple uses and overall forest health. More phases are planned to continue fish habitat. Options to restore habitat in Nuck Woodward Creek and other tributaries where Colorado River cutthroat trout are being considered. The North Zone BDA Project in the planning phases and will allow for increased implementation of BDA's through the North Zone of the forest. Areas damaged by beetle kill will continue to be utilized for commercial salvage logging. These areas will be treated to restore aspen and spruce components by thinning of sub-alpine fir, jackpot burning, and replanting of desired species. Future management of the aspen stands will include use of managed fire as appropriate to maintain aspen clone health. Future management of Ponderosa Pine stands will include continued under-story burning at desired return fire intervals to maintain healthy stand structure. The Mahogany Point and South Horn Sage Grouse Habitat Improvement Project area will be maintained as sagebrush habitat comprised of critical greater sage-grouse habitat as well as key/general big game winter ranges. Potential threats in the treatment area include; noxious/invasive weed expansion, cross country OHV use, and reinvasion of Pinyon-Juniper species. Periodic visual inspection, photo points, and vegetation monitoring will occur to assess current conditions and track vegetation trends over time. Methods used will include; effective ground cover, tree/shrub canopy cover, and species composition in conjunction with resource value ratings (RVR). Evaluations will occur every 5-10 years to effectively monitor vegetation responses. Vegetation data may be used to help guide wildlife, rangeland management, and administrative authority to meet project objectives. Monitoring and treatment of noxious weed/invasive species will be implemented by USFS personnel and funds on federal property throughout the project.

The Manti La Sal Healthy Forest proposal addresses all three of the key goals laid out in the Forest Action Plan: conserve and manage working forest landscapes for multiple values and uses, protect forests from threats and enhance public benefits from trees and forests. Wood products will be available through firewood permits, timber sales, and stewardship contracts in accordance with the project NEPA documentation and the Manti-La Sal National Forest Land and Resource Management Plan. Salvage removal of dead Engelman spruce and reforestation efforts will provide for continued multiple use of the proposed area. Maintaining the watershed will increase fish habitat and increase potential for recreation. Fishing has historically been a primary recreational activity in the canyon, improving fish habitat and holding more fish near access areas will boost recreation. This project is restoring fish habitat lost due to post fire impacts, including addressing extirpation of some of the most genetically intact strains of Colorado River Cutthroat Trout (CRCT) found anywhere. Restoration of a resilient population of CRCT in Huntington Creek is dependent on the success of restoring aquatic functional tributaries. Additionally, Brown Trout populations that frequently exceeded 2,000 fish per mile were essentially wiped out below the fire scar. Fish densities and distribution must be significantly increased to restore a sustainable fishery in Huntington Creek. All three sections of Huntington Creek (mainstem, Left Fork, Right Fork) are considered as potential Blue Ribbon Waters. The artificial fly section of Right Fork of Huntington Creek will be surveyed by Blue Ribbon Council members in 2020 for full Blue Ribbon Fishery status. This project will help the mainstem and Left Fork of Huntington Creek regain full Blue Ribbon Fishery status in the near future Areas near FS campgrounds will be provided additional angling and stream recreational opportunities for the public with improvements to the stream and riparian areas.

03/14/2022

03/01/2026

2026

The Mahogany Point portion of the project of Pinyon/Juniper removal with mastication began in 2022 and was completed in 2023, approximately 2,355 acres completed utilizing contract services through WRI, approximately 600 acres completed with USFS force account crew, Manti-La Sal Fuels program oversaw project and monitoring. Approximately 1,000 acres of prescribed fire has been completed in the fall of 2022 on Trail Mountain and within the Cottonwood drainage. Approximately 2,000 acres of prescribed fire completed in the Spring of 2022 in the Pines project area within the Muddy drainage area.

The watersheds on the North Zone of the Manti--La Sal National Forest have reached late seral stages with a lack of appropriate fire return intervals. This has made the area highly vulnerable to catastrophic wildfire, insects, disease, and drought, while also reducing forage and wildlife habitat quality. This project proposes treating roughly 9,000 acres across three key watersheds using a variety of methods. Goals include reducing hazardous fuels, restoring aspen and spruce stands, improving wildlife and fish habitat, increasing forage, protecting sage grouse habitat, and rehabilitating damaged riparian and stream systems. Treatments also aim to re establish natural fire return intervals in ponderosa pine and aspen areas, prevent high severity fires, and reduce risks to people, property, and ecological resources.

Periodic visual inspection, photo points, and vegetation monitoring will occur to assess current conditions and track vegetation trends over time. Monitoring and treatment of noxious weed/invasive species will be implemented by USFS personnel and funds on federal property throughout the project if needed. Continued work in the project includes the TSI work which is anticipated to be completed in field season 2026.