This project is to invest WRI funding into previously treated WRI projects for the sole purpose of maintaining and prolonging the life of the existing treatment. Most of these treatments are or have been treated mechanically in the past and the need to retreat young encroaching pinyon and juniper trees is critical. Treatment will be implemented by the use of lop and scatter hand crews that are experienced in cutting several thousand acres of small pinyon juniper trees, most of the treatment areas that will be treated where mechanically treated over the past 5-10 years. We are starting to see an encroachment of smaller trees within these areas, reducing the understory of native vegetation of grasses, forbs and shrub. The need to remove the encroaching pinyon-juniper trees in these areas is right now, the trees are smaller in size, lower fuel loading will be left on site and a overall reduced cost to preserve our initial investment through this type of treatment.

Objectives include the removal of 100% of encroaching pinyon juniper trees to help preserve the initial WRI treatment that was done in past years. Removal of these trees will allow for the existing understory of grasses, forbs and shrub components to not have to compete for water during times of drought. Also allows for less competition of nutrients, improved sunlight for photosynthesis, future seed sources for native and introduced grasses and forbs to become established. Removal of these smaller trees at this time allows for the treatment to be less expensive and done in a timely manner with the use of chainsaw hand crews that have performed this lop and scatter type work before. With treatments exceeding over 5-10 years the need to protect our initial WRI investment is critical.

Not completing this project will allow for these trees to become larger overtime and encroach in on the treatment areas, providing a fuel loading for wildfire, over take treatment areas where valuable forage value for livestock and wildlife has been established. Additional threats will include soil erosion and loss of shrubs and perennial grass and forbs, if this project is addresses now would be the time to remove these smaller trees due to the size and height. General maintenance of these types of projects is key for wildlife species such as Sage Grouse, allowing for these trees to get lager will cause a reduction in the potential habitat for grouse and movement from one area to the other during different times in their life due to the increasing number of trees with the treatment areas. In addition, grazing opportunities may result in increased noxious weed invasion due to heavier utilized areas where better forage is available. The increasing fuel loading is always a concern for wildfire in these areas, removal of these smaller trees will allow for less flame length and reduced topping of flames due to the removal of these pinyon juniper trees, a fire break could be utilized from the edge of these treatments to stop or reduce a future wildfire.

The pinyon-juniper and big sagebrush areas lie within the Lowland and Mountain sagebrush steppe type which is two of several key habitats identified in the Wildlife Action Plan or WAP. The proposed projects will address some of the habitat management strategies outlined in the deer and elk management plans for herd unit 23 (Monroe Unit), herd unit 22 (Beaver), herd unit 21 (Fillmore Pahvant/Oak Creek) and herd unit #25 (Plateau/ Fishlake) including: *Continue to improve and restore sagebrush steppe habitats critical to deer according to UDWRs Habitat Initiative. Maintain habitat quantity and quality at a level adequate to support the stated population objectives while at the same time not resulting in an overall downward trend in range condition and watershed quality. *Work cooperatively with land management agencies and private landowners to plan and implement improvement projects for the purpose of enhancing wildlife habitat and range resources in general. *The project also helps fulfill the state mule deer management plan section IV Habitat Goal: Conserve and improve mule deer habitat throughout the state with emphasis on crucial ranges. *The proposed projects will address the following goals and objectives of the Division of Wildlife Resources most recent strategic management plan: *Resource Goal: To expand wildlife populations and conserve sensitive species by protecting and improving wildlife habitat. Objective 1: protect existing wildlife habitat and improve 500,000 acres of critical habitats and watersheds throughout the state. Objective 3: conserve sensitive species to prevent them from becoming listed as threatened or endangered. Constituency Goal: Achieve broad-based support for Division programs and budgets by demonstrating the value of wildlife to all citizens of Utah. Objective 2: improve communication with wildlife organizations, public officials, private landowners, and government agencies to obtain support for Division programs. *UDWR SR critical big game winter range are important browse communities that need to be enhanced and improved. The Division will employ a variety of methods to achieve this including prescribed grazing, prescribed burning, reseeding and seedling transplants, also mechanical treatments. *Priority areas will include treatments to improve sagebrush-steppe and mountain browse communities. *Falls within the rangeland focus area for WRI wildlife species for mule deer and elk. *NRCS has also identified that the sagebrush steppe is critical as it pertains to Greater Sage Grouse and the SGI Initiative working on Private, State and Federal Lands. *Richfield Field Office RMP - Manage for a mix of vegetative types, structural stages, and provide for native plant, fish, and wildlife (including SSS) habitats. - Sustain or reestablish the integrity of the sagebrush continuity, and quality of habitat that is necessary to maintain sustainable populations of the Greater sage-grouse and other sagebrush-dependent wildlife species. *Utah has finalized it's Sage Grouse Management plan and enclosed are related goals and objectives from that plan that are associated with SGMA's (Parker Mountain-Emery): #1) Protection of habitat that provides year round use. #2) Ensure recruitment of a continuing population. #3) Enhance or Improve sage grouse habitat #4) Protect 10,000 acres on SITLA through habitat restoration practices. #5) Enhance 25,000 acres annually with a SGMA. #6) Increase 50,000 acres annually through management actions (prescribed grazing, invasive weed control) *SITLA Management Plans: Correspond with the Utah Code Title 53C Chapter Five Section 101, 102 and 103 in accordance with Management of Rangeland Resources Utah Adminstrative Code R850-50-1100 Range Improvement Projects within the SITLA Property. **I have also included in the documents tab several County Resource Plans from Beaver, Garfield, Sevier and Millard as well as information pertaining to the Utah Statewide Plan. In addition to this project working within the Fillmore Pahvant and Oak Creek Units specific Management Plans for Big Game are outlined as such: All of the properties within the Fillmore WMA are important winter range for deer and elk. The I-15 corridor severely diminished the amount of winter range accessible to the Pahvant herds of deer and elk. Due to the limited access to most of the historical winter range, the Fillmore WMA is heavily used by the Fillmore deer herd (herd unit 21) and the Fillmore Pahvant elk herd (herd unit 21). The objectives for deer herd unit 21 are 18-20 bucks per 100 does and a population of 12,000 deer. The most recent herd estimate from 2017 shows the deer herd below objective at 8800. Elk herd unit 21 has an objective of 1600 and the most recent estimate of herd size from 2017 has them slightly below objective at 1500. Since I-15 has cut off access to much of the historical winter range the Fillmore WMA is an important tool in the management of big game herds. Therefore, it is important to improve and maintain the winter range on the WMA. Implementing this lop and scatter project will allow for increased browse species to be utilized, along with grasses, forbs and shrubs, through the removal of the pinyon-juniper trees.

As Pinyon and Juniper trees continue to encroach in these areas, live fuel loading and canopy cover increase as well. This increase in live fuel loading and a closed canopy will increase the likelihood of an unwanted wildfire and its negative effects. Reducing the number of smaller diameter trees on the landscape will in turn reduce the live fuel loading and decrease the amount of canopy cover. This modification in vegetation allows initial attack firefighting crews more options to safely and effectively suppress unwanted wildfires and limit the negative effects. In addition to modifying fire behavior, treating the vegetation in these areas will result in multiple benefits, which include but are not limited to, improving and protecting current habitat for wildlife dependent upon these various ecosystems, improving native species diversity, reducing hazardous fuel accumulations and breaking up the continuous fuel bed of pinion/juniper that currently exists. This treatment will promote a fire resilient environment that reduces the risk for large scale, intense unwanted wildland fires, with less risk to public and firefighter safety. Fire risk would be reduced to multiple watersheds. Existing wildfire risk index in the project areas ranges from moderate-high to very low, looking at fire modeling results, an unwanted wildfire in these areas at the 97th percentile weather would quickly spread into high risk areas and threaten multiple watersheds, private lands and numerous other values not only wildlife habitat, but structures, culinary water systems, and utility corridors to name a few. The majority of the areas in this project are within fire regime III -- 35-100+ year frequency and mixed severity (less than 75% of the dominant overstory vegetation replaced); The Fire Regime Condition Class (FRCC) is estimated to be both moderate (FRCC 2) and high (FRCC 3) departure from the central tendency of the natural (historical) regime. The central tendency is a composite estimate of vegetation characteristics (species composition, structural stages, stand age, canopy closure, and mosaic pattern); fuel composition; fire frequency, severity, and pattern; and other associated natural disturbances. The majority of this project would be in FRCC 3. This project will improve the fire regime condition class to FRCC 1 and FRCC 2. This project will manipulate the vegetation in a manner that will modify fire behavior such that fire suppression personnel can safely initial attack unwanted wildfires in the area. These treatments will provide anchor points, safety zones, and buffer zones for values at risk such as powerlines, communities, range improvements. Instead of a crown fire that is wind driven with flame lengths of 30+ feet in Pinyon and Juniper requiring aerial resources to initial attach, this treatment will reduce the flame lengths to those that are easily managed with engines and hand crews Sevier County Resource Plan States Objectives: #5. Upon project completion, fuels projects should be managed and monitored to ensure long-term success, including persistence of seeded species and/or other treatment components, such as implementing maintenance actions and control invasive vegetation post-treatment. #13. Hazardous fuels reduction treatments should be used to restore ecosystems, protect human, natural, and cultural resources, and reduce the threat of wildfire to communities. Millard County also states: Vegetation/Forage Management Several County industries depend on open range grazing opportunities. Therefore, the County supports responsible rangeland management. The County encourages private and Federal/State agency partnerships organized to improve range conditions. Methods supported by the County include prescribed burns, reseeding and reclamation. The County is particularly interested in wildfire management and post-burn rehabilitation efforts. The County also supports vegetation manipulation programs designed to re-establish traditional uses and use levels. The County will continue, and expand as financially feasible, current noxious weed management programs. In order to adequately protect the land and accompanying resources, management decisions must be made in a timely manner and programs implemented quickly. Millard County will actively participate in these processes. Within the Fillmore WMA's specifically the Youngsfield, Nixon, Circus Hollow, Black Cedar Hill, Cemetery, Halfway Hill, and the Kanosh-Dual Springs units. Future projects will focus on maintaining these treatments as well as addressing more Pinyon and Juniper encroachment on all units within the WMA.

This proposed project is a phase I early phase II lop and scatter project, pinyon-juniper stands within these phases will have a typically good understory that is comprised of grasses, forbs and shrubs. By implementing this project we will have the opportunity to increase overland water quantity by reducing the encroaching stands of pinyon-juniper trees. Removal of these trees will result in improved stream flow, more water discharge for soil availability for desired plant and shrub species. Estimated that 1 acre of pinyon-juniper will utilize during the year 23% of the water within a 1 acre foot. Quality of water will not be overwhelming the first year but in and over time it will become improved. This type of treatment will benefit the soil over the long term, due to increasing plants that will utilize the excess water, overland flows of rills will be filled in, chance for overland flooding will be minimized allowing for springs and seep to start appearing and improved rangeland conditions will benefit overall. Information from County Resource Plans with concerns of water Quality/Quantity: #3. Where water resources on public lands have diminished because grasses have succeeded to pinyon-juniper and other woody vegetation, a vigorous program of mechanical treatments should be applied to promptly remove this woody vegetation and biomass, stimulate the return of the grasses to historic levels, and thereby provide a watershed that maximizes water yield and water quality for livestock, wildlife, and human uses. #6. Support projects to increase water quality and quantity in the county. #7.Maintain and improve our fresh water supplies and watersheds, and increase our watershed production capabilities.

All NEPA and other resource inventories have been completed no other surveys are need to implement this project. Fishlake Forest Service, BLM and SITLA have agreed to the projects and are in support of them. Consulting with SHPO has already been completed and a lop and scatter does not warrant consultation. Project Manager will continue to work with the Federal and State Agencies to make sure Arie and Area Resource Staff from the Forest Service, BLM and SITLA are involved with the planning and implementation of this project moving forward. Project Manager will consult with Arie as it pertains to Private Landownerships.

Methods will be to contract all of this project with the use of State Purchasing Guidelines, Project Manager will hold site tours and provide assistance to Preferred Companies that contract this type of work out. The companies we have worked with in the past have good reputations and are good reputable companies that has years of experience in this kind of work and also has a good crew that will finish this project in a timely manner. This project will be implemented with the use of chain saw hand crews doing the work, working together with the Fishlake Forest Service, BLM and SITLA to identify areas of need for pinyon-juniper removal. This Project will be bid on a per acre basis and require experience and equipment necessary to complete the Lop and Scatter Contract.

Monitoring on this project will consist of photo points and vegetation transects along with data collected on shrub and browse species. Wildlife Surveys will also be done in the terms of post season and spring classifications as it pertains to deer management plans on each of the WMU Beaver and Pahvant Mountain Unit, counts and survey data will be collected by the area Wildlife Biologist. This project is a follow up maintenance project from previous WRI funded treatments, removing the small pinyon-juniper trees now is critical and cost effective in preserving our initial investment. Continual monitoring in the coming years will be to re-read browse and plant transects through line intercept monitoring, which can be uploaded within the WRI Data Base for additional reference and use in the future. Project Manager will work with Area Biologist and Fuel Managers from the Forest Service and the BLM to collect browse data and winter pellet counts as determined by the Wildlife Biologist.

Partners within the scope of this project include BLM, Fishlake Forest Service, Private Landowner, UDWR and SITLA. All agencies are in support of doing follow-up type of work within these areas. This type of lop and scatter treatment will maintain and help conserve or initial investment of the projects. We have also been in touch with the County Commissioners from the Six County Areas, showcasing these types of projects each year as we conduct a annul tour of the habitat restoration work that has been completed in their counties. Local and state chapters of the MDF, NWTF, SFW, RMEF, FNAWS, UBA, and SCI have all been big supporters of these types of projects and funding each year come from them at a local level to help complete and fund this work. In addition UGIP have partnered in the past through grazing permittees taking part in this work as well. Doing this type of maintenance will allow for future reduction in cost as it pertains to the longevity of the overall projects. All partners involved have a need and are willing to commit to making maintenance type projects a priority on their districts in the future. Areas identified within this project have been funded through WRI or other funding sources associated with or though WRI.

Future management of this project will be to continue to monitor the encroachment of the smaller trees into the treatment areas. Provide information to the Area Wildlife Biologists and Range Conservationist on potential forage benefits for livestock and wildlife, look to involve the permittees that can work on improvements as needed within the allotments, (water pipelines, troughs better distribution of livestock, wildlife etc). The need to follow-up with pinyon-juniper whips that may have been missed this can be accomplished through DH Projects, working with local Sportsman Group on Field Days, and the need to planting browse species in the treatment areas for additional forage in the future maybe considered. Livestock grazing within the treatment areas will not be an issue, removal of young pinyon-juniper trees will not effect the grazing rotation on Federal or State Properties. Working with Private Ranch Managers this type of treatment will help sustain the grazing and longevity of the treatments that are critical to the overall ranch plans.

Removal of the encroaching pinyon-juniper trees will allow for increased forage value for livestock within these allotments, reduction in the pinyon-juniper trees will allow for increased water flow to be utilized by the grasses, forbs and shrubs instead of being used by these smaller trees. Grazing will not need to be deferred in the treatment areas. Local coordination will come from the BLM Range Conservationist and the grazing permittee as to grazing rotation of cattle or sheep along with timing of the grazing done on an annual meeting with the BLM and SITLA. In addition these treatment areas are critical for big game use and upland game use, such as hunting, viewing and recreational opportunities. Many local hunters frequent these areas in hope a fulling a tag in the big game hunting season as well as in the spring as they hunt for wild turkeys. Horse back riding is another activity that is common on the Fillmore, Oak Creek Beaver and Monroe Units. Other opportunities will allow the public to benefit from harvesting fire wood, fence stays and possible cedar post prior to the project being completed. Increased recreational opportunities such as camping, ATV, hiking will also be enjoyed in these areas. Sevier County supports responsible public land recreation and tourism. The county views recreation and tourism as an additional economic opportunity. The county encourages private sector development of recreational facilities and services. The county will also continue to support and work in partnership with agencies, entities, and interest groups to promote recreation and tourism. Participate as an active partner with public land management agencies to ensure that public land recreational resources are managed in ways that contribute to the protection of resources, the overall quality of life, and the recreational experience of county residents and visitors. Develop a positive working relationship between all interested and affected parties in public lands recreation. The county supports locating camping areas a reasonable distance from streams to protect water quality. Work closely with the public lands agencies to provide, develop, and/or upgrade camping opportunities. Work with the public lands agencies to develop mountain biking opportunities in the county. Work closely with the public lands agencies to develop off-road trails for ATV use. Within Millard County and the Fillmore WMA's and other proposed treatment areas the increased opportunity to cut and sell cedar posts and firewood are the most likely available wood products available on the Fillmore WMA, with a little potential for Christmas trees.

05/17/2021

06/23/2021

2021

Final Methods for this project included working with State Purchasing and contracting with Summit Forestry's to lop and scatter with the use of a ten man hand crew approximately 5,219 acres of encroaching pinyon and juniper trees. This lop and scatter contract, provided all services to be performed with chain saws and hand lopppers, project locations were located on UDWR, USFS and private property.

This project was developed with several partnerships in mind, working with the USFS Beaver District, private landowners and the UDWR we where able to compile over 5,200 acres of encroaching pinyon and juniper acres that needed to be treated. These acres were previously treated in some other treatment method, such as two-way chaining or bullhog mastication. After several years (5-7) we see an increased number of encroaching pinyon and juniper trees coming back into these treatments, one simple and relative inexpensive way to remove them is through the lop and scatter method with hand crews. UDWR contracted with Summit Forestry to help with this project, Summit Forestry provided a 10-12 man crew with Sthil Chainsaws to remove the encroaching pinyon and juniper trees within the areas outlined in the WRI proposal. Lop and Scatter treatments took place in Millard and Beaver counties, the crews worked hard to complete this project in a timely manner, and reinvest in our initial investment for many years to come.

In the future UDWR will monitor the encroachment of small pinyon and juniper trees within areas that have previously been green tree chained or bullhog mastication the past. By addressing these smaller trees through lop and scatter treatment such as this one, it helps reduce competition with grasses, forbs and shrub components, while treating these areas at a lower cost per acre through the WRI program.