This project contains several components. The need for each component will be discussed individually. Tamarisk Removal Tamarisk is an invasive species that consumes a large amount of water and outcompetes native vegetation. Removing tamarisk will help make room for native willow and more upland vegetation species. By removing the large stand of tamarisk on the property, more forage will be available for wildlife. BDA's in Willow Creek and Meadow Creek Low tech restoration methods have become a valuable tool for tackling river restoration problems. Installing structures in degraded riverscapes have been shown to reverse incision and increase stream complexity. There have been a number of projects along Meadow Creek and Willow Creek and by continuing these efforts, we will continue to improve the health of the river. Increased complexity in streams benefit terrestrial wildlife by providing water longer into the summer. Riparian planting and exclosure maintenance Several phases of stream restoration along Meadow creek have been completed in past years. Some of these phases have included the construction of exclosures to protect riparian vegetation from browsing. These exclosures are in need of maintenance to continue fulfilling their function. We also plan to plant additional native trees and shrubs within these exclosures to further improve the riparian area. Construction of ATV bridge over Willow Creek An administrative road on the Willow Creek WMA includes a low-water crossing of Willow Creek. A beaver dam just below this crossing has made administrative access much more difficult. In the last few years, in order to cross the stream to conduct weed control, including tamarisk removal, the beaver dam has to be removed, and the crossing itself has greater impact on the stream and on water quality. We propose to re-route the access road a little upstream and install an ATV bridge that will allow DWR staff and contractors to access the western side of Willow creek to perform weed control and tamarisk removal, along with other maintenance needs. Lop and Scatter The BLM and DWR have cooperated on many pinyon and juniper removal projects on Winter Ridge for many years. These past projects have enhanced and protected forage resources for a host of wildlife, including bison, elk, mule deer, and wild horses, as well as livestock. Many of these previously treated areas are in need of re-treatment as trees move back into the project area. As cover of pinyon and juniper trees increases, a corresponding reduction of cover is seen in grasses, forbs, and browse species. If left untreated, conifer cover will continue to increase, thereby reducing the amount of available forage for big game and livestock. There are also some small areas of new lop and scatter work. Bullhog/Mastication The Winter Ridge area of the book cliffs is utilized by bison, elk, mule deer, wild horses, and livestock. Available forage appears to be a limiting factor for all of these, particularly on dry years. The Book Cliffs working group has identified implementing vegetation treatments to improve forage as a high priority. This project will help provide additional forage resources in an area where there is high demand. Wildlife tracker data from the area (see documents tab) indicates that bison especially tend to utilize the areas that are more open than the conifer covered ridge tops targeted for treatment here. This data also indicates that smaller openings within larger forested areas are also utilized. This suggests that a clear-cut is not necessary to provide benefit to these wildlife species. As such, this project will leave larger trees (over ~12 in diameter) standing to maintain some cover and value to species that prefer wooded areas. It is anticipated that collar data post-treatment will show higher utilization from wildlife, especially bison, in these treatment areas. GPS collar data on mule deer show that this area is in a migration corridor. By removing trees and seeding diverse grasses and forbs, migrating deer may linger in the treatment area for longer. Providing additional high-quality forage for migrating deer should improve fat reserves and increase winter survival rates, as well as subsequent birth weights and survival of fawns born to those deer. Arch Surveys Portions of this project are to conduct archeological surveys so that future bullhog/mastication work can be conducted.

- Provide additional forage for wildlife and livestock through conifer removal and seeding desirable species. - Passively increase the populations of local willows in the area through tamarisk removal, and improved water availability through construction of BDA's. - Provide better access to water for the local terrestrial wildlife - Reduce and prevent channelization that results from dense Tamarisk stands. - Reduce the fuel load within an already dry area - Increase the health of the riparian and upland areas within the Willow Creek watershed - Improve administrative access to the Willow Creek WMA through installation of an ATV bridge.

The following threats have been identified in the Utah Wildlife Action Plan: --Droughts: This threat has been identified for elk, deer, Colorado river cutthroat trout, northern leopard frog, wild turkey, monarch butterfly, and aquatic and riverine habitat types. Construction of BDA's in Willow creek and Meadow creek will help hold water in the system for longer periods of time, and will create deeper pools for fish to use during dry spells. Recent drought have also had a large impact on terrestrial wildlife, resulting in poor body condition and survival. Projects which will create and improve forage will help offset some of this impact. --Inappropriate Fire Frequency and Intensity: This threat has been identified for elk, deer, cutthroat trout, and wild turkey, as well as the sagebrush habitat types. This project addresses this threat by removal of pinyon and juniper trees, which can present high fire risk when in dense stands. If left untreated this area will be more prone to a large-scale catastrophic fire event that would seriously impact the plant community and the species that live there, as well as soil and water resources. A fire in this area would also have devastating effects on the trout population downstream. --Problematic Plant Species-Native Upland: This threat has been identified for mule deer and the sagebrush habitat types. The problematic plant species in question are pinyon pine and juniper species. This project will address this threat by removing pinyon and juniper trees that are encroaching into sagebrush areas. It will mimic the natural disturbance of a fire, allowing for new growth of seeded species while creating fire-breaks that will help protect surrounding pinyon and juniper areas from a stand-replacing fire. --Livestock Farming and Ranching: This threat was identified for American Bison. There have been conflicts between bison and cattle in the Book Cliffs, primarily over forage resources and water availability. This project can help mitigate those conflicts by creating additional forage opportunities for both. --Channel Downcutting (indirect, unintentional): This threat is identified for cutthroat trout, northern leopard frog, as well as the aquatic and riverine habitat types. Channel downcutting will be directly addressed by the construction of beaver dam analogues, which can collect sediment and aggrade the stream bed. Erosive water energy is dissipated by the ponding effect from the BDA's rather than further downcutting an incised channel where these sediment transport issues are out-of-balance due to long-term upland and riparian issues. They will also mitigate associated problems with downcutting by holding water in the soil for longer, and providing more consistent moisture spread over a wider area for riparian plants. Colorado River Cutthroat trout and leopard frog greatly benefit by the increase in habitat diversity provided by the ponding effects of the BDA's. Bio-energy is conserved because less energy will be expended versus existing in a limited area, high velocity environment. --Increasing Stream Temperatures: This threat is identified for cutthroat trout, as well as the riverine habitat type. Construction of BDA's will result in ponding and increased stream depth, thereby helping to maintain cooler temperatures. It will also result in healthier riparian vegetation, which will provide shade to the stream. -- Sediment Transport Imbalance: This threat is identified for northern leopard frog and the aquatic and riverine habitat types. BDAs constructed in the stream channel will trap sediment and reduce water velocity in the stream. -- Invasive Plant Species - Non-native: This threat is identified for the aquatic-scrub/shrub habitat type. The invasive plants in this case are primarily tamarisk, which negatively alters the native ecology by increasing soil salinity and decreasing microbial activity. A reduction of native flora has been connected to tamarisk populations. As the population of tamarisk continues to become more dense, removal of this detrimental species will become increasingly difficult and expensive. Also, the risk of stream channelization will increase as stands of tamarisk are left untreated along the riparian corridor of Willow Creek. -- Conversion to Cropland or Pasture Impact: This threat is identified for monarch butterfly. This area may or may not have been converted to agricultural or cropland use at some point in the past but, in it's current condition it is, in some ways, more similar to cropland than a native riparian system. Much like what happens when natural areas are converted to cropland, this area has lost much of it's ability to support milkweed. Through building BDA's the moist area capable of supporting milkweed will be expanded. There is a risk of weed infestation in the mastication treatments, particularly in areas of the project where trees are more dense. Contractors will be required to wash equipment before entering the project to minimize introduction of other weeds. DWR and BLM personnel will monitor the area for weeds and treat as necessary. A maintenance project a year or two after implementation may be considered to combat any weeds before they become a problem.

The Utah Elk Statewide Management Plan has the following applicable objectives and strategies: Habitat Objective 2, strategy d -- Initiate broad scale vegetative treatment projects to improve elk habitat with emphasis on calving habitat and winter ranges. Habitat Objective 2, strategy h -- Emphasize improvement of upper elevation winter ranges to encourage elk to winter at higher elevation than mule deer. The Utah Mule Deer Statewide Management Plan has the following applicable objectives and strategies: Habitat Objective 2, strategy d -- Initiate broad scale vegetative treatment projects to improve mule deer habitat with emphasis on... ranges being diminished by encroachment of conifers.... The Vernal RMP ROD directs that vegetation should be managed to attain an ecological stage that will benefit wildlife, livestock grazing, livestock use, and ensure high species diversity. The Vernal BLM Fire Management Plan for the Upper Book Cliffs aims to achieve a desired mix of seral stages for all major vegetative types. This project will help create diversity of vegetative types in the area. The Utah DWR Deer Herd Management plan for the Book Cliffs has objectives to maintain and/or enhance forage production through range improvements and vegetative manipulation techniques. The Utah DWR Bison Herd Management plan for the Book Cliffs addresses concerns of competition between bison and livestock. This project will help mitigate conflict between bison and livestock by providing improved grazing opportunities for both. The Utah Wildlife Action Plan identifies Lowland Sagebrush, Mountain Sagebrush, Aquatic Shrub/Scrub, and Riverine as key habitat types as well as several threats to species that will benefit from this project. See the Threats/Risks section for details on how this project relates to the WAP. The Utah State Resource Management Plan has several applicable objectives and policies & guidelines: -- The State promotes fuel breaks, thinning, chaining, prescribed fire and the selection of fire-resistant vegetation in green-stripping and burned areas. --Support the use of mechanical or chemical means or fire to alter or perpetuate forests and increase herbaceous yield where timber harvest is impractical or demand does not exist." --Actively remove pinyon-juniper encroachment in other ecological sites due to its substantial consumption of water and its detrimental effect on sagebrush, other vegetation, and wildlife. --Protect existing wildlife habitat and improve 500,000 acres of critical habitats and watersheds throughout the state by 2025. -- Improve vegetative health on public and private lands through active management of invasive plants and noxious weeds. -- The State will pursue opportunities to conduct and assist other partners with fuel reduction work including mechanical treatments and prescribed fire. -- The State will seek to protect, conserve, and improve Utah's fish and aquatic wildlife and the habitats upon which they depend. -- Restore floodplain connectivity for threatened and endangered species that rely on these locations.... -- The State supports implementing active management and restoration projects on federal lands to restore sinuosity, vegetation, and floodplain function which mimic the natural hydrologic system in suitable areas. -- Improve vegetative health on public and private lands through range improvements, prescribed fire, vegetation treatments, and active management of invasive plants and noxious weeds. -- The state of Utah supports proactive management of noxious weeds. -- The State of Utah supports adequate funding to combat the spread of noxious weeds. In addition, the state supports the removal of noxious weeds from affected areas and rehabilitation of effected areas post treatment. -- Active management should be used to improve and enhance riparian resources to provide for appropriate physical, biological, and chemical function. -- The State supports the removal of invasive species from riparian areas on public lands. -- The State supports the use of mechanical treatments, controlled burns, livestock grazing, and other tools to control invasive plants and other plant species that compromise wetland health, in accordance with best available practices. -- Expand wildlife populations and conserve sensitive species by protecting and improving wildlife habitat. -- Conserve, improve, and restore 500,000 acres of mule deer habitat throughout the state with emphasis on crucial ranges. -- Produce and maintain the desired vegetation for wildlife and domestic livestock forage on public and private lands. Grand County Resource Management Plan has the following applicable objectives and policies: -- The County supports wildlife management that seeks an optimal balance between wildlife populations and human needs. -- Support the removal conifers as determined appropriate.... -- The County supports wildlife management that seeks an optimal balance between wildlife populations and human needs. -- Grand County supports maintaining in-stream flows to establish the proper functioning condition of streams and maintain their biological integrity. -- Preserve wetlands and riparian habitats. -- Grand County calls on state and federal land management agencies to improve their management of noxious weeds on public lands. The Uintah County Resource Management Plan has the following applicable objectives: -- Encourage management of forest resources to reduce the risk of catastrophic fires -- Manage lands to maintain or increase forage allocation for livestock grazing. -- The county expects the Utah Division of Wildlife Resources to participate in managing forage and grazing allotments in relation to wildlife populations. -- The county favors the best management practices that are jointly sponsored by cattlemen's, sportsmen's, and wildlife management groups such as chaining, logging, seeding, burning, and other direct soil and vegetation prescriptions that are demonstrated to restore forest and rangeland health, increase forage, and improve watersheds in grazing districts and allotments for the mutual benefit of domestic livestock and wildlife. -- Encourage the protection and preservation of water quality and fish habitat.... -- Support policies that help prevent the spread of invasive species or diseases that negatively affect fish populations -- Support efforts to protect water quality and the quality of the associated fisheries -- Support efforts to improve fish habitats.... -- Restore floodplain connectivity for wildlife that rely on these locations.... -- Encourage the restoration of floodplain connectivity for improved flood control in suitable areas -- Reduce or eliminate noxious weed infestations.... -- Manage noxious weeds to enhance wildlife habitat and farmland. -- Work cooperatively with other agencies and entities to reduce or eliminate noxious weed species and minimize or prevent the establishment of new infestations and new weed species. -- Employ a variety of (integrated) weed management techniques including prevention, biological controls, chemical controls, and mechanical controls. -- Conserve and protect riparian areas through application of best management practices. -- Support the eradication of invasive species, e.g., Phragmites, tamarisk, and Russian olive, which can degrade habitat value and impact groundwater levels. -- Support application of aquatic-approved herbicides to remove undesired vegetation -- Maintain or improve water quality to protect the health and well-being of county residents.... -- Support projects that improve water quality and increase quantity and dependability of water supply. Book Cliffs Working Group Action Plan has the following applicable objectives: -- Vegetation Treatments a. Identify additional areas to complete vegetation management projects with emphasis on projects with the potential of increasing forage on or near summer range. b. Complete a 10 year plan for vegetation improvements. c. Propose at least two vegetation improvement projects annually to the Utah Watershed Restoration Initiative and Grazing Improvement Program. -- Bison 1. Distribution b. Complete vegetation and water developments to further distribute bison use. Conservation Strategy for Colorado River Cutthroat Trout in the States of Colorado, Utah, and Wyoming (2006) Objective 4: Secure and enhance watershed conditions Strategy 7: Improve habitat conditions for CRCT --Manage the entire watershed --Improve lake and stream habitat (including riparian management) Conservation Agreement and Strategy for Colorado River Cutthroat Trout in the State of Utah (1997) --Enhance and/or restore habitat conditions in designated waters throughout the rage of CRCT. Actions may include bank stabilization and runoff control structures, road closure and restoration or road relocation, riparian fencing and sustainable grazing practices. --Maintain and restore where possible natural hydrologic characteristics such as flow quantity, timing and duration to maintain active channel and floodplain features.

Dense pinyon and juniper canopy cover creates a high risk of stand-replacing wildfire. Removing pinyon and juniper trees in this area will provide a valuable fire-break that could slow or stop the spread of a wildfire in this area. Tamarisk is more likely to burn than native riparian vegetation. Removing this invasive species reduces the likelihood of a fire starting and spreading in the area. Healthy riparian systems, such as those with beaver dams can also act as fire breaks should a fire start elsewhere.

Tamarisk control: A single Tamarisk tree uses about the same amount of water as a single willow or cottonwood tree. However, as they tend to grow in dense stands, the amount of water consumed would be greater than a common stand of cottonwoods. With the elimination of Tamarisk from the willow creek area, we would expect that riparian and upland health would increase due to the water being utilized by native vegetation. We also expect water quality to increase as salinity would decrease and soil sedimentation would also decrease. BDAs: BDA's are documented by the literature to retain fine sediments and restore or recover a proper sediment transport balance. In essence they act as a pseudo-natural sediment catch basin and retain fine sediments further upstream in a watershed. BDA's have been documented to retain additional "pulsed" water that comes from high precipitation events and moderate these peak floods. BDA's have also been studied to have an effect on water temperature quality where water is stored and retained laterally beyond the active channel; this water retains a cooler temperature and helps to maintain more stable baseflow discharges. ATV bridge: The ATV bridge will protect water quality since beaver dams will not need to be removed in order to cross the stream, and sediment will not be disturbed in these crossings. The stream has to be forded without the bridge, sending a pulse downstream of mud water and potentially other hazardous chemicals that are on the machines. Bullhog: As conifers are removed in the mastication project, more snow will be able to reach the ground. In addition, competition for water is reduced, freeing up resources for the remaining shrubs and forbs. An increase in soil moisture is also likely. This could potentially translate into more water downstream in Meadow Creek. Removing trees could increase the solar and wind energy to the area, which could reduce the amount of water, but by leaving larger trees in place we hope to counteract this effect. Mulching operations will leave a large amount of woody debris scattered on the surface. This woody debris should reduce the impact on the soil from rain events, and can disrupt overland flow patterns, therefore reducing soil erosion and loss. By reducing the risk of large scale fire, which would result in soil erosion and impacts to water quality, this project will help protect water quality in the Willow Creek watershed.

Archaeology surveys and NEPA are complete or in progress for the terrestrial treatments (lop and scatter, mastication). Those that are in progress are expected to be complete before the project begins. Arch and NEPA are not required for the tamarisk removal. DWR is consulting with the division of water rights on stream alteration permits and water rights issues. We will file all necessary applications prior to beginning work on the ATV bridge and BDAs. We are requesting some funding to allow for future bullhog/mastication work to move forward.

Tamarisk: Tamarisk will be cleared using the cut-stump method. Garlon 3A or an equivalent will be applied to the stump within 15 minutes. Tamarisk will be cut in fall of 2022. After being cut, the tamarisk will be piled together to dry and be burned in spring of 2023. BDAs: Low tech structure design and construction will be contracted out to a river restoration crew that has experience planning and implementing low tech restoration projects. Riparian planting: Meadow Creek exclosure planting will be implemented by a DWR fisheries crew using a mini excavator and auger attachment. The lowermost exclosure was constructed but not planted in the past. Some trees will be purchased. Willow root clumps will be harvested from nearby sources. These native vegetation assemblages will be planted by hand in the exclosure areas and protected until it is properly established. Further plantings or replantings may occur as vacancy allows. ATV bridge: We will purchase a pre-fabricated bridge package. Concrete footings will be poured to place the bridge on. DWR staff will assemble and install the bridge. Lop and Scatter: Lop and scatter areas will be cleared of trees by a chainsaw crew. Trees and slash will be cut down to less than three feet in height. All live limbs will be removed from the stumps. This portion of the project will be completed either in the fall of 2022 or in the spring of 2023. Bullhog: Mastication areas will be aerially seeded prior to tree removal. Conifers will then be removed by a mechanical wheeled or tracked machine (bullhog). This portion of the project will be conducted in the fall-winter of 2022-2023.

Tamarisk removal and BDAs: Partners at Sageland Collaborative will carry out riparian habitat monitoring before and after low-tech structures are installed using the Rapid Stream-Riparian Assessment method (Stacey et al. 2013). This method, which was developed for streams on the Colorado Plateau, ranks 25 indicators related to water quality, hydrogeomorphology, fish/aquatic habitat, riparian vegetation, and terrestrial wildlife habitat. We have continued to monitor the CRCT fishery once every 2-3 years with 3 different electrofishing stations. Fishery monitoring will continue as long as work is ongoing on this rotational timeframe. Exclosures: Exclosures will be monitored bi-annually for damage. Tree survival will be qualitatively noted annually. After two years we will quantitatively assess survival to determine if further plantings are warranted. Less than 33% survival of our efforts will be a benchmark to attempt further planting. Conifer Removal: The DWR has several range-trend sites established in the project area, including some established to monitor previous treatment activities. This monitoring continues on a 5 year rotation and will document changes due to this project. Range-trend reports are uploaded to the WRI database as they are completed.

Sageland Collaborative (formerly the Wild Utah Project) has assisted with Rapid Stream-Riparian Assessments on Meadow Creek and discussed with DWR the use of BDAs on the stream to improve stream health. They will assist with monitoring as described above. The Division of Forestry, Fire, and State Lands will oversee burning tamarisk piles. Trout Unlimited continues to be a partner on Meadow Creek projects for labor and administrative input. TU is also a partner on a potential upcoming Willow Creek watershed plan. The Book Cliffs Working Group was developed to find solutions to decreased survival, reproduction, and body condition of Book Cliffs deer and elk populations. The working group established includes representatives from the DWR, BLM, SITLA, Ute Tribe, as well as private landowners/ranchers and wildlife conservation groups. The terrestrial treatment projects in this proposal have been presented and discussed in Book Cliffs working group meetings and gained support from the partners involved. The areas targeted for re-treatment include projects the DWR and BLM have cooperated on for many years. BLM staff conducted NEPA on fuels treatments and worked with DWR staff to identify areas in need of maintenance, as well as new mastication treatments. Both BLM and DWR staff will supervise specific treatments on the ground. BLM will be funding large portions of the work through their fuels program. DWR staff have met with private landowners and permittees to discuss grazing rest. Permittees have committed to use more intensive herding and monitoring to keep cattle off seeded areas for a period of two growing seasons.

Tamarisk: Tamarisk is approached with the expectation that eradication will take many years to complete. Future projects to eliminate tamarisk in the area are expected. Monitoring efforts will dictate frequency of re-treatments. BDAs: The implementation of Low-Tech structures requires maintenance to some level. Yearly site visits will be conducted to evaluate structural stability of BDAS and determine which (if any) need maintenance work as well as additional areas that may benefit. The hope is that natural beaver populations downstream in Willow creek will eventually expand into this project area, at which time human maintenance of the BDAs may become unnecessary. Riparian Plantings/Exclosures: Monitoring of planted species will determine needs for future plantings or exclosure maintenance. Long-term, the goal is to have sufficient riparian vegetation established that the exclosure fences can be removed. The timing of this is dependent on planting success and other grazing conditions in the area. ATV Bridge: Monitoring and use by DWR staff will determine maintenance and/or replacement need. Conifer Removal: Permittees have committed to use more intensive herding and monitoring to keep cattle off seeded areas for a period of two growing seasons. Areas of conifer removal without seeding (including the lop and scatter portions) will not need to be rested from grazing to be successful. The book cliffs working group has discussed grazing conditions and strategies and is working on solutions to provide better grazing for both livestock and wildlife. A high priority for the group is to repair fences to improve the ability of the permittee to rotate among the different allotments. Another high priority is to find solutions to high numbers of wild and stray horses in the Book Cliffs. As an established herd area with little funding, it is difficult to manage horses in the area. Work is ongoing and the Book Cliffs working group is continuing to discuss appropriate steps and develop adaptive management actions.

Willow creek and Meadow creek support a fishable population of Colorado River cutthroat trout. Maintaining stream and riparian health will preserve and enhance this recreation opportunity. Improving forage resources on winter ridge will help protect and enhance livestock operations in the book cliffs and provide additional feed for livestock. Projects that improve forage for livestock also help contribute to a better working relationship between permitees/ranchers and government agencies. Enhancing wildlife habitat will protect and enhance wildlife populations, which are utilized for hunting, wildlife viewing, and shed antler gathering.

09/19/2022

01/10/2023

2023

Meadow Creek riparian planting and exclosure component: Utilized excavator to patch fix access road to gain access to project area (road severely damaged from monsoonal flooding) Planted within exclosures: --Transplanted a large number of native trees (primarily willows) a couple of miles from areas of high willow density to our upper spring project area where there was no willow presence to promote woody riparian vegetation growth --Planted 80 potted native woody shrubs and trees (5-gallon pot variety) that included varieties of golden currants, river birch, and silver buffaloberry --Planted additional 15 potted plants that included varieties of native narrow leaf cottonwood, tag alder, and aspen --Planted additional 10 potted green and coyote willow plants --Planted 7 potted, mature apple trees for wildlife value to area, within exclosure --Planted 1 weeping willow for fast growing tree to provide stream shading Fixed exclosuring fencing with new panels and straightening posts and refastening fencing as needed Meadow Creek BDA component: 40 in-stream structures were installed along Meadow Creek. Sageland Collaborative performed an evaluation of Willow Creek and Meadow Creek and confirmed the value of installing more structures in the area. Anabranch solutions was contracted to design and install the BDAs along Meadow Creek. Willow Creek Bridge: An SAP was applied for in the fall of 2022. The SAP was approved and in accordance with the requirements supplied by the SAP, an engineering firm was contracted to provide a plan for the construction of a bridge. The engineering plans fulfilled the requirements of the county floodplain development permit.

Meadow Creek riparian planting and exclosure component: We spent approximately three weeks implementing a plan to plant native vegetation and fix the exclosures in the project area. Exclosures had been battered and damaged by substantial flooding events that occurred during the summer of 2022 as well as some elk that wished to challenge themselves on the high jump exercise. Exclosures were fixed via hand tools, labor, and the occasional use of the excavator we brought on site for the project, where we straightened fencing, redug posts, replaced panels and installed wire to prevent trespass cattle from gaining access below main paneling. We planted tree species including: weeping willow, green willow, coyote willow, three different apple tree species, narrow leaf cottonwood, aspen, tag alder, golden currants, silver buffaloberry, and river birch into the project area's riparian habitat. Additionally, we transplanted over 60 large willow root clumps from a nearby source that had abundant willow. These trees were all planted within the existing exclosure areas to protect them from depradation from wild game and trespassing cattle. Our desire is to see a healthy riparian area for around the exclosures that can provide a resilient habitat protected from erosion issues, provide stream shading, and provide a future seeding source for further natural tree dispersal and colonization. Meadow Creek BDA component: Sageland Collaborative performed an evaluation of Meadow Creek and Willow Creek in the Fall of 2022 and recommended installing more structures to improve habitat in the area. A Stream Alteration Permit was applied for and obtained in the late Fall of 2022. After talking with the State Engineer in the Division of Water Rights, we determined that installing more than 40 structures in one year in Meadow Creek was not the correct approach from a Water Rights perspective. So, we adjusted the plan and decided to install 40 structures in Meadow Creek alone. In the summer of 2023, Anabranch solutions was contracted to design and install structures in Meadow Creek that would help raise the water table, eliminate head-cutting, and improve habitat.

Meadow Creek riparian planting and exclosure component: Continue to monitor exclosures and continue to repair as necessary on an annual basis. Continue to monitor tree survival. Replace/place additional trees as necessary to fulfill project needs regarding an established riparian area. Examine effectiveness of this process after 2025 to see if project will be feasible. Eventually we hope the trees to reach a maturity level where a high level of protection from ungulates is not as necessary. Meadow Creek BDA component: Future phases of in-stream structures are planned for the area. Combined with tamarisk removal, we anticipate significant improvement in the riparian corridor. The Sageland Collaborative is also planning on performing continued monitoring of the project. Willow Creek Bridge: With the SAP in hand, and the county floodplain development application approved, we are planning on building the bridge before the winter of 2023.