Wildlife habitat is the primary use of the private land is wildlife management. This private section is surrounded by USFS on all sides. The Pine Valley Allotment has several ponds in the paradise area of the Mountain Pasture that were created to provide water for livestock and wildlife on the forest. Periodically these ponds must be cleaned out. To prolong the life of the ponds we are planning lining them with bentonite clay where necessary, and fence them off with a wildlife friendly fence. Fencing off the ponds on the Mountain Unit of the Pine Valley unit will help control livestock distribution by excluding livestock at certain times of the years. The Mountain pasture is 36,413-acre pasture. Most of this pasture falls into roadless and wilderness areas. The cattle can cover a lot of area across this pasture and come into the several waters on top to drink. The theory of closing of the waters towards the end of the grazing season will help to push a large amount of these cows down off the mountain and concentrate around waters that are not as difficult to gather from. A set of cattle triggers can be placed on the exclosures as well, helping to create a trap to assist in efficient gathering of livestock. Riding and gathering on the mountain will still be required of the permittees. Permittees will be tasked with maintenance of the fences. Fences will not be built within the Pine Valley Wilderness. Big Game use the treatment area as critical migration and stopover habitat as documented by collar data by the UDWR (see map in photo section) and the pond areas are in summer crucial range. Collared mule deer pass through this area in the early fall and spring as mule deer and elk transition from winter to summer range. Often mule deer will give birth in this area increasing the need for nutritious forage for lactating females and their offspring. Improving range conditions will improve body condition for big game. The pond improvements are primarily in mule deer crucial summer range. Improved body condition will improve survival and condition of the animal once it reaches its winter range which is a critical element for big game winter survival. The area has one of the larger deer herds in the state with approximately 19,000 animals. This unit is one of the premier general season deer hunting units in Utah and provides ample hunting opportunity to the public. By doing so, we are also maintaining and enhancing economic stability in surrounding rural communities. Many of these rural incomes rely on wildlife and wildlife habitat as a source of income. This project area is identified as "priority for restoration of crucial mule deer habitat" under the Utah Statewide Mule Deer Management Plan (Utah Statewide Mule Deer Management Plan, 2019-2024). "Crucial" is defined as "habitat necessary to sustain the areas mule deer herd". Allowing the area to remain in phase 2 and 3 pinyon and juniper encroachment means less quality habitat to meet mule deer objectives. This project will specifically meet the objective of "working with local, state and federal land management agencies via land management plans and with private landowners to identify and properly manage crucial mule deer habitats, especially fawning, wintering and migration areas". The Pine Valley Unit Mule Deer Management Plan specifically states to "reduce expansion of Pinyon-Juniper woodlands into sagebrush habitats and improve habitats dominated by Pinyon-Juniper woodlands by completing habitat restoration projects like lop & scatter, bullhog, and chaining and provide guzzlers or other water sources where needed on critical summer fawning areas or in times of severe drought. " (Pine Valley Mule Deer Management Plan, 2020). With the improvements to private property, the planned enhancements to the USFS water sources, and the past two years of treatments that the USFS have implemented we can expect that wildlife will respond favorably and grazing management will be improved.

1. Increase mule deer usage of migration habitat and hold over time of migrating. This data can be determined through the Utah Division of Wildlife Resources Migration Initiative. 2. Maintain and protect consistent water sources on the Pine Valley RD to benefit wildlife and improve grazing habitat and grazing management on the allotment. 3. Increase number of flowing plants by 10%

1. Currently the landowners are tolerant of wildlife use of their property. Wildlife, especially mule deer use these properties in migration as transitional habitat. Increasing forage, and land productiveness, will help offset conflicts with private landowners/livestock producers, while increasing the forage for wildlife and contributing to a diverse plant community. 2. Fire is a threat if left untreated due the dense stand of pinyon and juniper, that could threaten older age class ponderosa pine forest and private structures in the area. With the current fuel loads and the hundreds of acres of continuous fuel loading in the Pinto Springs drainage and neighboring drainages, a fire would quickly become catastrophic and threat hundreds of thousands of dollars in private structures, including homes, threaten the livestock industry of Southwest Utah, devastate multiple watersheds, and have lasting negative effects on wildlife and fish that depend on clean water and healthy enact riparian areas. 3. Sheet and Rill erosion contributes to the amount of sediment from the late phase II pinyon juniper sites that lack under story. With the mastication, mulch will cover the bare soil while seeds are established. Decreasing soil erosion and moisture lost, while increasing soil moisture holding availability and cover of the soil. In areas in or near the treatment sites that have been cleared and seed have proved to be very successful (see pictures for details). 4. This project will increase and maintain the availability of a diverse suite of vegetation communities. A healthy landscape has a diversity of vegetational states within an ecological site. A diverse landscape benefits a larger community of wildlife species and people. A diverse landscape is also more resistance and resilient to disturbance. By allowing this landscape to continue to move further into a dominant PJ woodland it increases the risk of its resistance to disturbance and its resilience to bounce back and heal after a disturbance. 5. This project will directly and indirectly affect positively high interest game. Mule deer are found in the project area. Mule deer could use this area for a staging area in their migration, as has been seen on other projects on the Parowan Front allowing them to be in better condition as they enter the winter range and allows the deer to spend less time on sensitive winter ranges. 6. Water is somewhat limited on the Pine Valley Allotment. Serval springs feed small troughs, but the majority of the water is caught and stored in the ponds. In summer of 2021 the ponds were nearly dry and did not fill until the monsoon season. This trigger a response for USFS range specialist, the permittee and UDWR biologist to determine that cleaning and lining the ponds needed to be done asap. The ponds identified for improvement are primarily located in crucial mule deer winter range. 7. As previously stated, because this area has been identified as a critical migration corridor for mule deer habitat, we feel that the need for project and importance should be elevated because of the overall impact of the habitat to these species of wildlife. Another ecological qualifier for elevating this project is that the project falls within an identified Bird Habitat Conservation Area (BHCA) as previously discussed. The project will also address multiple conservation needs for several bird species not reflected in the species section of this proposal.

1. Utah Mule Deer Statewide Plan (12/5/2019-12/5/2024) "Work with local, state and federal land management agencies via land management plans and with private landowners to identify and properly manage crucial mule deer habitats, especially fawning, wintering, and migration areas" "Work with local, state and federal land management agencies and ranchers to properly manage livestock to enhance crucial mule deer ranges." "Minimize impacts and recommend mitigation for losses of crucial habitat due to human impacts." "Continue to support and provide leadership for the Utah Watershed Restoration Initiative, which emphasizes improving sagebrush-steppe, aspen, and riparian habitats throughout Utah." "Support existing and explore additional incentive programs for landowners that will increase tolerance, enhance habitat, and promote deer populations on private lands such as the CWMU, landowner permit, Walk-In Access programs, etc." This project falls in the Crucial Mule Deer Habitat Priorities. 2. Deer Herd Unit Management Plan, Deer Herd # 30, Pine Valley "A major proportion of both summer and winter habitat for deer on this unit is on private land. Therefore, it is paramount to work with private landowners to maintain both summer and winter habitat." "Reduce expansion of Pinion-Juniper woodlands into sagebrush habitats and improve habitats dominated by Pinion-Juniper woodlands by completing habitat restoration projects like lop & scatter, bullhog, and chaining." "Provide guzzlers or other water sources where needed on critical summer fawning areas or in times of severe drought" "Work toward long-term habitat protection and preservation through agreements with land management agencies and local governments, the use of conservation easements, etc. on private lands and working toward blocking up UDWR properties through land exchanges with willing partners." ii) Encourage land managers to manage portions of forests in early succession stages through the use controlled burning and logging. Controlled burning should only be used in areas with minimal invasive weed and/or safety concerns." 3. Utah Catastrophic Wildfire Reduction Strategy "Reduce fire risk by managing and removing invasive species." 4. Intermountain West Joint Venture Habitat Conservation Strategy "Support existing public-private partnerships to implement sagebrush habitat conservation, at regional, state, and local scales." "Remove encroaching conifers to functionally restore sagebrush habitat." 5. Utah Wildlife Action Plan "Gamble Oak and Mountain Shrub is a key habitat identified in the WAP." "WAP identifies inappropriate fire frequency as a threat to Gamble Oak and Mountain Shrub habitat. This project will reduce future fire risk and act as a fire buffer to adjacent higher risk areas." 6. State of Utah Resource Management Plan "Actively remove pinyon-juniper encroachment other ecological sites due to its substantial consumption of water its detrimental effects on sagebrush, other vegetation, and wildlife." "Conserve, improve, and restore 500,000 acres of mule deer habitat throughout the state with emphasis on crucial ranges." "Work with landowners, federal government and private organizations to conserve valuable wildlife habitat and winter range along urban interface." "Develop mechanisms and policies to incentivize private landowners throughout Utah to conserve valuable wildlife habitat throughout Utah." 7. Iron County Resource Management Plan "Iron County encourages vegetative treatments for maximum yield of forage and rangeland health." "Goals include making sure there is quality forage, water, cover, space and security sufficient to support productive populations. This includes conserving habitat for migratory birds, maintaining vegetation treatments that benefit wildlife, prioritizing treatments to improve habitats and coordinating predator control."

This project will decrease the risk of high severity wildfire by reducing fuel loading and promoting the growth of understory vegetation, which are critical to maintaining ecosystem resilience. As demonstrated by the nearby Brianhead fire during the summer of 2017, treatments like these can break up the continuity of fuels and act as fuel breaks. This project will do the same if a fire ignited nearby where fuel loading is heavy in phase 3 pinyon and juniper invaded sites. The current fire regime condition class is moderate (2) and would be reduced to low (1) immediately after treatment. The habitat type has been identified in the 2015-2025 Utah Wildlife Action Plan that lowland sagebrush is a key habitat and the threats associated with this key habitat are inappropriate fire frequency and intensity. This project will help to achieve this goal. Reducing the threat of wildfire is important because of the critical nature of this habitat to mule deer and elk. Completing this project and reducing the risk of fire will help to protect important sagebrush steppe and mountain brush habitat that is critical for priority species including, but not limited to, mule deer. This project will also help to protect the springs and wetlands. If a high severity fire were to move through the area water soil infiltration would decrease, erosion will increase, and the potential for water to get into the aquifer will decrease and spring flows may decrease.

Reducing the amount of pinyon/juniper will increase and prolong stream flows, while reducing erosion caused by bare soil. The species planted will help stabilize the soil and reduce erosion. Kormas et al. found that drainage's dominated with juniper experience "snow water equivalent peaks higher, snow melts out earlier, and more water is lost to evapotranspiration in catchments when compared to sagebrush steppe vegetation". In a study from 2008, Deboodt, et. al (2008) mentions that juniper trees can use up to 30 gallons of water a day, when adequate moisture is present. It also states that Vegetative modeling has shown that 9 to 35 trees per acre can utilize all the precipitation delivered to a site in a 13-in annual precipitation zone. In their study researchers monitored two watersheds 12 years prior to treatment (cutting). After the treatment analysis indicated that juniper reduction significantly increased late season spring flow by 225%, increased days of recorded groundwater by an average of 41 days , and increased the relative availability of late season soil moisture to soil depths of .76 meters. It was also noted that managing vegetation for water yield may be obtainable at a much lower precipitation threshold than what was previously understood. Baker, et. al (1984) found a 157% increase in stream flows over a 147-ha pinyon and juniper treatment. Recent research Roundy, et. al. (2014) has shown that mechanical treatments to remove pinyon and juniper increase time that soil water is available. Even four years after treatment, treated areas showed from 8.6 days to-18 days additional water availability at high elevation sites. Roth, et. All (2017) stated snowpack is deeper and last longer in the open site at the low and mid sites (4-26 and 11-33 days, respectively). Additional research by Young, et. al. (2013) also showed a relationship between tree removal and soil climates and wet days on these sites, which while providing more available moisture for desired vegetation could also provide moisture for weeds. Numerous studies have shown that increased infiltration rates and less overland flow improve both water quality and quantity. Reducing pinyon and juniper trees, according the available research should increase snowpack, and time that snowpack is on the ground, increase spring flows, and increase soil moisture. It is expected that similar results will happen in this area after the treatment takes place.

This project will be meet all standards and specifications of NRCS. All environmental and cultural evaluations and clearances will take place as part of the NRCS standard. All practices will be installed using the State of Utah contracting, allowing site mangers to author, oversee, and inspect the projects. The USFS will be completing their surveys and clearances to allow for the pond maintenance and fencing.

This treatment will include aerial seeding, and mastication. Aerial seeding will be done with a diversified mix of grasses and forbs before mastication in early fall. Due to the nature of the terrain the option to use fixed wing or helicopter will be determined by the contractor. Seed will be obtained from the Great Basin Research Center (GBRC). Mastication will be completed with at least three (preferably multiple), mobile, tracked or wheeled, hydraulically or PTO driven, mechanical mulching/shredder (Bullhog) shall be furnished on a fully-operational basis, with a competent, fully-qualified operator, and shall be capable of mulching/shredding live trees up to twenty-six (26) inches in diameter at twelve inches above ground level measured on the uphill side, per state contract. Grazing management will be no grazing for 2 growing seasons in treated areas, grazing will be monitored, and grazing agreements will be signed prior commencement to the project. Ponds will be improved using heavy equipment and bentonite clay where necessary. Equipment and materials for pond improvements will be mobilized via an administrative USFS road. Approximately 6,700 feet of fence will be constructed as a 4 strand barbwire fence no taller than 42'' with wildlife friendly wire spacing. Fence will have cedar posts and braces and appropriate stays as portions of let down fence are necessary and will be designated by the USFS. Fences will include wire gates for equipment access and each fenced pond will have one man gate. Both the pond and fencing work will be contractual services. Local sportsmen groups and dedicated hunters will assist with implementation and future maintenance.

NRCS will contract practice 645-Upland Wildlife Habitat Management, which will require two years of rest from livestock grazing and a stubble height of 16" following two growing seasons of rest from livestock grazing. A grazing management plan will be included but will not be a contracted item. Using the data from the migration initiative collared deer movements can be monitored. This will show if there is hold over in these treatment areas, if hunting pressure is affecting the deer, if weather changes timing, or duration of migration, and use of private lands verses public lands. Farm Bill Biologist will establish photo points at random locations within the treatment and monitor yearly for a minimum of 5 years and greater at landowners' consent. Ponds will be maintained and monitored by USFS and the livestock permittees. Fences will be repaired annually with adjustment to let down areas as needed. USFS will conduct wildlife surveys and livestock use monitoring as well as ongoing vegetation monitoring in the area.

Private Landowners will contribute their assistance from the Natural Resource Conservation Service (NRCS) to the project. Utah Division Wildlife Resources hold the data associated with the migration initiative and a will potentially set up a vegetation trend monitoring site on the project. A Farm Bill Biologist will also contract and implement the project, as well as continue to plan it. Natural Resource Conservation Service-is working with the landowners to plan and carry out the project. Through Environmental Quality Incentive Program potential funding will be available. USFS will manage implementation of the pond improvements/fencing and conduct wildlife and livestock monitoring.

This private property is strictly managed for wildlife. The landowners want to increase wildlife, mainly game species for viewing, and hunting. Because of the size of the property wildlife are likely to move to and from the property due to pressure, weather, and circadian and annual ques. Livestock grazing will only be considered if recommended to improve habitat conditions. The USFS will continue to mange the Pine Valley permit for the multiple use and work with the constituents to improve our public lands.

Wildlife is abundant in the area and of high interest to public and private stakeholders in the area. Wildlife viewing and hunting takes place on the property and on the public property around it. This area has one of the larger deer herds in the state with approximately 19,000 animals. This unit is one of the premier general season deer hunting units in Utah and provides ample hunting opportunity to the public. By doing so, we are also maintaining and enhancing economic stability in surrounding rural communities. Many of these rural incomes rely on wildlife and wildlife habitat as a source of income. Turkeys are found throughout Pinto Creek and Paradise Springs area and provide hunting and viewing opportunities for the public and private landowners. Hunting takes place with general season and limited entry tags, providing opportunities for youth to have hunts with less pressure and greater success.

07/01/2022

06/30/2023

2023

During fiscal year 2023, an employee inadvertently coded time to WRI project #6037, instead of project #6005. Unfortunately, the error was not caught when reviewing the payroll reports or during year-end review. The total charge was $456.92. This error was not realized until after fiscal year 2023 was closed and unfortunately, it cannot be corrected.

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