Project Details

Provide evidence about the nature of the problem and the need to address it. Identify the significance of the problem using a variety of data sources. For example, if a habitat restoration project is being proposed to benefit greater sage-grouse, describe the existing plant community characteristics that limit habitat value for greater sage-grouse and identify the changes needed for habitat improvement.

1.  Increase sage-grouse, Pygmy Rabbit, Mule Deer, and Elk habitat by implementing juniper reduction projects targeting benches and areas that typify sagebrush specific habitat, focusing on Phase 1 and Phase 2 encroached areas where treatments will connect sage-steppe seasonal habitats for sagebrush obligate species.
2.  Increase the diversity of seral stages of plant communities such as aspen stands and Pinyon Pine stands across the Raft River Mountains at scales meaningful to target wildlife species like the Pinyon Jay, Moose, Bighorn Sheep, Elk, Lewis's Woodpecker, Little Brown Myotis, Dusky Grouse, Ruffed Grouse, Elk, and Mule Deer by implementing treatments that create a mosaic of age classes across the landscape.
3.  Maintain and improve sage-steppe habitat conditions for a myriad of species including species such as sage-grouse, Pygmy Rabbit, mule deer, Elk and other sage-steppe obligate species.
4.  Improve the ecological health (i.e. resilience and resistance) of sites currently encroached by juniper to provide for improved conifer (Pinyon Pine), sagebrush, and riparian habitat and reduce the risk of transitioning to an annual grassland in the event of a wildfire.
5.  Reintroduce fire on the Raft River Mountains to reduce the risk of uncharacteristically large wildfires by creating vegetation mosaics resistant and resilient to disturbance.
6.  Improve fish bearing streams in the Raft River Mountains by reducing the potential for large, high severity fires adjacent to streams that would increase sediment, erosion and debris flow events with reduction of conifer encroachment, and introducing BDA's along stream banks.
7.  Improve Yellowstone Cutthroat Trout streams and riparian habitat for Little Brown Myotis, Lewis's Woodpecker, Moose, Elk, Mule Deer, Big Horn Sheep and other ungulates, along with Western Bumble Bee  in the Raft River Mountains by implementing treatments that increase deep pool habitat and large woody debris with BDA installation, reduction of conifer encroachment, reestablishment of deciduous vegetation (willow, aspen, cottonwood, shrub spp.) and native perennial species.

Provide an overall goal for the project and then provide clear, specific and measurable objectives (outcomes) to be accomplished by the proposed actions. If possible, tie to one or more of the public benefits UWRI is providing.

Currently Aspen stands are either late seral requiring disturbance to restore the ecological balance of the systems or encroachment is beginning to transition the stands to conifer dominated.  Reintroducing fire on the encroached stands will improve the diversity of seral stages among plant communities, improve wildlife habitat, and reduce the risk of uncharacteristic large wildfires.  Delaying this project will result in further conifer encroachment/domination which will ultimately lead to losing the aspen clone and transitioning to a mixed conifer vegetation type, higher risk of large wildfires and/or making future treatments more costly.

Mountain brush communities require maintenance to reduce the conifer and/or annual invasive encroachment to restore sage-steppe obligate species like sage-grouse, mule deer and others alike.  conifer reduction and herbicide application will be primary methods to restore mountain brush communities.  Further delay of this project will significantly degrade the ability to restore sage-steppe and mountain brush systems in the future resulting in loss of sage obligate habitats.

Riparian corridors have impact to streambanks and perennial flow in the Raft River mountains due to conifer encroachment and reduction of native riparian vegetation.  The proposed tiered conifer reduction technique will allow for retention of upland vegetation diversity while reducing the encroachment impact and allowing for reintroduction of riparian vegetation.

The Minidoka District has a map of known key species habitats like Yellowstone Cutthroat Trout, Townsend Big Eared Bat, known Sage Grouse Leks, and Pygmy Rabbit observations that will be benefitted from the project (Wildlife Map attached).

As seen in the Wildlife Tracker Application (images attached) the proposed treatments will improve much of the observed Elk and Mule Deer habitats (summer and critical winter range) along with migration route improvements.  Further delay of this project could cause lingering effects to migration corridors through uncharacteristic large wildfire impact and late seral stage vegetation becoming decadent and no longer sustaining to wildlife.

Based on the Wildfire Crisis Strategy Map (attached) if the project is delayed, the potential for uncharacteristic wildfire is very high and could negatively impact much of the landscape's habitat.

LOCATION: Justify the proposed location of this project over other areas, include publicly scrutinized planning/recovery documents that list this area as a priority, remote sensing modeling that show this area is a good candidate for restoration, wildlife migration information and other data that help justify this project's location.

TIMING: Justify why this project should be implemented at this time. For example, Is the project area at risk of crossing an ecological or other threshold wherein future restoration would become more difficult, cost prohibitive, or even impossible.

This project supports the Utah State Wildlife Plans including the Utah Sage-Grouse Plan, the 2015 Sage-Grouse ROD, Utah Mule Deer Plan, Utah Elk Plan, Utah Moose Plan as well as the Sawtooth Forest Plan. The project falls within the collaborative wildfire risk reduction program (high risk area).

Utah Greater Sage-Grouse Plan 
	The two primary objectives of this plan: 
             *Maintain and increase sage-grouse populations statewide, and within each SGMA.
             *Maintain, protect and increase sage-grouse seasonal habitats within SGMA's

Conservation Strategies
		Improve and increase sage-grouse seasonal habitats by 75,000 acres each year, including riparian and mesic habitats.

Strategies outlined in the Utah Greater Sage-Grouse Plan that are addressed in this project: 
            *Strategies to address wildlife
            *Strategies to address invasive plant species
            *Strategies to address Pinyon-Juniper Woodland Encroachment

Utah Mule Deer Statewide Management Plan (2024)

Habitat Objective 1: Maintain mule deer habitat throughout the state by protecting and enhancing existing crucial habitats and mitigating for losses due to natural and human impacts. 
	Strategies B: Habitat Management and Conservation

Habitat Objective 2: Improve the quality and quantity of vegetation of mule deer on a minimum of 600,000 acres of crucial range by 2030
	Strategies A: Utah's Watershed Restoration Initiative

Box Elder Deer Herd Unit Management Plan (2013)

Habitat Concerns:
 Summer range on the Box Elder Unit is mostly at higher elevations in the Sawtooth National Forest and Grouse Creek Mountain Range. Summer range habitat concerns are mainly the loss of forbs and shrubs due to pinyon-juniper encroachment. Additional threats and losses to deer summer and winter range in the West Box Elder area is the reduction in habitat quality due to the loss of critical browse species (sagebrush, bitterbrush etc.). This loss has been attributed to a number of factors such as fire, agriculture, drought etc. However, the abundance of weedy annual grasses and the increase of other invasive weeds are the more likely causes of sagebrush decline.

Habitat Management: 
Contributing factors to the loss of browse species such as the impact of the increase in weedy species, particularly annual grasses, juniper expansion, lack of browse regeneration and other variables are all of concern in the habitat management of the Box Elder Unit. Maintenance and/or enhancement of forage production through direct range improvements throughout summer range and winter range portions must be continued to achieve population management objectives. Working with private and federal agencies to maintain and protect critical and existing summer and winter ranges from future losses, and providing improved habitat security and escapement opportunities for deer must also be continued to achieve population management objectives.

Utah Elk Statewide Management Plan (2022)

Habitat Objective 1: Maintain sufficient habitat to support elk herds at population objectives and reduce competition for forage between elk and livestock. 
	Strategies B: Habitat Management
	Strategies C: Habitat Improvement

Habitat Objective 2: Reduce Adverse impacts on elk herds and elk habitats
	Strategies D: Noxious Weed Control

Elk Herd Unit Management Plan Box Elder (2023)

Habitat Concerns:
A large amount of coniferous trees have been dying off and aspen regeneration has been low throughout the summer range. Some natural water sources have also been degraded due to erosion and overuse by livestock. It is possible that excessive conifer growth and tree diseases have led to reduced understory and poor habitat. There is also limited winter range on the subunit (Sawtooth), leading to elk wintering in other areas.

Habitat Management:
All subunits would benefit from habitat improvements. The goal of habitat improvement should focus on redistributing elk away from agricultural areas and improving rangeland productivity.

Subunit 1d (Sawtooth) - Summer range habitat treatments would improve rangeland productivity and allow elk to increase to the population objective. Controlled burns of thick and dead conifer stands would increase understory and allow aspen regeneration to occur. Improving natural water sources would lead to healthy riparian zones for elk to use as well.

Utah Moose Statewide Management Plan

The primary limiting factor for moose in Utah and across their range is the availability of suitable habitat. Habitat can be degraded, fragmented, or lost to a variety of causes including human development and plant succession. As deciduous forests are converted to coniferous forests, moose habitat is altered and provides less forage. Forest fires and logging can help remove coniferous trees and return the habitat to early successional stages which are beneficial for moose.

Habitat Management Goal: Assure sufficient habitat is available to sustain healthy and productive moos populations.

Objective: Maintain or enhance the quality and quantity of moose habitat to allow herds to reach population objectives.

Strategies: A, E, F,

List management plans where this project will address an objective or strategy in the plan. Describe how the project area overlaps the objective or strategy in the plan and the relevance of the project to the successful implementation of those plans. It is best to provide this information in a list format with the description immediately following the plan objective or strategy.

If applicable, detail how the proposed project will significantly reduce the risk of fuel loading and/or continuity of hazardous fuels including the use of fire-wise species in re-seeding operations. Describe the value of any features being protected by reducing the risk of fire. Values may include; communities at risk, permanent infrastructure, municipal watersheds, campgrounds, critical wildlife habitat, etc. Include the size of the area where fuels are being reduced and the distance from the feature(s) at risk.

Describe how the project has the potential to improve water quality and/or increase water quantity, both over the short and long term. Address run-off, erosion, soil infiltration, and flooding, if applicable.

Description of efforts, both completed and planned, to bring the proposed action into compliance with any and all cultural resource, NEPA, ESA, etc. requirements. If compliance is not required enter "not applicable" and explain why not it is not required.

This project utilizes the full suite of treatment tools including hand thinning, mastication, herbicide application, and prescribed fire.

*	Sage-Steppe and upland habitat treatments will include thinning through hand treatments (lop and scatter & cut and pile), mechanically with mastication followed by native shrub and herbaceous seed application, and prescribed fire implementation to reintroduce disturbance on old, decadent sites.  4161 acres of cut and pile and/or mastication is proposed in sage steppe upland habitats along with 3749 acres of lop and scatter.  
*	Mixed conifer/aspen habitat treatments will comprise hand treatments (lop and scatter & cut and pile), and prescribed fire to promote diversity and initiate primary succession where late seral stands are present.  16,922 acres of prescribed fire is planned, ranging from stand replacing to enhance aspen stands and reset the successional phase, to low intensity under burns to benefit Douglas fir understory, and mosaic landscape burns in sage and upland steppes to provide diverse habitat and landscapes.
*	Threats to Riparian/riverine habitats will be addressed through collaboration with UDWR and USFS biologist to identify BDA installation where appropriate along 10 miles of Johnson Creek (and tributaries), ~8 miles of Wildcat Creek (and tributaries), ~1 mile of Charleston Creek, ~3 miles of One Mile Creek, and about 2 miles of Clear Creek.  Aside from BDA installation, tiered hand treatments (lop and scatter & cut and pile) will occur within the same riparian/riverine corridors which will reduce the conifer (Juniper) encroachment, while retaining upland vegetation, and allowing for native deciduous, herbaceous and woody vegetation to reestablish in riparian steppes.  The tiered distances are as follows:
1.	First 50 meters from stream bank, 100% of conifer targeted/removed.
2.	Next 50 meters, 50% of conifer targeted/removed.
3.	Last 50 meters, 25% of conifer targeted/removed.
Totaling 150 meters (2765 acres) of conifer encroachment reduction surrounding targeted creeks and tributaries.  
*	Mahogany specific treatments are proposed to address the encroachment of conifer, mainly juniper, on pure stands and out competing the critical winter range habitat.  trials with low intensity prescribed fire to expose soil and allow for seed germination with little competition is proposed on 3 units totaling 307 acres.  Additional treatments on mahogany stands (2 units, 75 acres) will include different approaches (lop and scatter & cut and pile) to assess and allow for adaptive management changes depending on results from prescribed fire and hand treatments.  
*	POD line improvement through road mowing is proposed in the Clarks Basin area and the Black Hills area of the Range.  Fuel reduction of 500 feet on each side of the road will occur in the anticipated areas to reinforce the POD lines, allowing for improved wildfire response and holding features for managing incidents that occur.

Describe the actions, activities, tasks to be implemented as part of the proposed project; how these activities will be carried out, equipment to be used, when, and by whom.

Describe plans to monitor for project success and achievement of stated objectives. Include details on type of monitoring (vegetation, wildlife, etc.), schedule, assignments and how the results of these monitoring efforts will be reported and/or uploaded to this project page. If needed, upload detailed plans in the "attachments" section.

Partners include Utah DWR, Box Elder CRM, Range Permittees, NRCS, West Dessert District BLM, Utah State University.

Utah DWR -- supports project and assisting with identifying critical habitat areas, areas of concern, working together to implement contract and work during implementation. 
 
West Box Elder county & Box Elder CRM -- support and approval of project.  Proposal to the CRM committee January 14.

Range Permittees -- support and willing to adjust rest rotate schedules in AOI, willing to try electronic fence allotment boundaries

NRCS -- support and assisting with contacting and coordinating with adjacent land owners and private inholdings with treatment options to benefit habitat and defensible space around private property.

West Dessert District BLM

Utah State University -- support and interest in species specific management trials, coordinating with staff on monitoring and data analysis of results post treatment.

Keystone Partner (PEK Services) -- CWRRP partner assisting with implementation, contract implementation/inspection and capacity.

List any and all partners (agencies, organizations, NGO's, private landowners) that support the proposal and/or have been contacted and included in the planning and design of the proposed project. Describe efforts to gather input and include these agencies, landowners, permitees, sportsman groups, researchers, etc. that may be interested/affected by the proposed project. Partners do not have to provide funding or in-kind services to a project to be listed.

Detail future methods or techniques (including administrative actions) that will be implemented to help in accomplishing the stated objectives and to insure the long term success/stability of the proposed project. This may include: post-treatment grazing rest and/or management plans/changes, wildlife herd/species management plan changes, ranch plans, conservation easements or other permanent protection plans, resource management plans, forest plans, etc.

Potential for the proposed action to improve quality or quantity of sustainable uses such as grazing, timber harvest, biomass utilization, recreation, etc. Grazing improvements may include actions to improve forage availability and/or distribution of livestock.