The fire removed the vast majority of the sagebrush component from the plant community and the entire Rocky Fire is within the occupied Greater Sage-grouse habitat designated as Priority Habitat Management Area. Many portions of the fire that burned in sagebrush/ grasslands burned hot enough to kill existing perennials. The greater sage-grouse is a BLM sensitive species and is on the Utah state list of species of greatest conservation need. The Rocky fire burned 1,300 acres of greater sage-grouse occupied nesting, brood-rearing, and winter habitat. The pygmy rabbit has been petitioned for listing under the Endangered Species Act (ESA), but the United States Fish and Wildlife Service (USFWS) has determined that the species currently does not warrant listing. Currently, the species is a BLM sensitive species and is on the Utah state list of species of greatest conservation need. Historically a high concentration of pygmy rabbit burrow systems was found around Greasewood Spring, located approximately 1.75 miles north of the burned area. The burn area may include areas of monarch butterfly habitat, which is a candidate species for federal listing. Milkweeds and nectar-producing plants are required for this species. The fire also burned 1,300 acres of pronghorn year-long crucial habitat and elk winter crucial habitat. Because this area has great values to important wildlife species, it is imperative that measures be taken to minimize damages from fires and restore sagebrush habitat, wherever feasible.

The Rocky Fire burned a large portion of the west side of the Deep Creek Mountains. Most of the fire burned with moderate to high severity and removed the soil's protective vegetative cover and killed much of the existing perennial vegetation. These soils of the burned area are now fully exposed to the forces of water erosion. Larger rainfall events would likely result in channel cutting in the micro drainages and flash flooding and more extreme losses of soil. Seeding treatments are both needed to stabilize soils and the proposed seed mixes are focused on plant species that have consistently proven effective in stabilizing soils in burned areas. Once topsoils are lost the site's potential can be permanently decreased. Seeded perennials from numerous previous ESR efforts have stabilized soil being lost to wind and water erosion. A relevant example of this was an ESR treatment that is just north of the Rocky Fire, that stabilized 1,418 BLM acres of the Ibapah fire, which was a very successful seeding effort that occurred in 2012. Left untreated it would have otherwise required more expensive and additional seeding treatments if no action was taken in the months right after the fire burned.

Without seeding, this burned area may cross a threshold to become a plant community dominated by undesirable annual vegetation. The fire also burned 1,300 acres of pronghorn year-long crucial habitat and elk winter crucial habitat. Because this area has great values to important wildlife species, it is imperative that measures be taken to minimize damages from fires and restore sagebrush habitat, wherever feasible.

The use of various methods to plant seed into the soil, including the aerial seeding and drill seeding treatments included in this ESR plan. When established, these seedings prevent cheatgrass invasion, provide a protection from soil erosion, protect the burn area from large-scale invasion of non-native noxious and invasive weeds, and provide forage and nectar resources for wildlife. The WDD Normal year Fire Rehabilitation Plan and SLFO Invasive Species Management Plan also supports the use of herbicides to combat noxious and invasive plant species.

The natural caused fire began on the 21st of July and was declared contained on the 22nd of July. Most of the acreage burned on the 21st of July. The fire had the incident management organization of a Type 3 but was managed at the incident complexity level fire of a Type 4, maintained by local control of State and BLM incident command structure. The fire saw significant growth in the afternoon with wind driven runs, torching, and backing during the night with interior smoldering and interior flare ups.

A high or perhaps even a moderate-intensity thundershower during the fall or spring over this large, burned area with exposed soils would likely result in a flash flooding event that could have the potential to damage nearby homes located on or near the Confederated Tribes of the Goshutes Reservation, a state highway, county maintained roads or byways and fence infrastructure between BLM and state lands within and below the burned area (e.g., Arts Canyon pipeline, and water troughs, etc.).

There is potential for cultural resources to be present within the burn area, as well as within or near the fire perimeter. A Cultural Resources Inventory (CRI) of the proposed drill seeding area (1,064 acres, 'Area of Potential Effects') will be performed prior to any drill seeding activities that occur on the burn area to comply with Section 106 of the National Historic Preservation Act. Rolling consultation with the Utah State Historic Preservation Office will occur to receive preliminary cultural resource eligibility concurrence prior to drill seeding implementation per the State Protocol Agreement between the Utah SHPO and BLM. Re-vegetating the area will help conceal cultural resources to promote site preservation and integrity. Drill seeding will not occur in areas of known cultural resources to avoid disturbance of artifacts or features that could result in adverse effects. The CRI will be conducted under a Watershed Restoration Initiative (WRI) contract and the cultural work will be reviewed by the WDD Fuels Archaeologist and DWR-WRI Archaeologist.

* Conduct a cultural resources inventory of artifacts potentially exposed and impacted as a result of the wildfire. * Apply imazapic "Plateau" herbicide to areas of higher cheatgrass concentrations and throughout the burned area to help facilitate the establishment of seeded species. * It is estimated that the vast majority of burned acres would be drill seeded with a seed mix designed for the ecological site to establish perennial cover to hold the soil and help slow the invasion of noxious weeds and other pervasive weeds, especially cheatgrass. Also, a secondary aerial seed application will occur in select polygons within the burn. * Enter into a nonuse agreement to protect the seeded area of the fire, as cattle grazing permittees on the Ibapah Allotment will be required to keep livestock off the reseeded area for a minimum of two full growing seasons to allow new seedlings to become established. Additionally, repair approximately 1.5 miles of burned pasture and property boundary fence. * Treatment effectiveness monitoring for three to five growing seasons following the fire to determine success of emergency stabilization treatments. * Inventory for and treat any noxious weeds that may invade for up to 5 years if needed.

The Rocky ESR treatments would be monitored using AIM methodology for the first three years following the fire. The first year is covered under Emergency Stabilization-Monitoring, and continued monitoring in the second through fifth years, if needed, is addressed under Rehabilitation-Monitoring. The specific methodology of the monitoring can be found under the monitoring section for each individual treatment. Monitoring methods were designed to measure the effectiveness of treatments and results on the ground for each treatment that was implemented. Monitoring will attempt to measure the intended on-the-ground results for which the ESR team designed treatments.

UDNR-DWR SITLA BLM

Inventory for noxious weeds and treat, if necessary, with chemical or mechanical methods to control spread and infestation using Integrated Pest Management (IPM) techniques. This would be accomplished for at least the first three years following the fire. Further cheatgrass and noxious weed invasion, or even shifts toward an annual-dominated plant community in some locations are major threats to different portions of the burned area. Past fires have demonstrated the tendency of noxious weeds to increase logarithmically following a fire event.

These seeding treatments relate directly to Soil/Water Stabilization because seeded perennials will hold the soil and prevent or at least reduce both wind and water erosion off the burned area. Seeded perennials from numerous ESR efforts have stabilized soil being lost to wind and water erosion. In a Rangelands paper entitled "Rehabilitating Salt-Desert Ecosystems Following Wildfire and Wind Erosion", researchers have stated that the use of perennial species in seeding efforts appears to be a viable management opportunity to rapidly stabilize damaged areas, and possibly provide an ecological bridge to re-establish native species. Once topsoils are lost, the site's potential can be permanently decreased. In addition, this seeding treatment directly relates Invasive Plants and Weeds because seeded perennials will occupy the area and compete with invasive and noxious weeds for space, nutrients, and other resources. The seeding treatments are needed to prevent cheatgrass invasion and the associated self-perpetuating fire regime with increasingly short fire return intervals.

09/01/2023

11/30/2023

2024

In September of 2023 we sprayed the 1,307 acres on the Rocky Fire with herbicide. The tank mix was plateau herbicide, active ingredient imazapic, applied at 5 oz/acre and Roundup Pro or generic brand, active ingredient glyphosate, applied at 8 oz/per acre in 6 gallons of water/acre + 1 quart non-ionic surfactant per 100 gallons of spray mix. The BLM personnel drill seeded the entire fire in the fall of 2023. In December of 2023, we aerially seeded sagebrush on only a small portion of the fire on 125 acres. The mix, consisting of sagebrush, winterfat, and cracked corn was applied at a rate of approximately 4.5 lbs/acre. Aircraft must be capable of seeding at these rates.

The fire removed the vast majority of the sagebrush component from the plant community and the entire Rocky Fire is within the occupied Greater Sage-grouse habitat designated as Priority Habitat Management Area. Many portions of the fire that burned in sagebrush/ grasslands burned hot enough to kill existing perennials. The greater sage-grouse is a BLM sensitive species and is on the Utah state list of species of greatest conservation need. The Rocky fire burned 1,300 acres of greater sage-grouse occupied nesting, brood-rearing, and winter habitat. The pygmy rabbit has been petitioned for listing under the Endangered Species Act (ESA), but the United States Fish and Wildlife Service (USFWS) has determined that the species currently does not warrant listing. Currently, the species is a BLM sensitive species and is on the Utah state list of species of greatest conservation need. Historically a high concentration of pygmy rabbit burrow systems was found around Greasewood Spring, located approximately 1.75 miles north of the burned area. The burn area may include areas of monarch butterfly habitat, which is a candidate species for federal listing. Milkweeds and nectar-producing plants are required for this species. The fire also burned 1,300 acres of pronghorn year-long crucial habitat and elk winter crucial habitat. Because this area has great values to important wildlife species, it is imperative that measures be taken to minimize damages from fires and restore sagebrush habitat, wherever feasible.

Inventory for noxious weeds and treat, if necessary, with chemical or mechanical methods to control spread and infestation using Integrated Pest Management (IPM) techniques. This would be accomplished for at least the first three years following the fire. Further cheatgrass and noxious weed invasion, or even shifts toward an annual-dominated plant community in some locations are major threats to different portions of the burned area. Past fires have demonstrated the tendency of noxious weeds to increase logarithmically following a fire event.