Sagebrush Steppe Restoration

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Here’s an interesting presentation on a sagebrush steppe restoration project at a profitable livestock operation in northern Utah. The Deseret Land & Livestock operation wanted to increase certain populations of wildlife, such as sage grouse and mule deer, and generally improve sagebrush habitat by using a proactive grazing management plan matched with several innovative landscape improvement techniques. The presentation shows a number of interesting results – check it out here.

Pioneers Briefing at Joint Meeting

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On Monday, November 29th, members of the Pioneers Alliance spoke at the Blaine County Commissioners and the Carey City Council Joint Meeting. Mark Davidson, of The Nature Conservancy, Keri York, of the Wood River Land Trust and Mike Stevens, of Pioneer Mountain Group provided a briefing on recent activity for the Alliance. They also informed the group that Ben Alexander, of Headwaters Economics, is launching an economic assessment of Carey. Ben has already met with city leaders and locals to shape the direction of his assessment. The Alliance is eager to see the result of this work.

Sage Grouse and NRCS

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NRCS Chief White recently announced that efforts to improve habitat for sage-grouse are already paying off, as a result of the agency’s partnerships with farmers and ranchers.

“Working together with Western farmers and ranchers, we are creating a landscape where this declining species can not only survive, but will one day thrive,” White said. “The steps we have taken are already yielding powerful results and providing affirmation that we can maintain and improve working lands while also nurturing species like the sage-grouse that need our attention.”

photo by Michael Edminster

Sage-grouse in the Pioneers

With financial support from NRCS through the Sage Grouse Initiative, producers marked or removed 180 miles of wire fencing near leks where sage-grouse carry out display and courtship behavior, which prevented between 800 and 1,000 sage-grouse collisions. To give a sense of how impressive this is, this is about the same number as all male sage-grouse that were counted on leks annually in California, North Dakota, South Dakota, Washington, Alberta and Saskatchewan.

Farmers and ranchers improved sage-grouse hiding cover on 640,000 acres of grazing lands during nesting season, which is expected to increase sage-grouse populations between 8-10%. They also improve sage-grouse habitat by removing 40,000 acres of encroaching conifer in key breeding, brood-rearing and wintering sites.

To ensure that farmers and ranchers have the resources to continue improving sage-grouse habitat, NRCS will provide $30 million in 2011 through the Environmental Quality Incentives Program (EQIP), the Wildlife Habitat Incentives Program (WHIP) and the Wetlands Reserve Program (WRP).

Producers who enroll in NRCS programs that benefit sage-grouse will be able to continue operating in compliance even if sage-grouse are listed as threatened or endangered under the Endangered Species Act.

Read the full press release from NRCS here.

Rescheduled Joint Meeting

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There will be a special joint meeting between the Blaine County Commissioners and the Carey City Council on Monday, November 29 at 7:00 p.m. at Carey City Hall. Mike Stevens will be providing an update on the Pioneers Alliance. Below is the full agenda for the meeting:

• PUBLIC COMMENT
• County Weeds Update – John Cenarrusa, Blaine County Weeds Department Manager
• County Roads Update – Char Nelson, Blaine County Operations Manager
• General Update – JoLynn Drage, Blaine County Clerk
• County Fair Board Update – Kyle Green, Blaine County Fair Board Chairman
• Land, Water and Wildlife Program – Jeff Adams, Blaine County Regional Planner
• Replacement Airport Project Update – Rick Baird, Friedman Memorial Airport Manager
• Pioneers Alliance Update – Mike Stevens, Lava Lake Land and Livestock President
• Carey Area Economic Development Activities Update
• Carey Area Recycling
• Other

Video on Salmon Ranchers Improving Habitat

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Life on the Range recently put together this video showcasing what Ranchers have done in Salmon to improve habitat for spawning Steelhead and Salmon. Check it out:

[youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uududWRyG-o&fs=1&hl=en_US]

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Blaine County Commissioners and Carey City Council Meeting

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On Wednesday, October 27 at 7:00 p.m., there will be a special joint meeting between the Blaine County Commissioners and the Carey City Council at Carey City Hall. Here is the agenda:

  • PUBLIC COMMENT
  • County Roads Update – Char Nelson, Blaine County Operations Manager
  • Elections Update – JoLynn Drage, Blaine County Clerk
  • County Fair Board Update – Kyle Green, Blaine County Fair Board Chairman
  • County Weeds update – John Cenarrusa, Blaine County Weeds Department Manager
  • Land, Water and Wildlife Program – Jeff Adams, Blaine County Regional Planner
  • Replacement Airport Project Update – Rick Baird, Friedman Memorial Airport Manager
  • Pioneers Alliance Update – Mike Stevens, Lava Lake Land and Livestock President
  • Carey Area Economic Development Activities Update
  • Other

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Carey Landowers Meet with Salmon Ranchers

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Last Wednesday, a group of Carey landowners met for discussion and lamb stew with Tom McFarland and Merrill Beyler, two ranchers from the Salmon-Lemhi region. Tom, a third generation cattle rancher from Salmon, was the first to speak. Tom and his brothers were looking to expand their ranch property and knew that they wanted to leave the land in better shape than they had found it. Tom attended early meetings of Salmon Valley Stewardship, which focused on the joint goals of staying sustainable, promoting conservation and helping family ranchers. Tom eventually decided to form the Lemhi Regional Land Trust, a local land trust that ranchers could identify with. In 2009, Tom did an easement on his property, through the Lemhi Regional Land Trust and The Nature Conservancy, and said that the process has had a huge positive effect on his ranch.

Merrill next spoke about his land in Leadore. He spoke proudly of his cattle ranch, which runs along the Lemhi River, where salmon spawn. Merrill was really a pioneer in putting together conservation projects on his property. In 1991, he set up a fencing project to improve salmon habitat and for the past 15 years, has avoided grazing riparian pasture during the spawning season. Merrill talked about his love of small communities and desire to sustain this disappearing part of the American landscape. As he said, “agriculture is what sustains these small communities.” To protect his working ranch, he decided to place an easement on his property, and said that “it’s been good for us, our land, and our community.”

Both ranchers answered questions about the specific programs they went through, the challenges of setting up an easement and the long term benefits. Tom and Merrill emphasized that the easement process can be challenging, but in the end both parties need to focus on their shared goals of ensuring that working farms remain working farms now and into the future. Tom summed it up well in saying, “I can have a significant positive influence for a very long time.”

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Pronghorn Migrate from Lower Little Wood to Leadore

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Pioneers Alliance partners are wrapping up the second year of a two-year pronghorn migration study. Recently, they recovered GPS collars that record the movements of 14 does between September 2009 and August 2010. Lighthawk and expert pilot Steven Garman helped them find the last collar.

Two results stand out when comparing new data with observations from the 2008-2009 migration:

  • Two does moved farther than any had in the previous year, traveling 150 miles one way and almost reaching Leadore, Idaho.
  • A narrow migration route between lower Fish Creek and Arco is identical in the 2008-2009 and 2009-2010 studies.

The National Park Service is already using migration data to modify their fences to better accommodate pronghorn passage. This fall, partners will be working with local landowners to map fences lines within the migration corridor to look for other opportunities to support movement of these animals.

The Wildlife Conservation Society has plans to build on this migration research, beginning with a winter capture planned for early December 2010.

The pronghorn research project has been a great success and we are grateful to all our partners!

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Pioneers Listed as Priority GRP Area

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NRCS recently announced that the private lands in the foothills of the Pioneer mountains will be considered a priority area for NRCS’s Grasslands Reserve Program (GRP). This breakthrough is the result of both the efforts of the Pioneers Alliance and NRCS’s recognition of the importance of protecting this landscape and its working farmlands from development. Read the press release from NRCS here.
The Grasslands Reserve Program provides funding for conservation easements, which ensure that working farms remain working farms now and into the future. Learn more about GRP through this fact sheet.
Applications are due October 1st. The application is very straightforward and easy to complete. We encourage you to apply by calling Kevin Davidson at 866.2258 (extension 3). Please call Mike Stevens (788.1710) with any questions.

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May Field Tour

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On Thursday, May 27th, the Pioneers Alliance will be hosting a field tour. The group will meet at the BLM fire station in Carey at 10:00 am and then will have a chance to get out in the landscape. The Alliance has invited two guests, Joe Hinson and Ted Toombs to join the discussion. Joe has extensive experience working in Idaho with ranchers and farmers on public lands management, sage grouse, and the Endangered Species Act. Ted has worked with ranchers and the NRCS, and is currently coordinating a major rancher-led, NRCS-funded effort in Montana to address rangeland management and conservation issues. We have a full agenda for the field tour in this month’s newsletter – read it here.