Last modified: Saturday, July 29, 2006
How you can help wildlife by improving public lands management
(a.k.a. How Wildlife Viewers, Hunters, Anglers, and Interested Citizens Can Help Guide Public Lands Planners in Restoring and Managing Wildlife Habitat in Utah)
The Utah Division of Wildlife Resources (DWR) has learned that many of its constituents and citizens are interested in affecting positive change on the publicly owned forest and range habitats essential for wildlife population health (e.g., enhancing sagebrush steppe for wintering mule deer herds or sage grouse recolonization).
Much of Utah's publicly owned landscape is managed by one of two federal agencies, either the U.S. Forest Service (USFS) or the U.S. Bureau of Land Management (BLM), however, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service does manage several National Wildlife Refuges (i.e., Ouray, Fish Springs and Bear River). Some state entities also have public land management authority, such as the School and Institutional Trust Lands Administration. These land management entities have different ways to develop long range plans that affect wildlife habitat.
All federal agency land management planning processes welcome/accept public comments to identify needs and specify the elements that should be addressed to best serve all citizens, specifically those concerned about the residents of Utah, regardless of their active participation in regulated wildlife recreation pursuits such as angling, hunting and viewing. In addition, some private entities, like The nature Conservancy of Utah, are also committed to the conservation of habitats essential for fish and wildlife population viability. For your interest, following the three federal agencies' information, you will find a brief description of their efforts in this regard. All of these entities profiled are involved in currently on-going partnership projects with the Utah Division of Wildlife Resources for which we are grateful.
Several public land management plans (i.e., Forest Plans and BLM Resource Management Plans, and National Wildlife Refuge Plans) are currently under development across the state. Please follow the links below and browse through the information to find a Forest, Resource Area, Wildlife Refuge either of interest or near you. Then, if you like, please provide them with your input on how their plans may be enhanced to benefit your fish and wildlife resources. By taking an interest in, learning about, and expressing yourself through the public input process of resource management decision-making, you too may become a valuable resource for sustaining Utah's fish and wildlife future!
