Posted Thursday, June 24, 2004

New seed warehouse and research center opens in Ephraim

EPHRAIM — Almost one million acres of sagebrush in Utah is dead or dying. The ability the Division of Wildlife Resources and other agencies have to deal with the die-off will be greatly increased through the opening of the new Great Basin Research Center in Ephraim.

The $1 million seed warehouse and research center was dedicated on June 23 and replaces a former facility that was also located in Ephraim. The new 17,100 square foot facility will allow the DWR to:

• store 600,000 pounds of seed (compared to 200,000 pounds at the old facility)
  
• store and refrigerate sagebrush seed, so it can be planted at the time of year that will give it the best chance to germinate
  
• treat 50,000 acres a year (compared to 15,000 acres a year in the past)

The Great Basin Research Center is located at 494 W. 100 S., in Ephraim City's Industrial Park.

"The new facility will increase the DWR's ability to carry out habitat restoration projects in sagebrush steppe and riparian vegetation types statewide," said John Fairchild, habitat conservation coordinator for the DWR. "Research personnel will provide technical assistance for project planning and logistic support for habitat restoration projects. Seed will be purchased in bulk from vendors throughout the West and custom-mixed at the center for use on cooperative habitat restoration projects on private, state and federal lands."

Partners in the Great Basin Research Center project include the U.S. Forest Service, Ephraim City and the Rocky Mountain Elk Foundation.

Agencies join forces to deal with sagebrush die-off

"Over the past year, a partnership has developed among federal and state natural resources agencies, conservation organizations, private landowners and others that is unprecedented in Utah's history," said Miles Moretti, assistant director of the Division of Wildlife Resources.

The partnership is known as the Utah Partners for Conservation and Development. The group has adopted a resolution that will encourage representatives at local and state levels to cooperate in the restoration of Utah's sagebrush rangelands.

"The recent sagebrush die-offs in the Uintah Basin and in southeastern Utah only reinforce the agencies' concern for the future of these areas," Moretti said. He said reclaiming these areas will lead to watershed-related benefits, including improved water quality, water quantity and timing and duration of stream flows; fewer at-risk wildlife populations; economically viable ranching operations; productive big game winter ranges and other by-products of healthy rangelands.

The driving force behind the new research center is Kevin Conway, director of the Division of Wildlife Resources.

"When Kevin took over as the director of the Division of Wildlife Resources in 2002, he made a commitment to do all he could to focus attention on the condition of our sagebrush ranges, especially those supporting big game, sage-grouse and sensitive wildlife species," Moretti said.

Moretti said one of the first things Conway did was consult with Jim Davis, who leads the DWR's Range Trend Project. He quickly learned that the shrubs on many of Utah's sagebrush ranges were becoming decadent and that cheatgrass was becoming a major threat to rangeland health in the state. Conway knew that the only way to influence rangeland health, at the scale that would make a difference, was to develop partnerships with state and federal agencies, agricultural organizations, conservation organizations and private landowners.

"He dismissed the option of continuing to chip away at range restoration in hundred-acre increments," Moretti said. "He challenged DWR personnel to see their role as partners in a much larger effort. In a word, he challenged us to think big. The construction of the new Great Basin Research Center is an important step towards meeting Kevin's challenge to think big when it comes to habitat restoration."

Moretti says the projected demand for seed needed this fall greatly exceeds the capacity of the old warehouse. "The ability to custom-mix seed mixtures that are specifically adapted to each project site is the key to successful restoration," he said. "In addition to its seed inventory role, the new facility will be the center for the DWR's continued involvement in range restoration research."

Since the 1950s, this research program has contributed to the increased availability of plant materials and equipment for wildlife habitat restoration across Utah.