Details: Published: Tuesday, April 11, 2023, 9:07 am

Bighorn sheep from Green River chewing on grass

$3.9 million raised for habitat restoration, other wildlife projects through 2023 conservation permits

Salt Lake City — Dozens of large wildlife research, conservation and habitat restoration projects have been funded after $3.9 million was committed to the projects by participating conservation groups during the annual conservation permit project funding meeting held on April 4.

The Utah Conservation Permit Program was launched in 1980 in an effort to increase funding for conservation projects throughout Utah. Each year, the Utah Wildlife Board designates a small percentage of limited-entry and once-in-a-lifetime hunting permits as "conservation and expo permits."

Conservation projects

Many of the conservation projects that are funded by these special permits are proposed to Utah's Watershed Restoration Initiative, a Utah Department of Natural Resources partnership-based program launched in 2006. The WRI focuses on improving watershed health and biological diversity, increasing water quality and yield, improving wildlife habitat, and increasing opportunities for sustainable uses of natural resources. Over 164,000 acres across Utah were improved through WRI habitat projects in 2021–22.

Proposals for the projects are due around the first week of January each year. After reviewing all of the proposals, the Utah Division of Wildlife Resources and WRI committees decide which habitat and conservation projects are of the highest priority. They then give the conservation groups an opportunity to review these projects, and the groups determine during the annual meeting which projects to assign funds to. The annual funding meeting has been taking place since 2008.

"These projects help improve wildlife habitat and watershed health throughout the state, which helps our fish and wildlife populations in these areas," Utah's Watershed Restoration Initiative Program Director Tyler Thompson said. "These conservation permits and funds help make these important projects possible."

During the April 4 meeting, DWR biologists presented 85 projects, 79 of which were then partially or fully funded by the conservation groups in attendance. The groups assessed the individual projects' goals, benefits and costs, and then selected the projects they wanted to support.

The projects that received the highest funding from the meeting were:

Utah Wildlife Migration Initiative: The Utah Wildlife Migration Initiative was founded in 2017 to better track and study the migration patterns of different wildlife and fish species in the state. Most of the data comes from animals wearing GPS tracking devices or from fish tagged with implanted transmitters. Utah is currently the only state that includes fish tracking in its migration initiative. The tracking data benefits wildlife in several ways because biologists can identify where the animals spend large portions of time feeding and then make habitat improvements in those areas. The data is also used to locate migration routes and ensure that wildlife crossings are constructed strategically. This project received over $186,000 in funding.
Twelve-Mile Watershed Restoration Project: This project is located on the Twelve-Mile Wildlife Management Area in Sanpete County. In the past, this area has experienced large mudslides, and this project will improve its big game summer and winter range habitats, reduce wildfire risks, stabilize the soil, and improve the water quantity and quality. This project received over $162,000 in funding.
Mahogany Ridge Bullhog Phase II: This second phase of this ongoing project will continue to improve habitat in the Mahogany Ridge area near Hardware Wildlife Management Area in Cache County. The project will remove encroaching pinyon pine and Utah juniper trees, treat noxious weeds and aerial seed 363 acres with native grasses and shrubs. This project received over $147,000 in funding.

"We are really grateful for the support of our conservation partners who believe in wildlife conservation and want to help improve wildlife populations and habitats in Utah," DWR Habitat Conservation Coordinator Daniel Eddington said.

Most of these habitat projects take multiple years to plan and complete. Funds for these projects become available July 1, with much of the seeding and restoration work being conducted in the fall, during prime planting season.

Conservation permits

The conservation permits are offered to conservation and sportsmen's groups who then auction them at banquets, fundraisers and other events. The conservation groups provide 90% of the money raised from these permit sales toward conservation and research projects like habitat enhancement, wildlife transplants, aerial surveys and deer survival studies. The remaining 10% of the proceeds are retained by the conservation groups to help cover administrative costs.

Expo permits

The expo permits are not auctioned, but rather, are offered once each year through a drawing held at the Western Hunting and Conservation Expo in Salt Lake City. Utahns and nonresidents who attend the expo can apply for these permits. There is a $5 application fee and part of that fee goes to the conservation groups hosting the expo to help pay for costs associated with hosting and running the permit drawing. The remaining portion of the application fee is used for conservation efforts.

How do these permits benefit Utah hunters?

Since 2001, conservation permits have generated more than $59 million for conservation work in Utah. If not for the revenue from these permits, the DWR and its partners would have much less funding to complete high-priority wildlife conservation projects. The conservation and expo permit funding has led to the enhancement of thousands of acres of crucial habitats and the completion of important research to help the DWR better manage big game populations.

The conservation groups that participated in the meeting and helped fund the conservation projects include: