A section of a cherished canyon is poised to receive permanent protection after receiving a slice of an $80 million round of federal funding.
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The U.S. Forest Service is allocating $750,000 toward a conservation easement of a 1,344-acre private land area near Nine Mile Canyon, approximately 20 miles northeast of Price, through its Forest Legacy program. It completes a $1 million easement request, with the remaining costs coming from undisclosed nonfederal sources.
State and federal officials say the easement will help protect wildlife habitat, forest resources and water resources in the area, protecting habitats for several wildlife species.
“Protection through Forest Legacy will ensure active forest management continues and important wildlife, watershed and cultural resource values are protected in perpetuity,” said Natalie Conlin, Forest Legacy program manager for the Utah Division of Forestry, Fire and State Lands, in a statement on Wednesday.
The project property is located at approximately 9,000 feet elevation, state land managers said. It contains a mix of perennial and intermittent streams that flow into Willow Creek, a major tributary of the Green River, which is a major tributary of the Colorado River.
Over 90% of the land is forested, covered with Douglas-fir, ponderosa pine and aspen trees. State officials note that it’s a “crucial” summer range and migration corridor for big game species, while its sagebrush plateaus support the greater sage-grouse — a bird species that isn’t endangered but has suffered massive declines in recent decades over habitat loss.
It’s been privately owned for decades, remaining in the same family since the 1940s. However, its landowners opted to seek a conservation easement to protect the land amid growing development pressures, Utah Division of Forestry, Fire and State Lands officials explained.
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Under the agreement, it will remain privately owned, but “sustainable” timber management and forest management activities would be permitted to reduce wildfire risks, state officials said. Hunters will also have access to the land, as it’s part of a Cooperative Wildlife Management Unit.
Nine Mile Canyon is often dubbed “the world’s longest art gallery,” as it’s home to thousands of petroglyphs and other prehistoric rock art pieces.
It’s also a popular outdoor recreational hub. The new easement lines up with a few other easements through the U.S. Forest Service program, which has now helped preserve more than 11,000 acres in the Nine Mile Canyon area, the agency said.
The rest of the $80 million it allocated last month, via the Land and Water Conservation Fund, went to various projects across the country, totaling more than 34,000 acres of privately owned working forests.
“The Forest Legacy program makes critical investments in working forests with state partnerships to provide timber supplies and other wood products, provide public access for recreation, secure drinking water and maintain wildlife habitat in some of the most important forests across the nation,” said Forest Service Chief Tom Schultz.
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