Uinta County Conservation District

Programs

  Seedling Trees      Living Snow Fence      Windbreaks
  Watershed      Equipment      Soil      Rangeland Monitoring

UCCD sells seedling trees from October through the end of March each year.  The seedling trees are from the Colorado State Forest Service and come as either bare root plant in bundles of 25, in large or small tubes, small trays and one gallon sizes.  We also sell weed barrier, tree protectors and polymer to aid in seedling survival.  The purpose of the program is to encourage conservation plantings throughout Uinta County by providing affordable trees and technical assistance.  Potential uses of tree plantings, include: windbreaks on property, living snow fences, wildlife habitat, stream bank stabilization, erosion control, visual screens, noise barriers and shade ORDER FORM 2013

CLICK HERE FOR TREE SIZES

What is a Living Snow Fence, anyway?  Simply a row or several rows of living trees and / or shrubs planted in critical locations to control blowing and drifting snow.  Living snow fences can be used in place of the traditional wooden snow fences to provide more appealing scenery and wildlife habitat.  They can reduce the cost of snow plowing and keep roadways open in winter.

Who pays for it?  The Living Snow Fence Program receives funding from the Wyoming Department of Transportation and in some cases, corporate sponsors.

How can I help?  If you own property along a state highway and would like to see a living snow fence put in, contact UCCD.  We will seek approval through WYDOT and help you submit a proposal to the State Living Snow Fence Committee.  If your proposal is approved, WYDOT will fund the project and UCCD will help with the site preparation and planting.  UCCD will take care of the planting for the first three years, after which time it will become the property owners responsibility to maintain.  If you decide to participate, you will not only be helping a nearby road to stay open, you will be adding scenery and wildlife to your land--so please consider this worthwhile program!

The Uinta County Conservation District has developed a windbreak cost share program to help landowners in Uinta County with the cost of installing well designed, quality windbreaks.  UCCD has developed guidelines and a set of minimum requirements for cooperators to follow in order to be eligible for the cost share program.  Click HERE to view windbreak program guidelines and application.

The Uinta County Conservation Districts water program was initiated when three of Uinta County's major rivers were placed on the Wyoming Department of Environmental Quality's 303(d) list of impaired waters.

The Blacks Fork and Smiths Fork Rivers, located on the eastern side of the county, were both listed as impaired due to e.coli bacteria and the Smiths Fork was also listed for habitat degradation causing excess sediment loading to the stream.  The Bear River, on the western side of the county, was listed as impaired due to excess sediment in the stream which was affecting aquatic life in the river.  Watershed plans are completed and approved for these rivers.  For more information or to receive a copy of the watershed plans, please contact us at (307) 747-8223, or click HERE to send an email.

In order to address these listings, UCCD pursued watershed planning in both Blacks Fork / Smiths Fork and Bear River areas; and worked hard to involve the local communities in the planning process.  UCCD and the local steering committees have completed two watershed plans, the Blacks Fork / Smiths Fork Watershed Plan and the Upper Bear River Watershed Plan (if you would like to read the plans, stop in our office anytime!).  Both watershed plans identify local resource concerns throughout the watersheds and outline actions that can be taken by the local people to address those concerns.

We want to help you get projects on the ground in order to meet our Watershed Planning goals--so check out our cost share programs we offer.  Although specific programs have not been developed for other resource concerns, the Conservation District has funding available to assist with projects that address water quality concerns and have the potential to improve water quality.  Some examples of projects eligible for cost share include off site water, fencing, irrigation improvement, stream bank stabilization, erosion control and buffers.  Contact us by email for more information  or give us a call at (307) 747-8223.

In order to gather baseline data about current surface water conditions, District personnel completed five years of monitoring on the Blacks Fork and Smiths Fork Rivers and their tributaries.  All of the data collection was done under a Sampling and Analysis Plan that was approved by the Wyoming Department of Environmental Quality.  The following data was collected from each site:  E. Coli and Total Coliform bacterial levels, water chemistry, pH, temperature, conductivity and flow.

All of the data has been compiled into a final report that was completed using funds from the Clean Water Act Section 319 grant, which the District received in 2002.  The District will continue monitoring to determine if practices being installed in the watershed have had an impact on the quality of the water.

Our future plans on the Upper Bear River:  UCCD plans to collect baseline water quality data on the Bear River, Sulpher Creek, and LaChapelle Creek to determine existing conditions and areas that are at a higher risk for contamination.  The monitoring effort will assist UCCD and the steering committee in determining where to focus education efforts and assist landowners in installing best management practices.  The data that will be collected will include basic chemistry, pH, conductivity, dissolved oxygen, temperature, flow, turbidity and Total Suspended Solids (TSS).

Lawson Aerator:  The Lawson 12" x 30" tandem aerator with seeder was purchased by the Uinta County Conservation District to allow local landowners to control brush on large properties while conserving soil by leaving the residue behind.  The spiral blades increase productivity by slicing through rhizomes which stimulates growth and the machine also breaks up soil compaction, allowing nutrients and water to be absorbed more readily.  The aerator can be used for aeration of a hay field or heavy brush clearing, and treats an area 12' wide with one pass.  The aerator also has a seed box for reseeding treated areas.  Depending on the area where the aerator is used, it requires a 120 -150 horsepower tractor to pull it.  If you are interested in renting the aerator, you must attend an operators workshop or a one on one 30 minute training on operations and maintenance.  The rental fee is $50.00 per day, and the renter must provide transportation of the aerator to their property.  If you would like to rent the aerator or schedule a training, please give us a call at (307) 747-8223.

Natural Resource Conservation Service (NRCS) soil mapping crew have been working in Uinta County to complete a soil survey of the entire county.  Working towards a completed soil survey in Uinta County has been a cooperative effort between the Uinta County Conservation District, the Uinta County Commission and the Natural Resource Conservation Service (NRCS).

The checker board land pattern in Uinta County has made soil mapping difficult because of the alternate sections of private and public lands.  With funding from UCCD, the Uinta County Commission, and NRCS, mapping could only be completed on private lands.  However, alternative funding was secured to complete mapping on BLM grounds in Uinta County.

There has been a push to accelerate soil mapping in Wyoming over the last several years.  A soil survey can provide valuable information to those who work with the land.  It includes descriptions of each type of soil in the county as well as interpretations of the soils characteristics and potential for community planning, agricultural land management, engineering and wildlife management.

In the mean time, you can test your own soil by sending samples into the University of Wyoming, or using a soil test kit.  The Uinta County Conservation District has the forms needed for sending in your soil samples to the U.W.  Please contact us at (307) 747-8223 for more information or send us an email.

This is a new program for the Uinta County Conservation District.  We would like to start off by introducing you to our new range specialist, Oakley Ingersoll

Oakley Ingersoll, rangeland specialist for the Uinta County Conservation Distirct, is a Wyoming native born and raised in Pinedale.  He attended Northwest Community college in Powell for two years and completed his schooling at the University of Wyoming.  In May of 2006 he received a bachelor's degree in Range Ecology and Watershed Management with a minor in Soils.  Oakley is married to Dr. Amber Ingersoll, who is a veterinarian at Bear River Veterinary Clinic in Evanston.  The two enjoy many outdoor activities, including hunting, fishing, horseback riding, trips to the mountains and camping.  Before coming to Uinta County, Oakley worked for the Sublette County Conservation District for a year and a half.  During that time he pioneered a range program in cooperation with the BLM, NRCS and the Wyoming Game and Fish.  Thanks to public interest and proactive landowners the program was successful and multiple conservation projects were implemented in Sublette County.

It is the goal of Oakley and the Uinta County Conservation District to educate landowners and public land permittees about rangeland management and range programs here in Uinta County.  Range monitoring programs can be designed to fit specific individual needs by collaborating efforts amongst landowners and federal agencies, including the Forest Service, BLM, and state, that establish achievable objectives and maintain viable grazing practices within Uinta County.  To ensure grazing of public lands the district and the permittees along with the federal agencies will collect credible, defensible data that will assure informed decision making and assist with grazing permit renewals.

Background information needed to begin along with a basic timetable of events is listed below:

• Permittees need to have a voluntary interest and commitment to monitoring on their private ground or public allotments.

• The district along with the permittee or permittees, as would be the case for common allotments, gather with the BLM or Forest Service and jointly develop common goals and objectives.

• At the end of the grazing season all parties spend approximately two days in the field collecting necessary data to make beneficial management decisions that support multiple use.

• Data will also be used in long term vegetation health trends, with transects being read every three to five years and short term or annual use monitoring which is read every year.

• No monetary expense to the landowners aside from commitment and time.

Other range plans available that may benefit landowners across the county include:

• Cross fencing, brush control, wildlife enhancement projects, water developments, and assistance through cost share programs within the district.

• Rest rotation schedules based on vegetation production, acres and AUM calculations.

• Provide technical assistance to both large and small landowners.

You may contact Oakley at (307) 747-8225, or email him at oingersoll@bvea.net

-- Contact Us --
 204 East Sage Street, P.O. Box 370, Lyman, WY 83937
District Manager:  Kerri Sabey (307) 747-UCCD (8223) - email:ksabey@bvea.net
Education Coordinator: Briar Harris  (307) 747-8224- email: bharris@bvea.net
Range Specialist:  Oakley Ingersoll (307) 747-8225 -- email:  oingersoll@bvea.net