Utah Issues
What Can You Do?
Volunteer with the Grand Canyon Trust and help us extend our reach and positive influence on the ground.
We need your help with three assessments in 2010: beaver habitat in the Escalante River headwaters; cottonwood, aspen, and willow along creeks near Fish Lake; and plants / pollinators in reference areas.
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Managing the three national forests in Southern Utah to protect their heritage
The Dixie, Fishlake, and Manti-La Sal National Forests occupy almost 4 million acres above southern Utah’s famed red rock canyons. These forests consist of craggy cliffs, high plateau and alpine meadows, lifeblood creeks and streams, aspen stands, grasslands, sagebrush communities, ponderosa pine, and conifer forests.
Their management has historically focused almost exclusively on facilitating livestock grazing, off-road vehicles, logging, coal mining, oil and gas extraction, and nearly unregulated recreational use. Consequently, we are encouraging these national forests to shift management focus to the protection of the intergenerational, national, public, natural heritage and ecosystem values of these forests. For instance,
- Soil needs to be stabilized with native plants.
- Cottonwood, aspen, and willow youngsters must be able to grow into the overstory instead of being overbrowsed.
- The killing of sagebrush for cattle forage needs to cease.
- Sage grouse need tall grass and herbaceous plants for cover and wet meadows for late summer brooding.
- Beaver need to be able to once again work their engineering magic to restore creeks and aquifers.
Major Projects in 2010
- Beaver restoration [overview | project components]
- Cottonwood, aspen, and willow restoration [overview | project components]
- Reference area characterization [overview | project components]
Your donations and membership dues make our research, monitoring, and restoration work in Utah possible.
