Partnerships Key to Fire Rehabilitation Efforts in Shoshone Field Office
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TWIN FALLS, ID -- Through a partnership agreement between Pheasants Forever and the Twin Falls District Bureau of Land Management, 75,000 sagebrush seedlings were planted on 3,400 acres within the Shoshone Field Office, Craters of the Moon National Monument last fall. Of those seedlings, 36,000 were grown and nurtured through an agreement with the Institute for Applied Ecology (IAE) and the Idaho State Correctional Center (ISCC). The seed was collected locally in the Shoshone Field Office in 2015, and then grown at the correctional facility in 2016.
This planting effort capped the final phase of a much larger restoration effort for this area. The shrub planting was part of a long-term rehabilitation plan to improve habitat which had burned in the 2012 Flat Top 2 fire. Now, just a little over four years post-fire, perennial forbs and grasses are abundant in the area and shrubs seeded directly after the fire are also establishing. The hand planting of shrubs could almost be considered the icing on the cake. As the plants grow and mature, they will ultimately provide habitat diversity and connectivity for mule deer, sage-grouse, and other sagebrush obligate species.
Idaho Department of Fish and Game, Idaho Department of Lands, and the Governor’s Office on Species Conservation also planted a neighboring State section impacted by the 2012 fire, in coordination with the BLM and Pheasants Forever work. Twin Falls District BLM provided technical assistance and planning coordination. Crews worked feverishly to plant the seedlings --planting 24,000 in one day, and completing the project in just four days. “These partnership agreements really go a long way to help us accomplish our objective to have a landscape level effect on the ground – to improve the habitat that supports sage-grouse, mule deer and elk,” said Twin Falls District Natural Resource Specialist Danelle Nance.
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Lofty goals of planting over 20,000 sagebrush seedlings in a day jump start these Pheasant Forever crews to start early
The BLM manages more than 245 million acres of public land located primarily in 12 western states, including Alaska, on behalf of the American people. The BLM also administers 700 million acres of sub-surface mineral estate throughout the nation. Our mission is to sustain the health, diversity, and productivity of America’s public lands for the use and enjoyment of present and future generations.