Managing Wildlife Populations
State-Tribes Recreation Impact Management: Washington Department of Fish and Wildlife (WDFW) is working with federally recognized tribes and other state agencies to develop a framework for managing recreation impacts on state lands. The Steering Committee met on Sep. 7.
Providing Recreation Opportunities
Trail Inventory Projects: Partnership Coordinator Browning and Recreation Planner Andersen continue to meet with land managers to discuss trail inventory projects for the upcoming year. Browning will draft up request for proposals in the near future. Trail inventory projects will likely be taking place in Scatter Creek, Cowlitz, Wooten, Columbia Basin wildlife areas, and Manastash area. Trail condition assessments will be done for some specific trails in the Methow Wildlife Area and the Manastash area.
Conserving Natural Landscapes
Swakane Forest Restoration Project: Foresters Mize and Pfeifle, along with forestry interns, finalized re-marking and re-flagging the portions of Unit 4 that were impacted by the Red Apple Fire in July. Forester Mize revised all paperwork for harvester and log auction bid packets to address the changes caused by the Red Apple Fire. These packets were reposted on Washington Electronic Business Solution and the Department of Natural Resource (DNR) websites, and bids for these contracts will be due during the second half of September. The goal is to begin work around Oct. 1 to finalize harvest operations in Unit 4 before the winter weather and road conditions set in.
Colockum Restoration Thinning Project Phase 1: Forester Mize continues to conduct layout and leave tree marking activities on the Colockum restoration thinning project phase one, no harvest skip marking, and road layout in Units 1 and 3. Forester Mize has sent out an email to set a date for a field review of this project with collaborators from DNR, WDFW, Department of Ecology, and the Yakama Nation.
L. T. Murray Wildlife Area Grazing Permits Monitoring: Range Ecologist Burnham completed Multiple Indicator Monitoring of riparian habitat on the L. T. Murray Wildlife Area.
Methow Wildlife Area Management Planning: Personnel held a public workshop on Sep. 13 for the purpose of collecting public comments on the proposed mule deer winter closures pilot. About 90 members of the public attended. The meeting focused on a question and answer session with Scott Fitkin. A biologist from the Colville Tribe expressed full support for the closure. The following day we held an advisory committee field trip to Lewis Butte to discuss the closures in more detail. The public survey concludes on Oct. 15. The Methow Wildlife Area Planning team also held a meeting on Sep. 12and the meeting focused on recreation planning and goals and objective development.
Teanaway Community Forest: Burnham conducted the 4th round of 2021 grazing monitoring on the Teanaway (TCF) leases. Burnham also completed a draft report on the degree to which the TCF Grazing Framework had been implemented and how effective it was. This report was requested by the grazing technical team for the forest and will presumably be used to help develop lease renewal language.
Shrubsteppe Proviso: Burnham attended meetings for two of the near-term technical action committees (hay and wildlife-friendly fences) and followed up gathering information to report at subsequent meetings.
Wildfire Suppression: Prescribed burn staff members continued to assist with wildfire suppression as they have over the past couple months as needed. Wildfires in eastern Washington are still a concern, but current suppression efforts are making good progress on control and containment.
Preparation for Controlled Burns on Eastern Washington Wildlife Areas: Staff members have been evaluating conditions for conducting prescribed fires this fall. Prescribed fire, used at certain times of the year when conditions are not so volatile, can greatly reduce wildfire intensity and create favorable resilient forest habitat. Areas to potentially burn this fall include the Methow- Ramsey Unit, Colockum-Stemilt Lilly Unit, L. T. Murray-Hutchins Unit, and Oak Creek-Oak Creek drainage and Cougar units.
Weed Control Field Work: The North Crew treated butterfly bush on the Skagit Wildlife Area Island Unit, blackberry at Fir Island Farm, and knotweed at Southfork and Cottonwood. The crew treated cattail at the New Steamboat, Seattle Pond and Deepwater sites. The crew also led a cooperative treatment effort with Washington Department of Agriculture, Snohomish County Weed Board and Pat Cole (Wildlands Management) for Spartina anglica at North Leque Island.
The South Crew treated weeds at the Chehalis Wildlife Area. Holcomb, Mikkelsen and Nunez supported U. S. Geological Survey and U. S. Fish and Wildlife Service using the airboats to access sites and sample burrowing shrimp over two days in Grays Harbor as part of a research study. The crew surveyed Cedar River along the slough banks, and Morgan surveyed Hawks Point, Clam Beach and Cedar River meadow in Willapa Bay and treated where needed. Nunez and Mikkelsen supported the Benton County Weed Board, with the help of Franklin County Weed Board, on the annual Yakima River flowering rush survey and control project using airboats. The river is running higher than usual and very little flowering rush was located, compared to previous surveys that occurred in July when water levels were lower with plants more exposed and in flower.
Weed Coordinator Heimer visited the three project sites and took post-treatment pictures looking at treatment efficacy. All treatment plots (a diquat application, followed by imazapyr) show efficacy compared to the controls. Heimer also treated samples of marshpepper with Procellacor to determine efficacy and did a separate site visit to record post-treatment efficacy at Flett Ponds. Heimer also revisited Minter Creek and treated a handful of knotweed regrowth for Capital Asset Management Program in preparation for 2022 construction.
Providing Education and Outreach
Ambassador Program: The Ambassador program will wrap up on Sep. 16 with its final day of programming. Browning and Sisolak will debrief the program with Washington Trollers Association and land managers and decide if the program will run again in 2024.
Signage: Browning continues to work on multiple kiosk projects: one for Region 3, one for Region 2, and starting the second wave of bulk kiosks for Region 3 and Region 5.
Lands Advisory Group Strategic Planning: To diversify participation and increase support from local communities, the strategic plan will provide statewide improvements and identify opportunities to enhance the roles of advisory committee members. These recommended changes will benefit staff members and community experiences while increasing public involvement in land management practices. Staff members will engage internal and external stakeholders in this planning process which is expected to continue through 2025.
States Organization for Boating Access Symposium: Washington Department of Fish and Wildlife co-sponsored and attended the States Organization for Boating Access symposium held in Tacoma during the last week of August. Lands Division was represented by Belson. Other WDFW attendees and presenters included Region 6 field operations, Real Estate Services, and Capital and Asset Management Program (CAMP). The director gave a welcome speech to attendees on the opening day.
Conducting Business Operations and Policy
Wildfire Risk and Public Access to WDFW Lands: Section Manager Dahmer coordinated cross-program discussion reviewing wildfire risk and developing recommendations to revise public access restrictions on eastern Washington wildlife areas and water access areas. WDFW’s day-use-only restriction was lifted on Sep. 16 consistent with DNR opening their eastern Washington lands to public access. WDFW’s restrictions on campfires, target shooting, chainsaw use, and smoking continued until the end of September. Dahmer also presented draft protective measures for land stewardship activities on wildlife areas and water access areas to regional wildlife program managers for input with the intent to continue work on these measures and process to be ready for next burn season.
Bonneville Power Administration Fund Distribution: Vegetation Ecologist Merg previously coordinated work to distribute new Bonneville Power Administration (BPA) mitigation dollars to eight wildlife areas. BPA had some concerns regarding the proposal with a portion of funds going to BPA enhanced lands rather than all funding going to BPA fee title lands. Staff members are coordinating with BPA regarding their concerns while ensuring funding availability to provide land stewardship.