Specifications include, but are not limited to: The Sheep Creek area in Spanish Fork Canyon is one of the main winter ranges for deer in the central Wasatch. Deer that summer in the Strawberry Valley winter in this area to escape deep snow levels and find food on lower elevation, south facing slopes. The current habitat condition of the area is considered poor, due to loss of shrub species and native grasses. Much of this loss is due to factors such as wildfire, invasive annual grasses, and over-grazing. The, Utah Division of Wildlife Resources (DWR), in partnership with the Uinta-Wasatch-Cache National Forest (UWC) is planning a vegetation management project in the area to increase the habitat quality. Project plans include shrub plantings and reseeding efforts within an approximate 3,000 acre area north of US-6 in Spanish Fork Canyon. These shrub plantings are preformed using tractors and scraping implements for efficiency. Given the proposed use of machinery to plant the shrubs, and the ground breaking nature of the shrub plantings, the UWC and DWR have identified this project as an undertaking which will requires consideration of potential effects to cultural resources. As part of this consideration, an archaeological survey is being requested to identify cultural resources within the planting area. A total of 2,981.3 acres require an archaeological survey and are the subject of this SOW. The project area is found approximately sixteen miles up Spanish Fork Canyon in Utah County. The project area consists of moderate slopes between US-6 and the mountain ridges to the north (approximately 8,000ft). The entire project area is found on UWC lands. More information on the project needs, objectives and management plans can be found here. A few images of the project area can be found here.
