Sheila Probst Siggard’s big, red barn on nearly 8 acres in Midway has been in her family for as long as she can remember. All that time, it has been a muse for artists across the Heber Valley. 

During the Midway Art Association’s annual plein air contest, painters flock to the public roads surrounding her property to set up easels. There seems to be at least one artistic depiction of its two silos and Park City pine logs for each of the four seasons. 

“With all the development coming in Midway, I’ve thought about leaving, but I said, ‘I can’t leave my barn,’” Siggard said. 

The 73-year-old owner even considered having the barn moved to a new location, possibly by dismantling and reconstructing it. But Siggard has found another solution to preserve her barn: by establishing a conservation easement on her and her neighbors’ properties. 

The conservation easement, referred to as the Heart of Midway Project, encompasses more than 17 acres from four neighboring properties north of 250 N. and west of N. Center St.

Siggard’s idea originated when the city passed its first $5 million open space bond in 2018. It wasn’t difficult, she said, to convince her three neighbors to collaborate on the project.

“We’ve seen so many pieces of property get developed, and then there’s all the traffic and the ugliness of houses instead of a beautiful, open field,” she said. “We’re kind of old timers. We just love agriculture and hate to see Midway be destroyed. So, we want to help preserve it.”

The combined land value is appraised at about $5 million, according to Wendy Fisher, executive director of Utah Open Lands. The landowners are donating a combined $1.8 million of the cost. Three landowners are donating 25% of the cost of their land. Andrew Larson is contributing the full value of his 3-plus acres. 

“We’re not in it for the money. We’re in it for the preservation of the land,” said Phyllis Shelton, one of the landowners and Siggard’s cousin.

Shelton has been on board with her cousin’s plan since the start, agreeing before she’d even told her husband. She hasn’t had to do too much work, either. The effort has been “Sheila-driven,” she joked.

Siggard said she was the first to apply for funds for Midway’s first open space bond. In 2023, the Midway City Council committed $250,000 of those funds to the project.

Since then, the community Volksmarch fundraiser in September raised an additional $85,000. 

Midway passed its second $5 million open space bond in 2024. Fisher and the landowners approached the City Council on Tuesday, seeking $750,000 more for the Heart of Midway Project. The City Council unanimously approved the funding. 

“It’s pretty outstanding for a piece like this to be contiguous through this agreement of owners,” said City Councilor JC Simonsen.

The land is being preserved for its use by livestock and as an essential winter foraging ground for wildlife like deer. It is also being preserved for its open field views and the potential establishment of a public trail easement on Siggard’s property. The mapping of that trail will occur at a later date.

The landowners, with the assistance of Utah Open Lands, have to raise funds for the remaining $2.1 million value of the conservation easement. That could come from various federal, state and local sources, as well as private foundations. 

Fisher added that Utah Open Lands recently received approval for a Regional Conservation Partnership Program through the National Resources Conservation Service, which would have provided federal funding for projects including the Heart of Midway, but “claw(ing) back of funding” by the federal government has stalled the program.

Once the Heart of Midway conservation easement is established, the landowners will have the ability to continue to occupy and farm their land. Larson was also approved to construct a new home on his property, the details of which are to be determined.

For Siggard, finally establishing the conservation easement would mean everything. 

Her family was Swiss immigrants who lived in Midway for at least four generations. Her father raised beef cattle, and she has plenty of fond memories being his assistant, filling syringes for vaccinations and keeping the fire hot for the branding irons. 

“I remember one time there was an Angus cow. They’re very good mothers. … My dad got too close to the calf, and the cow started to chase him. My sister and I were in the barn, yelling, ‘Run, Daddy! Run!’ And he made it,” she remembered with a laugh. “Lots of good memories.”

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Midway farmer Randy Lundin’s great-grandfather established himself in the Heber Valley on just 7 acres in 1892. Today, 27 head of cows and calves, a handful of horses, foxes, coyotes, raccoons and the occasional mountain lion roam the now 119-acre property, which the Lundin family has fought to preserve through a conservation easement for the past four years. 

The process has been about as strenuous as the backbreaking labor the Lundins have performed for generations. But the project achieved a significant milestone on July 1, when the Wasatch County Council unanimously finalized a purchase agreement funding $2 million of the land’s purchase price from the county open space bond fund.

The Midway City Council in December also voted for funding its portion of the conservation easement, $1 million, coming from its open space bond fund.

The purchase can now go forward as soon as all conditions of the agreement are met.

The final condition is that the Lundin siblings settle a struggle over the property that has been in litigation since 2021. The siblings entered into a settlement agreement in May 2024 and have since been in negotiations to finalize it.

The next status hearing on the case overseen by a Fourth District judge is scheduled for Aug. 14.

The exact terms of the settlement agreement do not matter as long as they protect Wasatch County, Midway and Utah Open Lands, allowing the purchase agreement to go forward, said Wasatch County Deputy Attorney Jon Woodard.

As soon as the purchase agreement goes into effect, the Lundins will have three years to secure funding of the $4.5 million that constitutes the rest of the purchase price. They will be assisted by Utah Open Lands. 

Executive Director Wendy Fisher expected most of that funding to come from the National Resource Conservation Service. Utah Open Lands is also looking at other federal, state and local sources and private foundations, and is accepting donations.

“This was the first hurdle in what is still a long journey, so it’s been amazing to see the Lundins stay at the table,” Fisher said. “We’ll need every oar in the river to get this one done.”

If the Lundins cannot raise the $4.5 million after the three-year period ends, Wasatch County and Midway’s combined $3 million will be returned with interest, Woodard said. 

If established, the conservation easement would allow the Lundin family to continue farming the land while preserving it for future generations. 

“Development’s going on all around this, so there is a threat of imminent loss of the existing open space,” Woodard said.

The land is visible from Main Street in Heber City, Wasatch Mountain State Park and much of Midway, justifying its aesthetic importance, Woodard said.

Midway would transform a ditch running across the Lundin property into a public trail that would also serve as an emergency access and wildfire evacuation route.

Public access would also be allowed for educational tours, allowing residents to take in the echoes of the past found on the Lundin property, from a plum orchard the siblings’ great-grandfather planted over a century ago to the 10-by-10-foot brick homestead the siblings were raised in.

“It was warm in the winter. Cozy,” Randy joked.

He said establishing the conservation easement has taken longer than expected, but that he will be happy when it is finally established.

“This has been a long process. It has been emotional, and it has been trying, I think, for everyone involved,” Fisher said.

She added that the Lundin family is selling the land for less than it has been appraised for.

“This isn’t something they’re doing to make money. They’re actually going to be making a sizable contribution to the value of the conservation easement,” she said. “I think that needs to be recognized. All of these projects that we work on, really, they don’t happen unless the landowners love their land, and the Lundins love their land.”

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Central Utah Water Conservancy District Project Manager Chris York told the Heber City Council on Tuesday he learned earlier that day that “all the high water in the Provo River is gone.” 

High water comes from rainfall and snowpack, the accumulation of snow that melts seasonally into bodies of water. The Natural Resources Conservation Service declared this Utah’s “worst winter for snowpack going back to at least 1930” on May 1. 

The lack of high water means 80% of the Provo River’s first class water rights — those prioritized when in drought — can be satisfied. When a similar declaration was made in 2021, it took only four days for that 80% to drop to 60%, according to York.

The Provo River provides the majority of water for local pressurized irrigation, York said, with the rest coming from water stored in Jordanelle Reservoir. 

When flow is low in the Provo River, more and more water used for pressurized irrigation comes from Jordanelle Reservoir, lowering the reservoir water level. Mayor Heidi Franco called that “(not) a pretty sight” last month.

However, York is optimistic that voluntary water conservation by residents will allow Heber City to make it through most of the pressurized irrigation season, which lasts from April 15 to Oct. 15. 

The City Council unanimously approved entering the second phase of its four-phase water shortage plan — voluntary, rather than mandatory, conservation — to ensure the pressurized irrigation season lasts until Sept. 15.

“I have a lot of belief in people, and I think hopefully they’ll rally around the message and understand that there are people who really didn’t have an irrigation season in central and southern Utah. We’re really fortunate that we’re talking about Sept. 15,” York said. “We’re all in this together, and we need to do our part.”

The second phase of the water shortage plan encourages residents to limit lawn watering to three days a week, June through August, and two times a week in April, September and October. Watering should also be avoided between 10 a.m. and 6 p.m. and on windy, rainy or snowy days.

The Utah Department of Natural Resources has an interactive map breaking down how often residents of each county should water their lawns on a given week. On the week of June 12 to 18, for example, Wasatch County residents were advised to water their lawns three times a week. Residents with lawns that have low water use grasses should have watered their lawns only twice. That map is available at tinyurl.com/4s4xxr3u.

Heber City also asks residents to conserve water in other ways, like limiting hard surface washing, washing vehicles using a bucket and hose nozzle and covering swimming pools when not in use and lowering the water level by 4 inches below the spill line.

The third phase of the water shortage plan would make the conservation efforts around lawn watering, hard surface washing and swimming pools mandatory.

No phase of the water shortage plan mandates use of culinary water, water that has been treated for human consumption.

However, some neighborhoods of Heber City, like Valley Hills, use culinary water for outdoor uses. Heber City is encouraging residents of those areas, too, to follow these same conservation suggestions.

The goal of the second phase of the water shortage plan is to reduce city-wide water use by 5%. The third phase aims for a 15% reduction or more.

Franco questioned whether the second phase would be enough.

“Sounds to me like we need more than a 5% reduction right now,” she said. 

A 5% reduction would require about one-third of city water users to follow the voluntary conservation suggestions. City engineer Russ Funk explained that a reduction on the same level as the third phase’s goal is possible if even more residents take up the city’s suggestions. 

York added that mandating water conservation can lead residents to sometimes increase their water use, especially if the rules are not properly enforced.

“People think, ‘Oh, boy, I’ve got to get my water.’ It’s the COVID toilet paper and bottled water all over again,” he said.

Public perception of water conservation poses another challenge. When residents see agricultural water use, they often assume farmers are not conserving, York said. 

“But they are cutting back,” he said. “You can’t really cut their wheel line in half, so to speak, so usually, what happens is they extend how many times they get across their field. So, if they’re used to getting across their field once every eight days, maybe now they’re getting across their field once every 10, 12 days.”

A similar conservation process is used for lawn watering at city parks, explained Assistant City Manager Mark Smedley.

“What happens if people don’t understand that those things are happening … they say, ‘Well, the city’s not going to do it. They’re not conserving. Well, it can’t be that important,’” said Funk. “We’ve got to figure out how to educate.”

Some residents, however, are gung-ho to immediately start conserving. 

Resident Tatum Smuin shared some of her ideas about eliminating decorative turf to save water for the Provo River during a public comment.

She also pointed out that it can be difficult for residents to maximize their water conservation when many homeowners’ associations levy fines on homeowners with yellow lawns.

City Councilor Yvonne Barney explained that the city cannot intervene in a private contract between citizens. However, residents can place pressure on their homeowners’ associations to change the rules, given the statewide emergency declaration over drought conditions Gov. Spencer Cox issued last month.

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Heber City is preparing to weather the storm — or rather, lack of it — during the outdoor watering season in light of Gov. Spencer Cox’s issuing of a statewide emergency declaration over drought conditions on Thursday. 

The latest Water Supply Outlook Report by the Natural Resources Conservation Service, released May 1, said this has been Utah’s “worst winter for snowpack going back to at least 1930.” Snowpack — the accumulation of snow, which melts seasonally into bodies of water like reservoirs — provides approximately 95% of the state’s water, according to the Utah Division of Water Resources.

Currently, 22 counties in Utah are in severe drought, with the remaining seven, including Wasatch County, experiencing varying levels of extreme drought, according to the U.S. Drought Monitor. Just over half a percent of Wasatch County’s land area is experiencing extreme drought.

Heber City has been preparing for Cox to make an emergency declaration since the state-federal Drought Response Committee recommended he do so on May 7. 

In preparation for an emergency declaration, the City Council on Tuesday agreed to draft and vote on a resolution to enter into the second phase of the city’s four-stage water shortage plan during its next meeting.

The second phase indicates a moderate water shortage that is expected to last the rest of the pressurized irrigation season, which is April 15 to Oct. 15. 

The city encourages residents to voluntarily conserve water in several ways, including limiting hard surface washing, covering swimming pools when not in use and reducing the water level by four inches below spill line and washing vehicles using a bucket and hose nozzle. 

The city also asks that residents limit lawn watering to three days a week June through August and two times a week in April, May, September and October, and that residents to not water their lawns during rainy, snowy or windy days or between the hours of 10 a.m. and 6 p.m.

The third phase would make mandatory the guidelines around lawn watering, swimming pools and hard surface washing. The fourth phase would create more stringent water conservation mandates.

The full water shortage plan can be found in the agenda materials for the meeting.

Now that Cox has issued a state of emergency due to drought, Heber City could initiate the third phase of its water shortage plan. 

However, Cox’s emergency declaration does not include any statewide water conservation mandates, instead recommending that cities and counties implement their own restriction plans. As such, Heber City would coordinate with Central Utah Water Conservancy District, which includes Wasatch County, and local irrigation companies before entering the third phase, Mayor Heidi Franco explained.

“We have to rely on (the Central Utah Water Conservancy District) and what they tell the irrigation companies about how much is going to be coming through the canals that can be used for outdoor watering,” Franco said. “I’m expecting next month to get a report from (the Central Utah Water Conservancy District), as well as the irrigation companies, on if there would be any cutbacks, you know, 10%, 20%. Who knows if there would be any cutbacks for the outdoor watering levels that we’re used to?”

City engineer Russ Funk meets with representatives from the Central Utah Water Conservancy District on a monthly basis and said the district expects mandatory cuts at some point in the irrigation season.

“Right now, their message is voluntary reduction. Whatever we can save now is going to help us extend the irrigation season later,” he said.

Franco, for one, is eager to enter the third phase and wanted to do so before Cox issued his declaration.

“It’s not going to be a pretty sight when Deer Creek (Reservoir) gets lower or Jordanelle (Reservoir) gets lower. And I’m sure that when we see that happen throughout this summer, depending on moisture, people will be more cautious,” she said.

No phase of Heber City’s water shortage plan requires indoor water conservation. Nonetheless, the city will be including both outdoor and indoor water conservation tips in its newsletter.

Additionally, City Councilor Mike Johnston and Public Works Director Matthew Kennard recommended that residents download the EyeOnWater app, which tracks household water use.

Any cutbacks or mandates on agricultural water use would be issued by water districts or irrigation companies rather than Heber City. 

Agricultural producers can apply for the Utah Department of Agriculture and Food’s Emergency Disaster Relief Loan Program to help cover “disaster-related losses.” The six-month application period opened on Thursday in response to Cox’s drought declaration. 

Johnston expressed some frustration with agricultural water use on Tuesday.

“I don’t want us to save, save, save, cut back, cut back, cut back, and all the farmers don’t,” he said. “It’s kind of tough when you’re saving, and you’re not watering your park strip, and you drive by the billions of gallons being thrown on the hay. It kind of makes you feel stupid.”

City Councilor Yvonne Barney responded that that was no reason for individuals not to do their part in conserving water. She also recommended meeting with local farmers to better understand their water needs. 

She also alluded to the controversial 40,000-acre Stratos data center project in Box Elder County, which since its approval by the Military Installation Development Authority has prompted concern about its proximity to the Great Salt Lake and protests to its water rights applications. It’s still not clear exactly how much water the data center would use.

Barney said that “we may be frustrated” with “huge data centers going in” but that there was “nothing wrong with us being wise nonetheless” about individual water conservation.

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Ensuring that almost 2,200 acres of the 8,000-acre, master-planned Jordanelle Ridge community remain open space in perpetuity has been an ongoing negotiation between developer Mike Bradshaw, Heber City and Wasatch County for the past several months. But the discussion now seems to be making some headway after a standstill since September.

At that time, the Heber City Council approved a conservation easement that would allow the Jordanelle Ridge Homeowners Association to own and maintain the open space, with Heber City and Wasatch County having step-in rights to ensure the terms of the easement were being met.

Critics, including Heber City Mayor Heidi Franco and Summit Land Conservancy CEO Cheryl Fox, argued this was not a true conservation easement because a third-party land trust did not hold it. They added that placing the easement in the HOA’s hands gave it the power to close the open space off from the public if it wished.

The City Council sent the conservation easement to the Wasatch County Council for final approval, but it has instead gone through rounds of revisions in council subcommittees. 

The developer provided a list of conditions on Jan. 6 if it entered into a conservation easement overseen by a land trust, which were then discussed by the city and county councils.

Bradshaw’s conditions include that Wasatch County and/or the Wasatch Open Lands Board pay for all costs associated with establishing the land trust and that Wasatch County and/or a land trust be responsible, including fiscally, for the maintenance, management and care of the trails on the open space.

While Summit Land Conservancy is currently only acting as an advisor on the easement, Fox shared the nonprofit’s annual budget is north of $30 million and that it was “prepared to put our fundraising efforts (toward helping) with this project.” 

The developer also insists that Jordanelle Ridge retain the right to install “any and all necessary infrastructure for development,” such as water tanks, storm flow basins, underground utility transmission lines and access roads, with only the approval of Heber City, not the county or land trust.

That point raised some eyebrows on the County Council. But Kate Sattelmeier, vice president of conservation and counsel for Summit Land Conservancy, reassured councilors that it was a condition that could be worked with. 

She advised adding a provision to the terms sheet requiring Jordanelle Ridge to notify the land trust of major infrastructure projects in the open space area, which would allow the county or land trust to reroute any affected trails, for example.

“We hold easements over several public recreational places where there’s been significant construction work,” she added. “It takes some flexibility on both sides. It takes some communication on both sides. But I don’t think it should be a barrier.”

County Deputy Attorney Jon Woodard pointed out the term sheet points to the sole purpose of the conservation easement as maintaining access to recreation, a much different intent than what the county had in mind.

“The draft agreement that we’ve been working on says that the purposes of the easement (are) to protect wildlife, habitat, natural vegetation, maintain the scenic quality of the mountainside as undeveloped, natural open space and provide public recreation and public access for enjoyment of the property. So, that all is gone and replaced by ‘recreational purpose,’” he said.

The purpose of the easement was further muddied when City Councilor Aaron Cheatwood asked for a definition of recreational purposes that would hold up in perpetuity. He listed mountain bikes and e-bikes as examples of how recreation has changed over time and pointed to motorcycles as a hypothetical favored outdoor activity of the future.

While Fox clarified that many of Summit Land Conservancy’s conservation easements specify vehicles used on trails must be human-powered, Sattlemeier acknowledged that Cheatwood’s question was difficult to answer.

“One hundred years from now, if nobody’s walking around anymore and everybody’s on motorcycles, maybe then, it’s different,” she said.

“And in that case, you’re saying that there is an opportunity for everybody to come to the table and say, ‘Listen. We’ve all atrophied. Our legs don’t work anymore. We can’t get out of our chairs anymore,’” Cheatwood jested.

Franco, who serves as chair of the Wasatch Open Lands Board, said these kinds of roundabout conversations are typical when negotiating conservation easements. 

“These are the years of discussions that happen to get that easement to where the property owner says, ‘Yes, I’m good with that,’ and the conservation values are protected. Everybody’s on board with what’s in the final document before it’s signed, sealed and delivered,” she said.

While Woodard mentioned that Bradshaw was worried about getting “mired in bureaucracy,” the Jordanelle Ridge conservation easement will take further dialogue.

Although the City Council did not take a vote, all members except Mike Johnston supported going forward in further discussion with the developer and the county. 

Johnston was concerned that the easement could place a fiscal burden on Wasatch County and Heber City that could have been borne by the Jordanelle Ridge HOA. He added that the desire to involve a third-party land trust came down to a lack of trust in elected officials.

“We have two parents, Wasatch County and Heber City, who generally work together,” Johnston said. “And I’m not really sure I want to give my parental rights to a babysitter.”

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On the horizon, a small silhouette flew across the backdrop of the Wasatch Mountains. Without even pulling out his binoculars, birder Dan Roberts identified it as a red-tailed hawk. As he walked along a southern stretch of the Provo River, he explained that he could identify the bird by its markings.

“I can also tell by the way he’s flapping his dad gum wings,” Roberts added. “If you have a dog, your dog moves in a certain way. If you saw him 1,000 yards away (you’d say) ‘That’s my dog,’ because of the way he’s moving. … You can see certain things that your nervous system and your brain has tuned into.”

Roberts’ nervous system and brain are certainly tuned into the avian world.

As a wildlife biologist for the state of Utah between 1997 and 2012, Roberts monitored non-game birds. Now, he spends his retirement birding for pleasure. He was one of about 25 who participated in the Audubon Christmas Bird Count at Wasatch Mountain State Park on Saturday. 

The Christmas Bird Count occurs annually from Dec. 14 to Monday across the western hemisphere. The citizen science project started by ornithologist Frank M. Chapman has been running since 1900. 

Each count takes place in a defined circle 15 miles in diameter. Last year’s bird counts garnered over 83,000 participants around the globe.

The Heber Valley bird count was one of more than 25 held in Utah this year, taking place everywhere from Antelope Island to Park City. Wasatch Mountain State Park has been participating in the bird count since about 2000.

The goal of the census is to provide long-term data for conservationists. For example, the Environmental Protection Agency used data from the Christmas Bird Count in its 2012 report on climate change indicators in the United States.

The comprehensiveness of the bird counts doesn’t quite compare to the studies Roberts performed in his career. He and his co-workers would walk exactly on defined lines using GPS. And each participant was tested rigorously to recognize bird songs before being allowed to count birds.

While the birders who participate in the Christmas Bird Count are generally on the more experienced side, there’s no barrier to entry.

Roberts said the data for the Christmas Bird Count is far less precise but still valuable. 

“If laws need to be enacted, what’s going to make that happen? You have to have data,” Roberts said. “We could find all kinds of faults with the data, but if you have lots of data, even if it’s not the best-quality data, it still has a lot of power in it over a long period of time. And not just a long period of time, but a lot of places.”

The bird count data also includes factors like hours counting, distance covered and weather and water variables, such as cloud cover and snow depth. 

In the case someone sees a bird atypical for the area and time of year, the birder is expected to take a photo and fill out a rare bird form. 

For example, Roberts could have sworn he’d heard the twittering of a sage thrasher, though the bird should be in Mexico at this time of year. But because he couldn’t get a visual on the bird, he couldn’t verify it. 

“It’s better to omit the truth than to make up a lie,” Roberts said.

There was, however, a group that identified a long-tailed duck with its signature cowlick on its tail feathers. Just what the arctic bird was doing in Utah could have come down to any number of factors.

“The bird can’t tell you why,” Roberts said. “He’s got a different gene. A photon hit his brain at the wrong way. You know, with quantum mechanics, all this stuff, who knows? In fact, we can’t even prove we have free will.”

As Roberts continued talking about predetermination, Cary Hobbs chuckled at his friend’s lecture. He’d followed Roberts down the Provo River, dutifully penciling down data as the pair identified migrating flocks of Canada geese, round chickadees singing their “chicka-dee-dee-dee,” and a bald eagle sitting on a telephone pole.

The Watson to Roberts’ Holmes, Hobbs provided levity to the experience, pointing out a couple of ravens dancing in the sky on a “date” and asking, “What do you think that one is?” as a helicopter passed by.

Hobbs’ birding claim to fame was identifying a great gray owl in 2017. It was the first the state had seen since 1989. 

“I put a picture of him on Facebook. This was on a Sunday afternoon, and on Monday morning … the place was full of cars out there, people that had taken off work to go find and see a great gray owl,” he recalled.

The Midway resident has been participating in the Wasatch Mountain State Park bird count for 20 years. He said this was his first year participating that he’d seen green grass and not a flake of snow on the ground. That led to a lot of other firsts: only two flocks of geese, zero ducks and not a single robin.

“Normally, I’d come up with maybe 300, 450 birds. Today was 162,” he said. “Normally this time of year, it’s cold. For example, the eagles don’t really come down until it gets really cold enough to drive them down. Usually, I have a lot more eagles than we saw today.”

Roberts said the lack of birds has been something he’s observed this winter, too.

“Everybody says, ‘I haven’t been seeing the juncos around my house,’” he said. “The snow brings all the juncos to around your bushes and around your house. … They can still eat all these wild seeds. And when it gets covered up with snow, they come to your bird feeder.”

Kathy Donnell, a park ranger who has run the bird count since 2012, confirmed that the bird count was low across the groups that spread out over Wasatch Mountain State Park’s 23,000 acres. Last year’s bird count at Wasatch Mountain State Park counted 54 species and 4,416 birds. This year’s numbers will be finalized and sent to Audubon and the Cornell Lab of Ornithology by the end of February.

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Utah Open Lands and 3 Springs Land and Livestock are partnering together to use regenerative grazing on the Hi Ute Ranch as a conservation tool. The end goal is to boost soil revitalization, naturalized grass recovery, fire mitigation and wildlife habitat improvements.

Regenerative grazing refers to an agricultural practice that improves soil and ecosystem health by closely monitoring and managing livestock grazing patterns rather than allowing livestock to roam freely, as is common with traditional grazing management.

“If you think back to the days bison roamed this range, they would have aerated the soil, grazed for approximately three days and moved on. Mimicking that behavior is what we hope to achieve,” explained McKinley Smoot, a 3 Springs Land and Livestock partner.

The two groups will document the process to measure its success and to ensure the land remains healthy and in line with the protections outlined in the Hi Ute Ranch conservation easement. They plan to heavily monitor the project, and field teams have already collected several soil samples, which they will check every six months to analyze carbon levels, moisture content and soil composition.

The teams will additionally use photo points, wildlife cameras and vegetative transects, or cross sections of vegetation cover, to evaluate the ecosystem’s health and the success of the regenerative practices.

Invasive species management is another key factor of the project.

“By using cattle and a little molasses, we can significantly reduce — and possibly even eliminate — the need for herbicides,” said Utah Open Lands Protection Manager Maryssa Fenwick.

One of the field teams pulled an estimated 700 pounds of myrtle spurge from the property, filling more than 15 contractor bags and clearing clusters that had overtaken hillsides and threatened native vegetation, according to a Utah Open Lands press release.

“The hope is that the cattle will churn the remaining roots into submission,” the release explained.

The Hi Ute Ranch is a property of open pastures along the Interstate 80 corridor. The land is protected by a conservation easement that is a collaboration between Utah Open Lands, the landowning family and the County Courthouse. It was one of the first projects funded by the Snyderville Basin Special Recreation Open Space bond.

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