Upland Management. Component 6 serves a need of a DAC, SDAC, Tribe and/or Underrepresented Community? (check all that apply): ☒DAC, ☒SDAC, ☒Tribe, and/or ☒Underrepresented Community Budget Categories Grant Amount
Upland Management. The Service regulates hunting and trapping in uplands. Development, farming, and grazing existed and have expanded on many of the limited-interest refuges since this Program was initiated 70 years ago. In some cases, these activities have caused a complete loss of biodiversity and wildlife habitat. Most refuges have varying intensities of impacts including the loss of wetlands and native grasslands. According to “Habitat and Population Evaluation Team” (HAPET) data, about 14,060 acres of native prairie occurs on the limited- interest refuges. Most of this acreage is used for grazing and haying; however, farming and development patterns change and once this prairie is broken for farming or construction, it will be lost forever. The continued loss of upland habitat, in particular native prairie, will have the greatest impact to wildlife and the future of the Program. Partnerships Over 225 landowners own 93 percent of the lands within the boundaries of the limited- interest refuges. Some landowners’ parents or other relatives signed the easement refuge agreements and current landowners have since inherited the properties. In some cases, landowners were unaware the easement refuge existed. There has never been an avenue or program that has allowed for consistent, quality dialogue between landowners and the Service. Some efforts have been made to work with landowners when maintenance or rehabilitation of structures has been completed, but overall there has been little contact. Several landowners prefer this lack of contact, while others wish to be more informed on management plans and opportunities to receive compensation for additional protections such as wetland and grassland easement refuges or fee title. Assistance has occasionally been requested for maintaining water level management structures. The Program will not succeed without the partnership of these landowners. While some of the limited-interest refuges have remained unchanged over the life of the limited-interest refuge, others have been developed extensively. Many landowners would like assistance or compensation for managing their uplands for wildlife. However, except for a few acquisitions including some additional limited- interest refuges, no funding or staffing have been allocated for this Program since it was initiated. Some partners have shown interest in providing assistance in maintaining these refuges; however, because most limited- interest refuges are on private lands, few incentives ex...
Upland Management. Work under this component involves development of pilot projects and monitoring water yield benefits achieved through coordination with existing upland management projects. A large part of this component will involve further prioritization of these projects, project selection, design of the monitoring networks, and study design to evaluate project benefits. Gathering data on project benefits and working with entities conducting this upland management work in the Basin will help the GSA develop locally supported, data-driven projects to further the sustainability goals. Deliverables and schedules will align with those identified in the Grant Agreement. Budget: Component 1st LWA Contract Term (Oct 22’ – Dec 24’) 1 2nd LWA Contract Term (2025) 1 3rd LWA Contract Term (2026) 1 Total DWR Grant Budget 2 Grant Administration 154,927 53,249 26,624 314,800 SGMA Compliance and GSP Updates 990,720 433,440 123,840 1,628,000 Fee Study and Economic Analysis 160,000 36,000 4,000 200,000 Well Inventory 109,500 40,500 0 150,000 Groundwater-Surface Water Connectivity Study 469,000 186,000 15,000 670,000 Upland Management Projects 350,000 140,000 10,000 500,000 Total 2,234,147 889,189 179,464 3,462,800 Includes budget for LWA’s subconsultants and equipment purchases (amount does not include County budget). Total budget allocated in the DWR grant (including budget for the LWA Team and the County).
