Seeds of change

Thinking big is part of Jim Free and Pam Motley's job. As technical coordinator and education coordinator, respectively, of the Uncompahgre Plateau Project (UP), their work takes them from an expansive outdoor classroom to interaction with multiple government agencies, local farmers and the public.

"The UP Project covers approximately 1.6 million acres, five counties and entire watersheds," Motley said.

The largest component of the Uncompahgre Plateau Project is the Native Plant Program, which is covering new ground in the propagation of plant species indigenous to the area, a program which Free and Motley have been actively involved with over the past several years.

What is the ‘UP?’

The UP Project was started in 2001 as a cooperative effort between the US Forest Service, Bureau of Land Management, Colorado Division of Wildlife, Public Lands Partnership, Western Area Power Administration (WAPA) and Tri-State Generation and Transmission with the goal of improving the health and vitality of a landscape historically important to the Uncompahgre Valley as well as the entire Western Slope. WAPA and Tri-State's interest stems from keeping powerline right-of-ways clear of hazardous vegetation, thus reducing the risk of wildfires.

The UP currently operates as a non-profit organization, which allows it to apply for grant monies in addition to receiving direct and in-kind funding from agencies such as the BLM and US Forest Service. From its inception in 2002, through December 2007, the program has received $3.8 million. Last year, the UP Project spent $573,000 on its various programs. Besides the Native Plant Program, the UP Project also sponsors Landscape Scale Project Planning, Invasive Species Management, On-The-Ground Treatments, and Education and Technology Transfer.

Historical uses of Uncompahgre Plateau

"It has been the workhorse of the Uncompahgre Valley for over a century," Free said, referring to the geologic uplift known as the Uncompahgre Plateau that stretches almost the entire distance between Grand Junction at the north end to the San Juan Mountain Range at the south end.

"In 1903, there were seven sawmills operating on the Plateau," Free noted.

Timber harvesting often ran year round to meet the demands of growing communities across the Western Slope.

In the days of the construction boom, mills ran all winter, despite deep snow at higher elevations along the Plateau. Lumber was loaded from the mills onto bobsleds and dragged by horse or oxen down to lower elevations where it was loaded onto wagons and hauled the rest of the way to Montrose, Olathe and Delta and by railroad to Ouray, Nucla, Norwood and Grand Junction. These logging roads provided some of the earliest access to the area.

In addition to logging, other historic uses of the Plateau have included livestock grazing, often in "pool" herds, intensive exploration and mining for uranium and vanadium on the northwest part of the Plateau--dating back to the 1930s-- and prime deer and elk hunting habitats.

It was a decline in deer population numbers in the 1990s that further spurred interest in re-seeding large areas of the Plateau with native species thereby restoring a healthy ecosystem for wildlife. The challenge of developing a re-seeding plan was the fact that many of the key native species were either not available commercially or very limited in supply and extremely expensive. That's where the Native Plant Program comes into play.

Native Plant Program

Beginning in 2003, seed crews covered lands on and adjacent to the Uncompahgre Plateau to make 250 wildland seed collections of over 50 species of plants.

Since many of these species of plants have never been grown on a large scale, they were entered into numerous research study plots to learn more about their growth characteristics, cultivation and production methods. Once adequate information was collected and enough seed produced, the seed was made available to local growers.

Through a grant from the Western Sustainable Agriculture and Education Program (through the U.S. Dept. of Agriculture and CSU-Rogers Mesa Research Facility near Hotchkiss), several local farmers had the opportunity to participate in native seed production trials.

Private grower, Kenny Hines of Delta, Colo., recently harvested 180 pounds of Mountain brome grass seed, which was purchased by Tri-State Generation and Transmission to re-seed areas along its power line on the Uncompahgre Plateau. The seed source was originally collected only one mile from the site in which it will be planted. Mountain brome was chosen because it is an excellent grass for re-vegetating disturbed areas and provides an exceptional food source for both wildlife and livestock.

As the seed's journey makes a complete circle, plans are already underway to expand the program to include a broader section of the Colorado Plateau, reaching into northern Arizona and western New Mexico. The Colorado Plateau Native Plant Initiative (CPNPI) will involve multiple government agencies and a native plant materials program.

"Our program has been a 'trend-setter' for other areas," Motley said.

For both program coordinators, the next step in UP's Native Plant Program is to develop a marketing plan.

"Our eventual goal is to connect growers to seed companies," Free stated. "It's a big risk to grow seeds commercially. We want to get everyone on the same page."

Another challenge that Free and Motley see on the horizon is the renewed interest in energy development on the West End of Montrose County, which includes a portion of the Uncompahgre Plateau.

"We're committed to projects that enhance the resiliency, diversity and productivity of native ecosystems and at the same time balance economic, cultural, social and ecological values," Free said. "No small task!"

UP Native Plant Program Awards:

• 2006 US Forest Service Regional Honor-Caring for the Land Stewardship Award

• Colorado Chapter of Wildlife Society Outstanding Achievement Award

• National Fire Plan Award

• Winner of the Secretary of the Interior's Four C's Award