The area around Fillmore is generally quiet, accustomed to cattle grazing, agriculture, some energy development, and outdoor recreation of various sorts. However, that was not the case on 6 July 2007. During a short eight day period, the Milford Flat Fire burned more than 360,000 acres between the towns of Milford, UT and just north of Fillmore, UT. The fire burned so fast in some areas, destroying native and invasive vegetation alike, that there was no time to fight the fire, only evacuate.
Our purpose in Fillmore was to evaluate remote sensing monitoring protocol that are being developed in conjunction with the BLM offices in central Utah. The BLM (and several other organizations) have invested millions of dollars in rehabilitation to the region. I actually have to be honest, for the most part, the rehab program has done amazing things. No, the native plants haven't returned in force - and many may never return, however, the region has gone from moonscape to almost savanna-ish.
Our methods are being developed primarily to track the invasion of the cheatgrass, also known as Bromus tectorum. Cheatgrass is a highly invasive grass that has a unique phenological cycle that makes use of late and early moisture, before natives have the chance to begin their cycle.
The major issues surrounding cheatgrass are 1) altered fire regimes, 2) changes in the plant community composition and biodiversity and 3) the reduction of forage for domestic animals and wildlife.
The above panorama is taken at a location known locally as the "Wind Tunnel". The wind, is nearly always blowing in this area, which, during the fire, encouraged rapid and very hot burning. Looking at satellite imagery, striations from tens of thousands of years of winds can be seen trending from southwest to northeast.
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The "wind tunnel" has seen significant clean energy development (wind turbines) over the past five years. The region currently has nearly 100 turbines in their initial phases, with additional phases planned. Sadly, the power is not desired in Utah and generally sold to California Utilities.
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| From Millford Flats |
Although the region looks quite bleak and dry to many, it truly is full of many fascinating facts. The region, amongst other things, has a geologic history that includes a significant amount of volcanic activity. This activity produced huge amounts of obsidian used by Native Americans for tools, arrow heads, and other implements.
The state and federal agencies have worked very well to mitigate for this huge disaster. Collaboration and quick action have saved hundreds of thousands of acres of wildlands from complete degradation. Of course with all of the good, there are some areas that are have not responded well. The areas known as "clear spot" are highly saline and extremely arid environments that have not taken to any management practice. These areas are of concern due to the extreme loss of topsoil which is impacting air quality along the Wasatch Front.
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| From Millford Flats |
Further, soil erosion barriers (fences that catch tumble weeds and in turn catch soil) have been erected to help minimize massive soil loss.
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| From Millford Flats |
All in all the trip was a success. We were able to show that the models created by the RS/GIS Laboratory were quite accurate for the scale and we were able to visit with local managers who understood what was happening on the ground.
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