NOVEMBER 17, 2020 Mesa County Resource Management Plan Natural Resource Management Plan Y2 Consultants, LLC & Falen Law Offices (Intentionally Left Blank) CONTENTS ACRONYMS ...................................................................................................................................... IV LIST OF FIGURES .............................................................................................................................. VII LIST OF TABLES .............................................................................................................................. VIII EXECUTIVE SUMMARY ..................................................................................................................... IX CHAPTER 1: INTRODUCTION ...............................................................................................................1 1.1 FUNDAMENTAL PRINCIPLES ....................................................................................................................... 1 1.2 MESA COUNTY’S PLAN OVERVIEW ............................................................................................................. 2 1.2.A Organization ................................................................................................................................ 2 1.2.B Process ......................................................................................................................................... 2 1.2.C Amending the Plan ....................................................................................................................... 3 1.3 LAND USE PLANNING PROCESS AND LEGAL FRAMEWORK ............................................................................... 3 1.3.A Statutory Requirements for Local Government to Federal Interaction and Influence ................ 3 1.3.B County’s Expectations for Land Use Planning Process and Land Use Plan .................................. 6 CHAPTER 2: HISTORY, ECONOMICS, AND SOCIOECONOMICS ...............................................................9 2.1 COUNTY OVERVIEW ECONOMICS AND SOCIOECONOMICS ............................................................................... 9 2.1.A Overview of Geographical Area ................................................................................................... 9 2.1.B Demographics .............................................................................................................................. 9 2.1.C Socioeconomic and Economic Viability ...................................................................................... 12 2.2 CULTURAL RESOURCES............................................................................................................................ 12 2.2.A History ........................................................................................................................................ 12 2.2.B Resource Assessment ................................................................................................................. 13 2.2.C Resource Management Objective .............................................................................................. 15 2.2.D Policy Statements ...................................................................................................................... 15 CHAPTER 3: RESOURCE POLICIES ...................................................................................................... 16 3.1 LAND ................................................................................................................................................... 16 3.1.A Land Use Overview .................................................................................................................... 16 3.1.B Transportation ........................................................................................................................... 22 3.1.C Land Acquisition and Disposal ................................................................................................... 29 3.1.D Special Management Areas ....................................................................................................... 30 3.1.E Forest Management ................................................................................................................... 43 3.1.F Wildfire Management ................................................................................................................ 45 3.2 NATURAL RESOURCES ............................................................................................................................. 49 3.2.A Water ......................................................................................................................................... 49 3.2.B Air ............................................................................................................................................... 65 ii | Page 3.2.C Geology and Mineral Resources ................................................................................................ 67 3.2.D Energy Resources ....................................................................................................................... 75 3.3 WILDLIFE .............................................................................................................................................. 84 3.3.A Endangered, Threatened, and Sensitive Species ....................................................................... 86 3.3.B General Wildlife ......................................................................................................................... 91 3.3.C Fisheries ..................................................................................................................................... 94 3.3.D Pests, Predator Control, and Livestock Predation ..................................................................... 95 3.3.E Wild Horses, Burros, and Estray Livestock ................................................................................. 96 3.4 AGRICULTURE ..................................................................................................................................... 101 3.4.A Agriculture Production and Livestock Grazing ......................................................................... 101 3.4.B Noxious Weeds and Invasive Species ....................................................................................... 107 3.5 PUBLIC LAND RECREATION .................................................................................................................... 112 CHAPTER 4: APPENDICES ................................................................................................................ 119 APPENDIX A: POLICY STATEMENTS ............................................................................................................... 119 Chapter 1: Introduction ..................................................................................................................... 119 Chapter 2: History, Economics, and Socioeconomics ........................................................................ 119 Chapter 3: Resource Policies ............................................................................................................. 120 APPENDIX B: TABLES ...................................................................................................................... 141 APPENDIX C: WORKS CITED ............................................................................................................ 148 APPENDIX D: PUBLIC AND AGENCY COMMENTS ............................................................................. 158 iii | Page ACRONYMS ACEC- Areas of Critical Environmental Concern APHIS- Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service ARPA- Archeological Resources Protection Act AUM- Animal Unit Month BGEPA- Bald and Gold Eagle Protection Act BLM- Bureau of Land Management BMP-Best Management Practice BOCC- Board of County Commissioners CAA- 1970 Clean Air Act CAP- SSE- Community Assistance Program - State Support Services CCA- Candidate Conservation Agreements CCAA- Candidate Conservation Agreements with Assurances CEQ- Council on Environmental Quality CLG- Certified Local Government CO- Colorado CRP- Conservation Reserve Program CWA- Clean Water Act DEQ- Department of Environmental Quality DOD- Department of Defense DOE- Department of Energy EA- Environmental Assessment ECOS- Environmental Conservation Online System EIS- Environmental Impact Statement ENSO- El Niño-Southern Oscillation EPA- Environmental Protection Agency ERFO- Emergency Relief for Federally Owned Roads ESA- 1973 Endangered Species Act ESD- Ecological Site Description FAC- Functioning-at-risk FAST- Fixing America’s Surface Transportation act FDQA- Federal Data Quality Act FHWA- Federal Highway Administration FLAP- Federal Lands Access Program FLMPA- 1976 Federal Land Management and Policy Act FLTP- Federal Lands Transportation Program FSA- Farm Service Agency FUDs- Formerly Used Defense Sites GHG- Greenhouse Gas GLO- General Lands Office iv | Page GMUG- Grand Mesa, Uncompahgre, and Gunnison National Forests GPC- Groundwater Pollution Control GVAQC- Grand Valley Air Quality Committee IMR- Intermountain Range IPCC- International Governmental Panel on Climate Change LUP- Land Use Plan LWCF- Land and Water Conservation Fund Act of 1964 MBA- Migratory Bird Act MCCWPP- Mesa County Community Wildfire Protection Plan MOA- Memorandum of Agreement