Proposed Conservation measures for:
Conservation Agreement for Graham’s and White River beardtongues
Term of Conservation Agreement
 This conservation agreement will be effective for 15 years
 The intent of this agreement is to provide for the long-term conservation of Graham’s and
White River beardtongues. All parties intend to continue the conservation of the species
into the future past the 15 year term of this agreement through renewal or modification of
this agreement.
 If either Graham’s or White River beardtongues are listed by the US FWS under the
Endangered Species Act during the term of this agreement then this agreement will
terminate upon final listing.
Designation and Management of Conservation Areas: The areas outlined in Figure 1 (TBD)
and encompassed by the coordinate vertices in Appendix 1 (TBD) will be designated as a
conservation area from the date this agreement is signed except where non-federal land owners
identify areas for energy development and subsequent restoration as per the criteria outlined
below under restoration and detailed in an accepted restoration plan. The areas delineated in
Figure 1 were developed to represent the range of the species, encompass varying site conditions,
ensure species stability (high density populations), maintain corridors between populations, and
provide for redundancy of the species based on the known occurrences and distribution. The
conservation areas are divided into five units to maintain species distribution throughout its
range.
Surface disturbance in conservation areas on non-federal lands is limited to 5% and
plants will be avoided by 300 feet. Surface disturbance in conservation areas on federal
lands is limited to 5% for Graham’s beardtongue and 2.5% for White River beardtongue
per unit and plants will be avoided by 300 feet. Development will be minimized and
consolidated to reduce habitat fragmentation.
Within one year BLM and USFWS will develop criteria for how surface disturbance is to
be calculated. BLM will conduct an analysis of the amount of existing surface
disturbance within conservation areas. BLM and USFWS will examine and modify the
surface limit disturbances if needed based on the results of the analysis.
On federal lands outside of conservation areas, BLM will treat the species as a sensitive
species and survey for and avoid impacts to plants by 300 feet. For existing
infrastructure, such as roads, surface disturbance may occur within 300 feet of plants but
these impacts will be minimized as much as possible.
On non-federal lands high density conservation areas of White River beardtongue as
shown in Figure 2 should be designated for long term conservation and placed into a
conservation easement with a limit of 2.5% surface disturbance and avoidance of plants
by 300 feet that can revert back to the landowner if the species is listed by the USFWS.
These conservation areas for White River in Figure 2 will remain intact and will not be
subject to surface disturbance over 2.5% and subsequent restoration.
Future conservation areas designation: If surveys identify new populations of either species,
then the conservation team shall consider these new populations in modifying conservation area
boundaries. In general, future populations and conservation area modifications should include a
continuous area and connected populations with limited fragmentation to ensure maximum
connectivity between sites.
On federal lands, BLM will incorporate additional conservation areas that are important
for the species conservation. BLM and USFWS will develop criteria for incorporating additional
conservation areas on federal lands within one year after this agreement is signed and may
modify this criteria throughout the term of this agreement as necessary for the conservation of
the species.
Formation of Conservation Team

The parties signatory to this agreement will form a conservation team dedicated to
conservation of Graham’s and White River beardtongues which will oversee and ensure
implementation of the conservation activities listed in this document. The conservation
team will meet at least annually to review conservation actions and produce an annual
report for USFWS.
o All governmental parties signatory to this agreement have the option to have one
member assigned to a conservation team to review this agreement, and review and
assess the effectiveness and implementation of the conservation actions in this
agreement. The conservation team will also assist in the development of
monitoring plans outlined in this agreement.
o Immediately from the execution of this conservation agreement, the conservation
team will consist of the signatories.
o The conservation team may select other participants from outside the team that
can provide useful information and comments. These outside participants will not
be giving advice or making decisions. Only the government signatories will be
making decisions.
Factor: Oil and Gas exploration and development
Potential Impacts:

Direct mortality from surface disturbance


Indirect disturbance from surface disturbance including increased dust, introduction and
spread of invasive, non-native plant species, and habitat fragmentation;
Restricted pollinator movement, mortality and disturbance from roads and associated
traffic, and energy emissions;
Conservation Actions:

On Federal lands, oil and gas exploration and development will conform with BLM
special status plants species policies and species will be treated as a BLM sensitive
species. Within designated conservation areas for Graham’s beardtongue BLM will limit
surface disturbance to 5% per unit as well as avoid disturbance within 300 feet of plants.
BLM will limit surface disturbance to 2.5% per unit for White River beardtongue as well
as avoid disturbance within 300 feet of plants. Development should be minimized and
consolidated to reduce habitat fragmentation.

On non-federal land outside of conservation areas conservation actions are voluntary and
encouraged.

On non-federal lands within a conservation area pre-site surveys will be conducted to
determine presence and locations of plants. Exploration and development will be limited
to 5% surface disturbance and planned to avoid plants by 300 feet, minimize impacts, and
mitigate impacts to plants or that are within 300 feet of plants in consultation with the
conservation team.
Surveys/Monitoring/BMPs
 Prior to any surface disturbance on federal and non-federal lands in suitable habitat
surveys will be conducted within the area of disturbance and out to 300 feet from the
edge of the disturbance to determine species presence, population and distribution.
Surveys will follow standard survey protocol as detailed in the US Fish and Wildlife
Service (USFWS) Utah Field Office Guidelines for Conducting and Reporting Botanical
Inventories and Monitoring of Federally Listed, Proposed and Candidate plants (2011).

On all federal and non-federal lands the landowner/manager will collect seeds and /or
salvage a portion of plants from areas to be disturbed in order to ensure genetic
representation of the species. Seeds can be used for restoration but at least a portion of
these seeds should be given to Red Butte and Denver botanic Gardens for long-term
storage.

The BLM and other signatories will develop and implement a monitoring and adaptive
management plan, to be approved by consensus of the conservation team. This
monitoring plan will include:
o A weed management plan within and adjacent to designated conservation areas
that includes monitoring and treating invasive species
o A species monitoring plan to determine trends in plant populations across their
ranges and identify significant threats to the species.
o Examine opportunities to develop and fund a peer-reviewed pollinator study to
determine movement patterns, and characteristics of nesting habitat for suitable
pollinators, and characteristics of the native plant community needed to maintain
suitable habitat for pollinators, especially the masarid wasp (Pseudomasaris
vespoides)
Factor: Oil shale and tar sands development
Potential Impacts:





Direct mortality from surface disturbance;
Indirect disturbance from surface disturbance including increased dust, introduction and
spread of invasive, non-native plant species, and habitat fragmentation;
Community and habitat loss and disturbance from surface disturbance including soil and
vegetation removal;
Restricted pollinator movement, mortality and disturbance from roads and associated
traffic, and energy emissions;
Increased sedimentation and erosion.
Conservation Actions:



Federal lands: Designated conservation areas (Figure 1; same as the proposed Critical
habitat polygons) will be managed with surface disturbance limited to 5% for Graham’s
beardtongue and 2.5% for White River beardtongue and plants avoided by 300 feet.
Non-Federal Land Designations: There are two categories of non-federally managed
lands: non-conservation areas and conservation areas.
o Non-conservation areas are designated as those areas in suitable habitat where
surface mining activities will occur unimpeded by this agreement. It is
understood that voluntary conservation measures may take place on these lands,
and those voluntary conservation measures will be considered by the conservation
team in evaluating the conservation of the species. These voluntary measures will
be reported back to the conservation team.
o Within conservation areas on non-federal lands surface disturbance will be limited
to 5% and plants avoided by 300 feet. Any surface disturbance over 5% will be
mitigated as recommended by the conservation team.
Ecological restoration on non-federal lands: Surface disturbance may occur on 70% of
the areas designated for the conservation of Graham’s and White River beardtongues on
non-federal lands if ecological restoration is planned, funded and demonstrated to be
successful on a large scale. Ecological restoration must include the restoration of
ecological processes, function, structure and components integral to the ecosystem where
the two species occur.

Restoration should be planned so that no more than 20% of conservation areas are in the
process of being disturbed at any one time.

In each of the proposed conservation areas (for each of the species) reference areas not
less than 30% of the designated conservation area on non-federal lands will be limited to
5% surface disturbance and plants avoided by 300 feet (ie no surface mining and
subsequent restoration will occur) to ensure resiliency and redundancy of the species and
serve as core, secure reference populations for restoration purposes. These reference
areas should be located in areas identified as high density areas within the conservation
area (Figure 1).

A scientific based peer-reviewed restoration study must demonstrate successful
restoration of the species, its environment (ie. soils, moisture regime) and its community
components (ie pollinators, other flowering plants) prior to more than 5% surface
disturbance in designated conservation areas on non-federal lands on the same scale and
timeframe as on-going or anticipated surface mining.

A restoration plan will be developed by the conservation team and approved by the
USFWS with goals and reference areas identified and success criteria outlined and
measured.

Restoration areas for research and demonstration may be designated within conservation
areas but must be included in the restoration plan.

Factors of success will include successful recruitment of the species over at least three
generations and one drought period or 15 years whichever is longer, stable or increasing
population of recruited plants, genetic representation, lack of inbreeding depression,
suitability of substrate characteristics and intactness of community components including
pollinators and other flowering plants including other oil shale endemics such as Dragon
milkvetch (Astragalus lutosus), oilshale columbine (Aquilegia barnebyi), Barneby’s
thistle (Circium barnebyi), oilshale cryptantha (Crypthantha barnebyi), Graham’s
cryptantha (Cryptantha grahamii), Rollins’ cryptantha (Cryptantha rollinsii), and
ephedra buckwheat (Eriogonum ephedroides) where the natural community is
biologically similar to the reference community. Understanding the mechanisms related
to recruitment for the species and other community components will be important to the
restoration process.

If available, development of restoration protocols should utilize previously occupied
parcel prior to development of designated conservation areas so that there is no net loss
of occupied habitat.

The restoration of the conservation area to be developed must be funded in advance of
development.
Factor: Inadequacy of Existing Regulatory Mechanisms
Potential Impacts:




Lack of rangewide protection;
Loss of plants/ habitat under Federal ownership;
Loss of plants/habitat under private ownership; and
Habitat loss and fragmentation.
Conservation Actions:







The BLM will ensure that ongoing and future Federal actions support or do not preclude
the species conservation. All projects located in designated conservation areas and their
potential to impact the species will be reported in the Conservation Team annual report to
the USFWS.
The BLM will retain Graham’s and White River beardtongues on the BLM Special Status
Species list as a sensitive species to ensure that the effects of proposed projects are
analyzed for the species.
If federal land is transferred to the state of Utah, the state agrees to maintain the
designated conservation areas and protections for the two species in the transferred
parcels or place lands of comparable or greater value to the conservation of the species in
conservation areas within the same species unit as approved by the conservation team.
The BLM will incorporate the provisions of this CCA or the latest amendments to this
CCA into its Resource Management Plan, permitting requirements, agency planning
documents and budgets. Within 3 months of the signature date of the CCA, BLM will
incorporate the provisions of this plan into permits and budgets. During the next
planning cycle BLM will incorporate the provisions of this agreement into their RMP
and/or consider placing designated conservation areas into an ACEC.
The Conservation Team will provide an annual report on the implementation of this
agreement to USFWS. The report will also include monitoring results and adaptive
management recommendations.
Uintah County will enact an ordinance with associated enforcement protocols and
penalties that limit surface disturbance to 5% and avoid impacts to plants by 300 feet in
designated conservation areas on non-federal and non-state lands within 3 months after
the signing of this CCA.
The State Institutional Trust Lands Administration (SITLA) will enact a regulation within
3 months after the signing of this CCA that will limit surface disturbance to 5% and avoid
impacts to plants by 300 feet in designated conservation areas on SITLA lands
BLM will retain all land where Graham’s and White River beardtongues are present
including sites that may become extirpated.

Factor: Livestock grazing
Potential Impacts:
 Herbivory of all or part of above ground portion of vegetative portion of plant;
 Herbivory of all or part of the inflorescence;
 Trampling of plant and habitat;
 Change in community composition;
 Invasive species invasion, spread and competition; and
 Alteration of soil characteristics
Conservation Actions:
 Where the species co-occur with livestock grazing during the growing season for the
species BLM will develop and implement a monitoring plan within one year of the
signing of this agreement with threshold levels defined where livestock impacts will
negatively affect the species that would trigger management changes. If negative
threshold levels are reached then the BLM will immediately adaptively manage and
reduce livestock impacts in the allotment until impacts to the species are reduced to
below threshold levels.
Factor: Invasive weeds
Potential Impacts:
 Invasion and establishment or non-native plants;
 Competition; and
 Community alteration
Conservation Actions:





Within 1 year the conservation team will develop, fund and implement a weed
management plan (approved by consensus) in conservation areas which includes repeated
annual targeted surveys to detect invasions and treatment of invasive species as soon as
detected. This plan can be incorporated as part of a range-wide monitoring plan.
The weed management plan will identify treatment options for each known invasive
species in the habitat of the species, with the goal of selecting the most appropriate option
that controls weeds and minimizes adverse effects to Graham’s or White River
beardtongues and their native plant community.
The conservation team will develop and implement a monitoring protocol in the weed
management plan to determine the effectiveness of their actions.
The conservation team will review and update the weed management plan annually based
on surveys and monitoring and other information and create an annual schedule of work
targeting priority areas.
The weed management plan will develop and adopt best management practices for
preventing the spread of invasive and/or exotic plants within the designated conservation
areas on federal and non-federal lands.

The conservation team will provide an annual report as part of the range-wide monitoring
report to the USFWS on the activities and accomplishments in controlling invasive
weeds.
Factor: Small population size
Potential Impacts:




Stochastic events;
Inbreeding depression;
Lower sexual reproduction; and
Loss of genetic diversity
Conservation Actions:





The conservation team will develop and implement a species monitoring plan (approved
by consensus of the conservation team). The plan should include monitoring to determine
trends in plant populations across the range of the species’and continued demographic
monitoring at the current sites established by Red Butte Gardens.
Collect seed over multiple years in all areas where the species’ are present in accordance
with USFWS and Center for Plant Conservation guidelines for placement in storage at
Red Butte Garden and the National Center for Genetic Resources Preservation. A seed
collection plan will be developed and implemented with approval from USFWS.
Continue demographic monitoring of the species.
Historical locations of Penstemon scarious var. albifluvis near the western end of this
species range should be revisited for the purpose of collecting new vouchers and samples
for genetic testing. Genetics work should be completed on this species to determine
where P. s. var. garettii ends and P. s. var. albifluvis begins.
Also see land conservation measures in Energy Exploration and Development section.
Factor: Climate change
Potential Impacts:



Mortality caused by drought;
Stress, lack of reproduction and recruitment and mortality caused by shifting rainfall
patterns; and
Habitat degradation
Conservation Actions:

As part of demographic monitoring of the species’ include a component to study the
relationship between precipitation patterns and species’ growth, reproduction and
recruitment and mortality. This may be accomplished by establishing weather
monitoring equipment at existing long-term demographic sites currently monitored by
Red Butte Gardens.

Factor: Wildfire
Potential Impacts:




Mortality;
Community composition alteration;
Post-fire response ground disturbance; and
Increased invasion and competition from invasive species
Conservation Actions:

Any wildfire planning, and post-wildfire actions on federal and non-federal lands in
occupied habitat will include input from the conservation team.
Factor: Off-Road Vehicles
Potential Impacts:



Direct mortality;
Increased dust load; and
Fragmentation of habitat
Conservation Actions:


On federal lands, traffic will be limited to designated routes and routes will be considered
for closure, limited use or re-routing as appropriate to gain compliance and protect
designated conservation areas.
On non-federal lands where OHV use occurs, where possible landowners and managers
will attempt to re-route OHV use away from designated conservation areas and keep
traffic on existing roads and trails.