The Snyderville Basin Planning Commission unanimously passed a series of amendments on Aug. 28 aimed at protecting Summit County’s wildlife.
“As a community I think that’s one of the things that we really value up here — the proximity of the wildlife. The people in this community for the most part value nature and wildlife and they’d like to see that protected,” said Craig Eroh, Citizens for the Alignment of Growth and the Environment (CAGE) cofounder.
The issue came up with the Stone Ridge Development where there is an elk migration route. The development offered to incorporate the route but it became apparent there wasn’t anything in the development code that stressed the importance of protecting wildlife.
“In many ways Summit County development codes are trying to get up to speed to address some of these deficiencies we’ve had in our county planning and development codes,” Eroh said.
The amendments distinguish sensitive wildlife areas from critical, so that the first can be mitigated and the latter avoided entirely — something the current code doesn’t address.
“There needs to be some mechanism to prohibit development on truly critical birthing areas, migration routes and other critical areas above and beyond normal wildlife habitat,” he said.
The ideal is for wildlife to have no contact with residents, particularly their dogs. In the winter, for example, large deer and elk herds have depleted energy supplies and having dogs chasing them, Eroh says, is irresponsible.
But Eroh acknowledged there has to be a balance with trails and development.
As per existing open space agreements, the county is required to allow recreation on the lands purchased with the bond money. Trails have recreational use, but the questions become, where do the trails go and how invasive are they?
“And obviously any building can be destructive to wildlife and we need to find that balance between the ability for land owners to have property rights but in a way that reduces harm to wildlife,” Eroh said.
The wildlife protection amendments have been three and a half years in the works. The county wanted a lot of information and clarification, which the Wildlife Protection Society worked to provide.
“It was a very labor-intensive project, and a complex project, because we are not anti-development but what we stand for is information and education,” said Wildlife Protection Society President Judy Perry. “And when a development is put before the board, we just want the proper wildlife studies performed.”
She said she is very excited about the Snyderville Basin Planning Commission’s unanimous vote on moving the amendments forward to the Summit County Council, which will likely vote on the issue in the upcoming weeks.
Wildlife code amendment highlights
1. Wildlife study will be required for any development occurring on sensitive wildlife areas.
2. A clear distinction between critical and sensitive wildlife areas will be made in the development code.
3. Critical lands are defined as those having major migration routes, birthing grounds, riparian watering zones and is not just general wildlife habitat.
4. Development will be prohibited on critical lands; on sensitive lands the effects of development will require mitigation.
5. Wildlife studies will be performed by a qualified consultant chosen by the county and paid for by developer to reduce chance for bias.
6. Trails passing through critical lands may be closed at times, such as during birthing season. — Courtesy of Craig Eroh.