Lower Duchesne River Wetlands Mitigation Project
Duchesne River Area Canal Rehabilitation (DRACR) Mitigation

Lower Duchesne River Wetlands Mitigation Project

Wetland resources impacted by the Strawberry Aqueduct and Collection System are to be mitigated through protecting, restoring and enhancing wetlands along portions of the lower Duchesne River, near Myton, in eastern Utah.

The Ute Tribe is a joint-lead planning entity for the mitigation project. Under agreements with the Mitigation Commission and U.S. Department of the Interior, the Tribe completed a feasibility study for protecting, restoring or developing the lower Duchesne River wetlands. Based on the study, the Commission, Department of the Interior and Ute Tribe entered into an agreement in 1998 to conduct additional investigations and National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA) analysis. A final Environmental Impact Statement was released April 15, 2008 for a 30-day public review.[Click here to download the Lower Duchesne River Wetlands Mitigation Project Final Environmental Impact Statement - LDWP FEIS (17 MB)] [Click here to download the Executive Summary for the LDWP FEIS (3 MB)]

Duchesne River Area Canal Rehabilitation
(DRACR) Mitigation

After SACS and the Starvation Collection System were authorized and completed, or still under construction, the DRACR project was funded and built. The purpose of this project was to improve efficiency of irrigation canals off of the Duchesne River by reducing canal leakage. This was accomplished through a combination of piping or lining about 41 miles of canal segments. Consequently, some wetlands that had been supported by leakage from those canals were impacted. To mitigate for the wetland losses, the U.S. Bureau of Reclamation acquired about 1,087 acres of land with water rights adjacent to the Duchesne River, near Myton. This property was to be developed and managed for wetlands and wildlife habitat; however, efforts to achieve those goals were hindered by difficulties in delivering water to the property. Two other projects the Mitigation Commission is involved with are connected to DRACR mitigation. First, the DOI-CUPCA office and Commission are joint-lead agencies on a draft Environmental Assessment that describes and evaluates several alternatives to deliver irrigation water to the property to complete the wetland and wildlife improvements. A final EA is expected in 2004. Second, the 1,087-acre parcel is contiguous to several other land parcels proposed for inclusion in the Lower Duchesne River Wetlands Mitigation Project (see above); two of the alternatives described in the draft EIS incorporate this parcel in some fashion.