Patchy arid grasslands with xeric shrubs common in open stands with sagebrush dominant over extensive areas. Woodland zone is the most extensive, dominated by open stands of two-needle pinyon pine and juniper “pygmy forests”. Lodgepole pine and aspen are dominant in Utah.
HOT TOPICS:
- Increasing tourism and intensity of recreational land use
- Overcrowding of infrastructure in and around national parks and monuments
- Invasive annual grasses
- Pinyon-juniper invasion
- Preservation of sagebrush habitat
- Preservation of viewsheds
- Heavy fuel loading
- Livestock grazing
Subregion Representative Wanted! Contact our Program Coordinator Gloria Edwards for details:
Gloria Edwards
Southern Rockies Fire Science Network Coordinator
Colorado State University
(970) 491-2991
Photo Credit: Jonathan Terbush, @dubteebs on Instagram, Cinnamon Rim, 2019.