Wildlife & Preservation of Open Space

Some important questions were recently asked of this year’s group of City Council candidates by local wildlife advocate, Shon Reed. Link to original post where questions were asked:

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What is your stance on development vs native open space?

 

First, the health of a community is largely reflected in the health and presence of the area’s wildlife and natural habitat. I am an ardent supporter of individual liberty and property rights and also a champion for preserving native open space.  Those two passions do not have to be mutually exclusive; we can both allow individual property owners to get the intended and vested use of their property and prioritize the protection of native open space.

 

We’re a relatively young city with a substantial amount of undeveloped land and it’s important to understand that just because private property hasn’t been built on and is still “native” does not mean the city or other property owners can demand for someone to not use their land. Often we’ll hear someone say “why doesn’t the city stop ______ (land owner) from doing ____ with the ______(their piece of land).” The answer to that question is, none of us want the government to have the power to stop us from using our property.  However, the government and local nonprofit organizations can work with property owners to educate about, preserve and protect native open space.  Sometimes that means raising funds to purchase important open space, and sometimes that means using development tools like open space credits, or exchanging units in one part of a development for another part of the development to consolidate lots and expand open space. The biggest issue is if we don’t act now to preserve open space, 10 years from now we’ll regret that we didn’t.

 

Our city is really fortunate to have dedicated individuals who advocate native open space. Many of those people worked together to create  a local nonprofit, the Eagle Mountain Nature and Wildlife Alliance. People across the entire city have learned so much from EMNWA about our wildlife and open spaces. Shon Reed and the Eagle Mountain Kestrel project has taught me a huge amount about the impact humans have on kestrels and how kestrels reflect what’s happening to the community. Due to the tireless efforts of these people, some of our elected officials have become wildlife and native open spaces advocates too.  Mayor Chris Pengra was a great example in helping to install kestrel boxes. Mayor Westmoreland advocated for the creation of the Ridgeline Protection Code.  Several residents and landowners, city staff, and Councilmembers worked to create the Wildlife Corridor Overlay Zone, which has laid the groundwork for a partnership between advocates and landowners to work together to preserve native open space without taking property rights.

 

I will never forget when Kevin and Marian Burningham reached out to me as a newly elected City Councilmember to invite me to come to their neighborhood so they could teach me about why the health of the wash has such a big impact on our city.  I had no idea that meant Kevin was going to take me on a field trip along the wash.  (I totally wore the wrong shoes for traipsing though the muddy banks of the wash!)  Through that experience I learned the wash runs from the northwestern border of the Cedar Valley all the way to Utah Lake and that it’s home to many species of wildlife and that during certain times of year it’s the lifetime that’s been passed down through generations certain species.

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What do you intend to do to protect wildlife?

 

Responsible growth has been a huge priority for me since before I started serving on City Council. Whenever possible I have advocated for the protection of wildlife. The most important thing any elected official can do to protect wildlife is to listen, go see, and learn.  If we’re listening to residents and wildlife experts, it changes us.  A person cannot hold a baby kestrel in their hands and not be changed by that opportunity.  Since that experience, I have been taught many more lessons about our stewardship for our wild neighbors and what needs to be done to protect them. I was part of the Councilmembers that voted to create the Ridgeline Protection Code, to preserve city land northeast of Unity Pass to keep it native open space, and also to create the Wildlife Corridor Overlay Zone.  In 2022, I worked with the founders of EMNWA to create their nonprofit and coached them through the incorporation process. In early 2023, their Board awarded me “Lifetime Wildlife Advocate” Award.  I will continue listen, go see, and learn from our local experts, work with land owners, actively pursue creative solutions to protect one of our greatest resources—our wild neighbors.

 

What is your stance on the wildlife corridor?

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The community should exhaust all efforts to preserve the wildlife corridor by working with private land owners, state agencies, local nonprofits, local government, and residents to educate about the wildlife corridor and to provide opportunities to improve and restore the land in the corridor to a native state.  Land for the corridor should not be taken from private landowners, rather tools of development such as open space credits, transfer of density, and other tools allowed by state and city code should be used. 100 years from now, one of two things will be true, either our current efforts will be the reason Eagle Mountain is home to wildlife or sadly, our grandchildren’s children will only know our wildlife by pictures and they’ll ask why nothing was done to preserve it.  I don’t want to be on the wrong side of this. Once the corridor is gone, we can’t get it back.

 

How will you react when wildlife related questions come up on the agenda?

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The City Council created and funded the staff position of Environmental Planner. Todd Black is a huge resource for the Council and residents.  I will have an ongoing conversation with Todd so when wildlife related questions are on the agenda, I will have access to his insights and experience.  I have built relationships with serval passionate local experts and I will meet with them to learn more about the impact of potential decisions.

As my record demonstrates, I always put in the work necessary. If that means touring a muddy wash, or racing to see the cause of the destruction of a crucial habitat at the call of concerned residents, or helping to connect local nonprofits with resources to execute a community wildlife service project, I will do it. I will be there behind the real champions for our wildlife to support their efforts and I will never give up on finding creative solutions to preserve the way of life that makes Eagle Mountain our home.

 

Here’s a link to resources compiled by Eagle Mountain City about Wildlife topics. You can find information about the Wildlife Migration Corridor and it includes the City’s Parks, Trails, and Open Space Plan.  https://eaglemountaincity.com/wildlife-and-environmental-conservation/