SEQUIM — A “misunderstanding” between two state agencies led to the destruction of a large part of an elk forage project on Burnt Hill — work that involved hundreds of hours of volunteer time and was part of the broader effort to manage the prized Sequim herd of Roosevelt elk.
Officials from the state departments of Natural Resources and Fish and Wildlife are discussing ways to mitigate the damage, which a biologist involved in the two-year project called “a big setback.”
The $6,200 forage project, which had support from state and federal agencies as well as the Rocky Mountain Elk Foundation, planted ryegrass, clover and fescues in two clearcut areas on Burnt Hill, south of Sequim.
The aim was to entice the elk herd to spend more time on the south side of U.S. Highway 101 and away from fast-growing Sequim.
The areas planted are on either side of Johnson Creek to the east of Johnson Creek Road as it enters state trust land. The elk herd uses the creek as a movement corridor.
However, Natural Resources, which manages much of the land around Burnt Hill for timber production, considered many of the plantings in the area closest to the road to be competition for trees.
In late August, a contractor sprayed the area with herbicide even though at least one Natural Resources employee was involved with the elk forage project and helped apply for the funding.
The forage is now dead.
The chemicals used, meanwhile, prevent any new forage seeding for at least two years, said Shelly Ament, a Fish and Wildlife biologist who helped spearhead the work.
“It’s a big setback because that was the unit where we had elk seen there in the last six months,” she said.
Natural Resources land manager Mike Cronin said there was a misunderstanding about which areas could be seeded.
He said he approved seeding only on an abandoned road and landings, areas not considered valuable for growing trees.
The seeding went beyond that, however, including burned slash piles. Those areas are often very fertile and produce good timber, Cronin said.
“It’s probably a misunderstanding,” he said.
“I think what they heard was, ‘Any place that was burned is OK.’ “