DWR burning Phragmites along Great Salt Lake

By | Posted - March 19, 2008 at 2:27 p.m.

Estimated read time: 1-2 minutes

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Marc Giauque reporting There's been a lot of thick, black smoke rising along the shores of the Great Salt Lake in Davis County this morning. The Utah Division of Wildlife Resources (DWR) is trying to rid some marshland of a pesky and aggressive plant.

Using an airboat and drip torches, crews began the burn just before noon. They're trying to rid these sensitive waterfowl management areas of Phragmites--a tall, rush-like plant that invades marsh areas.

Rich Hansen, manager of the Farmington Bay Waterfowl Management Area, says the crews sprayed about 2,000 acres between here and Ogden last fall. "And this spring burn will open up the canopy so our more beneficial vegetation types can re-invade the wetland," he said.

Hansen says Phragmites is a non-native plant that doesn't benefit any of the wildlife in Utah. DWR is trying to get the burning done before the birds begin nesting.

E-mail: mgiauque@ksl.com