Tree Planting Program | Friends of Alta



Background Alta has a rich and notable history intimately tied with its natural resources. Due to mining activities through the 1920’s most of the trees in Alta were removed to support mining infrastructure and associated dwellings. In the 1930's when skiing was introduced to Alta and mining came to an end, the high avalanche danger revealed that a larger presence of trees would be needed for public safety. In 1939, Alta Ski Lifts began operation under a special use permit with the US Forest Service. Over the past 70 years this ski area has been dedicated to planting trees to enhance the skier experience, aid in avalanche control and be good stewards of the national forest lands they operate on. For more information visit www.alta.com.				Volunteers also plant 100 native seedlings along with the Memorial Trees each summer. 2012 Memorial Trees: Thomas S. Carroll - obituar y Phil Cooke Dr. Charles J. Johnson 2011 Memorial Trees: Michael Linville - obituary Dennis Lucas - bio Tucker Taffe - obituary Jim Wallie Sam Williams - obituary 2010 Memorial Trees: Bob Kendall Bill Levitt - obituary Robert Levitt Jacob Tussel
Friends of Alta’s stewardship interest in planting trees stems from our goal to protect wildlife habitat areas and help maintain and encourage a healthy watershed. Forested landscapes are a powerful system, cleansing and aiding in maintaining water quality and a healthy ecosystem, they are also aesthetically pleasing. Volunteer Tree Planting Through a partnership with the Alta Environmental Center, Friends of Alta will be hosting half day volunteer tree planting sessions in late summer. Through this program we hope to increasing age and species diversity in Alta tree stands that will aid in resistance to bark beetle attacks and reduce the effects of tree mortality when attacks do occur. Increasing age diversity will also support long term forest succession in Alta and Albion Basin. Today, a good percentage of trees in Alta are of a similar age due to the reforestation efforts following the deforestation from the mining era. A volunteer tree planting session will be scheduled in August, the exact time and date to be announced. Please let us know if you are interested in participating by emailing Jen and she will be in touch as things progress. For a pdf of the Tree Planting Program click here. For everyone's safety and enjoyment we request that volunteers wear long pants, sturdy boots,gloves, sunscreen and bring an appropriate amount of food and water for the duration of the planting session. Memorial Tree Planting This opportunity is offered to people interested in having a memorial tree planted in honor of a loved one. These trees will be special ordered upon request; thus a specific tree height can be requested. The cost per tree is determined by height. Participants of this program will receive photographic documentation of the planting and approximate location. Requests for planting location will be considered, however we may not be able to meet all requests. Since these trees are being transplanted to elevation levels above 8,000 feet in a national forest we cannot assure the survival of your tree, but we will take all customary precautions to give your tree a healthy start. Please contact Jen Clancy with further details about this program or to purchase a tree. Jen Clancy 801.742.9719 info@friendsofalta.org Bark Beetles Native bark beetles are causing widespread tree mortality throughout the west and are now making a presence in Alta. Alta Ski Area is being proactive in response to the influx of beetles by disposing of infested trees properly and increasing tree plantings and species diversity. Other stakeholders are also working to minimize the effects of an outbreak; for more information please visit: http://www.ci.slc.ut.us/utilities/SpruceBeetle.htm. Explore Utah Science News Article: October 22, 2012 Alta Fights to Stop Bark Beetles by Ross Chambless Bark beetle outbreaks are not preventable, however their impacts can be reduced with proper planning. It is our goal to help minimize the impacts of such attacks. Please join our collaborative effort in addressing this potential devastation to Alta’s ecosystem. Spruce Bark Beetle Mountain Pine Beetle