Summit County recognized by Utah Trout Unlimited for conservation efforts

County lands 910 property. Photo: Bailey Edelstein

SUMMIT COUNTY, Utah — On March 14, Utah Trout Unlimited honored Summit County as a “community conservation partner” working to restore and protect local ecosystems. Summit County received two awards at the Utah Trout Unlimited State Council annual banquet. One is the second-ever Community Action Towards Conservation Habitat (CATCH) award. The other is the first-ever “Community Conservation Partner Award.”

Regarding the CATCH award, Kirby stated in a press release, “Being recognized for our work in conservation is a true honor. This achievement would not have been possible without the invaluable contributions of so many partners: the World Resources Institute, USFS Kamas Ranger District, Utah’s Forestry Fire and State Lands, and of course, Trout Unlimited. Together, our collective efforts deserve celebration.”

The CATCH award is given to organizations that show dedication to the overall health of a watershed and for years of collaboration on millions of dollars in grants to restore the Weber River watershed.

The “Community Conservation Partner Award” was given to Jess Kirby for her work in leading watershed conservation initiatives. She was recognized for her pivotal role in securing funding for a variety of projects that have improved fish passage infrastructure and built beaver dam analogs to improve water quality.

Jess Kirby has worked on many initiatives with the help of Trout Unlimited and others. These initiatives have had a positive impact on the health of the Summit County watershed and the 700,000 people downstream who depend on it.