It roared to life late in the summer of 2020 when a lightning strike in eastern Arizona ignited what became known as the Cow Canyon Fire. It scorched more than 35,000 acres of important, life-sustaining habitat for elk, deer, bighorn sheep, wild turkey and many other bird and wildlife species. Left behind and negatively impacted in the burn scar were nine “dirt tanks,” as they’re called, which serve as water-holding sources for wildlife.
“Part of what follows the fire is some soil movement and we’ve got a lot of silt in these little dams so he’s in here cleaning these tanks out mainly in June when they dry out when he can get in it with his teams,” said Bill Marks of Marks Ranch.
The Rocky Mountain Elk Foundation supplied a total of $90,000 in grant funding to the Arizona Game and Fish Department (AZGFD) across 2020, 2021, 2022 and 2024 to remove wildfire sediment and help rework the dirt tanks in the Blue Range Primitive Area on the Apache-Sitgreaves National Forest.
Since it is designated as a primitive area, motorized equipment is not an option. Instead, crews use horse and mule teams and hand tools to get the work done.
“You can’t just unload a truck or use a helicopter to bring in equipment – no machinery. So, we had to resort to what I call old school methods,” said Kalyn Miller of AZGFD.
So far, workers completed 10 dirt tanks with future plans calling for the creation of 20 more.
(Video credit: Arizona Game and Fish Department)