FAIRFIELD, Idaho — Crews are using helicopters to aerially spray herbicide at the base of Soldier Mountain as part of an ongoing effort to fight cheatgrass, one of Idaho's most troublesome invasive plants.
WATCH: Idaho Fish and Game uses helicopters to fight invasive cheatgrass
A partnership between the Sawtooth National Forest and Idaho Fish and Game began using low-fly aerial spraying in 2020 to combat the spread of cheatgrass, which suffocates native habitats and provides fuel for wildfires.
"Using a helicopter that's going to be spraying REJUVRA and that's going to target those invasive grasses," Idaho Fish and Game biologist Miranda Reinson said.
Over the next two weeks, crews will work in specifically designated drainages in the region — areas known as migration paths for big game making their way to wintering grounds.
"Mule deer will start to avoid areas of greater than 20% cheatgrass – so we target these efforts in areas where we're going to see the best impact – and a lot of these places have around that 20% to 15% cheatgrass," Reinson said.
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The herbicide targets dropped cheatgrass seeds before they germinate, preventing them from suffocating native vegetation.
"We want to target all of those seed-heads that have been dropped – all summer and fall – before they germinate while they're lying dormant and that's why the fall is the period of time that we have to spray," Reinson said.
Neighbors near Soldier Mountain are welcoming the effort. Karen Sherrerd lives close to where Tuesday's spraying took place and said cheatgrass has long been a problem around her property.
"All of the blonde grass you see is cheatgrass, and it's just a horrible little pest," Sherrerd said.
Sherrerd said she recently purchased the same herbicide the state is using to treat the area in front of her property and is encouraged by the state's proactive approach.
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"I'm thrilled... I think it's brilliant and we're so fortunate that they're using this," Sherrerd said.
She added that results are not immediate — the treatment is a three-year process.
"It suppresses the seeds for three years – so it's successive, and cheatgrass cheats by germinating twice a year – that's why it's so far ahead of the native vegetation," Sherrerd said.
Idaho Fish and Game said the application process will take about 2 to 3 days, and immediate reentry for humans and livestock is completely safe.
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