Hunters and other travelers on the slopes of Mount Emily may notice some new activity near the boundaries of the newly purchased Mount Emily Recreation Area, or MERA.

Some roads accessing the mountain face within the bounds of MERA will be gated this week to protect big-game winter range and for erosion control.

Gates on Igo Lane, Archery Club Road and off Fox Hill Road leading to the back side of the Mount Emily rim will be locked and signed to exclude motorized traffic, except for forest management activity.

The seasonal road closures, which extend through the end of March, comply with conditions associated with a $250,000 grant from the Blue Mountain Habitat Restoration Council that helped fund Union County’s purchase of MERA last week.

“The intention is to meet our requirement of limiting motorized access on the face,” said Hanley Jenkins, the county planning director.

But non-motorized use of the entire property will still be allowed.

The county’s Mount Emily Road and the Forest Service routes at the top of the ridge are not affected by the gating.

Jenkins said the board of commissioners would likely begin the process of appointing members to the two advisory committees that will develop a management plan for MERA at its December meeting.

Meanwhile, the Wallowa-Whitman National Forest’s La Grande Ranger District is conducting routine timber operations on some of its holdings adjacent to MERA.

The logging, which will involve 300 acres tended by helicopter and 60 acres by ground-based equipment, is part of the second phase of the Mount Emily Wildland Urban Interface Area Project.

This multi-stage initiative, which synchronizes with treatment efforts by the Oregon Department of Forestry and private landowners, aims to reduce wildfire risk on and adjacent to the peak through thinning, prescribed burning and other activities.

“Logging will selectively remove small-diameter and unhealthy trees, leaving the largest and healthiest trees more space to grow,” the Forest Service reported in a press release.

The stewardship contract is with Boise Building Solutions.

Helicopter work is scheduled to begin next week, according to the ranger district, and will continue through early- to mid-December. Ground logging will begin afterwards.

The harvest will utilize Igo Lane, End Road and Dial Lane, in addition to some routes on private lands. While none of the logging is occurring within MERA, some of the logs will be hauled across the property.