Joint Press Release from The Nature Conservancy, U.S. Forests Service, and Washington State Department of Natural Resources
There is good news for local communities and those interested in seeing action to restore forests on the Okanogan-Wenatchee National Forest (OWNF) Strong partnership prove to be key for improving conditions across shared landscapes, providing benefits to people, communities and the economies they depend on to thrive.
The US Forest Service is working closely with the North Central Washington Forest Health Collaborative (NCWFHC), the Tapash Sustainable Forest Collaborative (Tapash), and the Little Naches Working Group (LNWG), which includes private, state, federal and Tribal partners to keep forest restoration projects moving forward.
A harvester delimbs tree trunks and cuts each trunk into lengths. Photo © Zoe Van Duivenbode /TNC
Four major landscape restoration projects in central Washington are in planning and environmental analysis and will be ready for implementation in 2021 or sooner. These projects span from the north to the south of the Okanogan-Wenatchee National Forest and encompass approximately 400,000 acres of high-priority restoration areas under the 20-Year Forest Health Strategic Plan led by the Washington State Department of Natural Resources (DNR).
Together, these projects will inject money into local economies, improve habitat for salmon and other wildlife, and sustain a forest that is healthier and more resilient to the growing threat of wildfire.
“At DNR, we believe that restoring our forests and watersheds takes an all hands, all lands approach, because problems like wildfire and habitat loss don’t respect property lines,” said Commissioner of Public Lands Hilary Franz, who leads DNR. “To truly tackle these challenges, at the pace and scale they demand, we are forging strong partnerships at the state, federal, tribal and local levels to ensure that our response will be unified, well-coordinated, and deliver maximum benefit for the people and our lands.”
“All of the projects have provided an opportunity to try new approaches, test cross-boundary resource sharing and increased all of our capacity and understanding of what may be possible through collaborative forest management,” said Lloyd McGee, co-chair of the North Central Washington Forest Health Collaborative and Forest Program Manager for The Nature Conservancy. “We appreciate the cooperative and engaging spirit of the Okanogan-Wenatchee National Forest leadership and staff, state agencies and collaborative partners.”
Project areas include Twisp River, Upper Wenatchee, Manastash-Taneum and Little Naches high-priority areas.
One of the major objectives for all projects is to reduce fuels—small trees and overgrown shrubs— to reduce the risk of uncharacteristically severe wildfire on our lands and to protect communities. Each of the four project areas will generate multiple restoration projects, including commercial and non-commercial thinning, prescribed burning, stream restoration, road maintenance and removal and wildlife habitat protection and enhancement.
These projects will provide jobs and important economic stimulus for nearby communities.
The Twisp River Restoration Project in Okanogan County on the Methow Valley Ranger District encompasses 77,000 planning acres. The first phase of treatment is expected to begin in late 2021 or early 2022. Multiple restoration projects are expected to result from this planning effort.
The Upper Wenatchee Pilot Project in Chelan County on the Wenatchee River Ranger District encompasses 75,000 planning acres near Lake Wenatchee and Fish Lake. This project is a flagship pilot project funded by Supplemental Hazardous Fuels Funds that were secured by the North Central Washington Forest Health Collaborative to increase capacity through the hiring of a contracted planning team. Additionally, DNR provided funding for field lay-out of the treatment units.
The Manastash-Taneum Pilot Project in Kittitas County on the Cle Elum Ranger District is a cross-boundaries pilot project that encompasses approximately 90,000 planning acres. The project falls within the Tapash Collaborative area and includes Forest Service, DNR, Washington Department of Fish and Wildlife, The Nature Conservancy and ceded lands of the Yakama Nation. Restoration projects are already being implemented on state and Nature Conservancy managed lands. The 28,000-acre Taneum Restoration Project is on National Forest land and is nearing completion of the planning analysis. This project is funded by Joint-Chiefs funds between the US Forest Service and Natural Resource Conservation Service. Contracted planners brought much needed capacity to the Forest Service and Tapash Collaborative partnership for planning.
The 100,000 acre Little Naches area in Yakima County on the Naches Ranger District consists of two large landscape project areas, Little Crow and the Upper Little Naches projects. The Huckleberry Stewardship Project in the Little Crow landscape was completed in 2019. It contributed $2.3 million in revenue or “retained receipts” from log sales to help pay for other much needed restoration treatments.
Two additional vegetation restoration treatment projects from the Little Crow landscape will be the Finn timber sale (FY20) and Crolo stewardship contract (FY21). A fourth project from the Little Crow landscape will be implemented in 2022, and a timber sale from the Upper Little Naches project is targeted for 2021. In coming years planning efforts will shift to a large restoration project for the entire Little Naches Watershed.
Banner photo (c) John Marshall
