Protecting Habitat and Water Resources on Willamette Valley Farmland

Oregon Agricultural Trust’s (OAT) project area encompassed portions of 8 counties in our Mid/South Willamette Valley Focus Region: Washington, Clackamas, Yamhill, Polk, Marion, Benton, Linn, and Lane. This project hosted outreach events in each county to share agricultural conservation tools to meet business and succession planning goals. The outreach to conservation partners in the Willamette Valley during RCPP development and collaboration on outreach events during the period of performance of this grant significantly increased the degree to which conservation partners in the Willamette Valley are aware of the need for working lands conservation and of OAT’s potential contribution to conservation.

Ag producers are essential partners in addressing the many challenges to anadromous fish habitat in the Willamette Valley. Greater than 90% of the Valley is in private hands and the bulk of that private land is farmland. For example, in the Greater Yamhill Watershed Council working area alone more than 1,600 farms cover more than 40% of the watershed.ed. Strategies to save and enhance habitat for winter steelhead trout, pacific lamprey, and other naturalized fish must include this group of landowners. In the proposed work, OAT will engage ag landowners in the Clackamas, Molalla, Pudding, Santiam, Calapooia, McKenzie, Long Tom, and Tualatin watersheds to protect their land including its riparian habitat.