Dally Wilson - White River Conservation

The Chelan-Douglas Land Trust has acquired a conservation easement protecting riparian, floodplain and wetlands and extinguishing development rights on a 13.7 acre parcel at River Mile 8.5 of the White River, a tributary of the Columbia River. The property is 90% floodplain and protects 1,000 feet of riverbank. The White River is a Category 1 Watershed, designated as Key Watershed in the Northwest Forest Plan, and “is a critical spawning and rearing habitat for many species.” (Biological Strategy 2003). The February, 2009 RTT Priorities rank the White River as 1st priority for protection. The subject property is a highly functional unconfined floodplain with riparian vegetation.

The conservation easement protects this pristine area from the negative effects of floodplain development including: sedimentation, bank armoring, removal of LWD, removal of riparian vegetation for river access, water and air pollution. It adds to the corridor of protected land in the White River funded by the SRFB (Proj. Nos. 01-1214A, 02-1414A, 09-1456A, 09-1477A) and the Tributary Committees (Proj. No. 2006-02 RI). With these funds, CDLT has protected hundreds of acres and miles of riverbank on the White River.

Protect riverbank, floodplain and riparian habitat in realtively pristine area of the white River.