Yesterday four elected officials and the Oakridge City Administrator joined the Southern Willamette Forest Collaborative and Partners on a field tour of the Youngs Rock Rigdon Landscape Project. Attendees included:
Lane County Commissioner - Heather Buch
State Representative - Cedric Hayden
Oakridge Mayor - Kathy Holston
Lowell Mayor - Don Bennett
Oakridge City Administrator - Bryan Cutchen
These elected officials walked the land with partners to better understand the work that’s being done on the ground to care for our public lands, while also learning about the tools and authorities we use to prioritize local workforce in rural East Lane County.
As a result of the tour, elected officials and agency partners gained insight into how the Willamette National Forest is working with local communities and collaborative groups to positively influence federal forest planning and on-the-ground treatments. The tour highlighted proposed actions of the Youngs Rock Rigdon project and identified investments and future opportunities created by the Oregon Legislature’s Federal Forest Restoration Program administered by the Department of Forestry. Participants engaged local collaborative group leaders and US Forest Service staff regarding the important role that the State has taken to support collaborative efforts to increase forest health treatments on National Forests, while also supporting local economies.
Tour Route Overview:
At the first field tour stop, we visited an overlook of the Youngs Rock Rigdon landscape to discuss the existing conditions on the ground, effects of a century of fire suppression, desired future conditions, and the proposed restoration treatments.
The second field stop, we visited the Staley Creek floodplain restoration project implemented by the Middle Fork Willamette Watershed Council. This stage zero floodplain restoration project was made possible with funding from the State lottery dollars through the Oregon Watershed Enhancement Board, the Western Trout Initiative, and the Forest.
The third field stop, we visited two proposed treatment units that boarder Seneca private timberlands. Visiting a natural stand, we discussed the effects of fire suppression and encroachment and proposed thinning treatments to restore the mixed conifer forest. While also discussing fuels reduction treatments in managed stands near Seneca lands.
The tour concluded with a visit to the 600 acre Jim’s Creek pilot project that restored Oregon white oak savanna, meadows, and old growth pine stands. We discussed the importance of native plants, maintenance burning for forest resilience and the State’s continued role in partnership with the US Forest Service to increase the pace and scale of restoration through Good Neighbor Authority and stewardship contracting projects.
Themes:
Collaboration is building common ground among diverse interests and serving as a springboard for accelerated forest restoration.
The ecological and economic benefits of stewardship contracting and good neighbor authority projects through forest restoration treatments.
The multiplier effect of state investments in federal forest projects.
Objectives:
Understand and recognize the opportunities to increase the pace and scale of forest restoration.
See first-hand how the Youngs Rock Rigdon EIS project will increase forest resilience.
Discuss the make-up, role and function of the Southern Willamette Forest Collaborative; and the common ground that these diverse interests – including forest industry, conservation and local government leaders – are advancing to achieve simultaneous social, economic and environmental outcomes.
More About the Project
Southern Willamette Forest Collaborative (SWFC) members have been working on the Rigdon Landscape Project since 2016 by learning,
discussing, and providing input to the Middle Fork Ranger District. As a team, alongside the Forest Service we developed the Rigdon Landscape Analysis.
The Rigdon Landscape Analysis will inform future projects and environmental action plans in order to restore ecological functions of the 104,000 acre landscape. Projects will be implemented over the next 5-10-years. The first NEPA project, Youngs Rock Rigdon, will guide management actions within 26,000 acres north of the Middle Fork Willamette River.