The confluence of Wolf Creek and the North Fork of the Touchet River is now permanently protected by a conservation easement held by Blue Mountain Land Trust.
The easement on 99 acres of riparian habitat and steep basalt upland terrain keeps the land in private ownership and maintains it as a homestead while ensuring protection of waters important for steelhead spawning and rearing and Chinook and bull trout migration. It is also excellent wildlife habitat, with deer, elk, and other species present.
The project is funded in large part by the State of Washington Salmon Recovery Funding Board with additional partners in the Bonneville Power Administration and the Confederated Tribes of the Umatilla Indian Reservation.
“We are grateful to the landowners Larry and Barbara Fairchild for their desire to see their land protected for the benefit of fish and wildlife and to the Snake River Salmon Recovery Funding Board, Bonneville Power Administration, and the Confederated Tribes of the Umatilla Indian Reservation for funding the purchase of the Conservation Easement,’ said Tom Dwonch, BMLT Executive Director. ‘This project benefits the entire community by preserving an important natural resource and at the same time keeping the land in private ownership and on the Columbia County tax rolls.”
“This is our small way of supporting a worthwhile cause and a dedicated group of people," said Fairchild.
This is the second conservation easement secured by Blue Mountain Land Trust in the Dayton area on the Touchet River or tributaries and results in nearly 2 stream miles protected on both sides.
