In the Okanogan and Similkameen

Just west of the Columbia Highlands and within the east side of the North Cascades are the ranchlands of the Okanogan and Similkameen valleys in central Okanogan County. These valleys contain some of the richest wildlife habitat and scenic lands in the Northwest. The lands are beautiful, ranging from dry sage grasslands to forested mountain views. They are also rich in wildlife diversity, from bighorn sheep to Canada lynx to sharptail grouse.

In the big picture of sustaining regional wildlife linkages, the Okanogan-Similkameen is vital. Two large-scale habitat corridors for wildlife intersect here:

• Survival of grassland biodiversity in south-central BC, home to a host of Canadian blue- and red-listed (threatened and endangered) species, depends on maintaining a connection to the much larger expanse of habitat in Washington.
• The Cascades to Rockies wildlife linkage that motivates much of Conservation Northwest’s work includes ranchlands that lie between the North Cascades and public lands of the Okanogan Highlands. 

Keeping key ranches in open space is important not just for wildlife conservation, but also to sustain the history and unique lifestyle of the Okanogan. Some keystone ranches are still held by pioneer families, rich in lore and custom.
All this is threatened by a real-estate boom that is driving subdivision and development throughout Okanogan County. Much of the explosion is fueled by Canadians buying second homes. The economy of Canada is surging on oil revenues, generating a wave of new wealth. The Okanogan is where Canadians seek warmth, and their dollar (now stronger than the American dollar) buys more on our side of the border that it does in towns like Osoyoos or Kelowna north of the border.

Many of the old ranchers are loath to sell to developers. But with commodity (mainly, beef) values outpaced by rising costs of ranching and booming real-estate values, tough choices are being made. Conservation Northwest is working with partners—including Trust for Public Land, Okanogan Valley Land Council, The Nature Conservancy, and Washington Department of Fish and Wildlife—to give ranchers better choices.

Conservation Northwest is working to market key ranches to interested buyers who want to keep the land in open space and wildlife habitat. Many ranchers, if having to sell, prefer to see the land they love kept whole rather than diced up into smaller, 5 to 20 acre, ranchettes.

For ranchers who want to remain on the land, we are assisting with conservation easements that will tie up development rights. Such easements can be donated, with tax benefits, to entities such as the Okanogan Valley Land Council. The Department of Fish and Wildlife is also sometimes able to purchase easements from ranchers for a substantial portion of the total value of the property. Our coalition is helping the state find the capital to make these purchases.

Presently the department is seeking both a $5 million federal grant and $5.5 million in matching funds from the state legislature. Conservation Northwest actively supports these requests, which would allow the agency to acquire (and retire) development rights on more than 10,000 acres. That would be a pretty good start on a project that will take several years and tens of millions of dollars to keep growth and development from destroying the values that make our region so great.