Restoring wildlife habitat in key areas

We are busy on the ground in the North Cascades on both the east and west sides of the crest with a long-term objective to protect, connect, and restore the habitat and wildlife of this landscape. Our work largely focuses on the public lands within this area, but coordination with our partners focused on private lands is critical to our success.  Below is a sampling.

Habitat Restoration

In 2007 we sponsored two work parties to launch efforts to restore wildlife habitat on the Mount-Baker Snoqualmie National Forest and Wenatchee-Okanogan National Forests. In September 2007, volunteers began a long-term effort to restore 40 acres of floodplain habitat along the Cooper and Cle Elum rivers, breaking down picnic tables in a closed portion of a campground. Then, in October, volunteers planted over 100 western red cedars and western white pines at Gold Creek to reintroduce tree diversity into this important wildlife connectivity habitat.

We've already returned to Gold Creek several times this year in partnership with other organizations and businesses to build bird boxes, pull invasive species, and build a soil that we can begin to plant tough native plants on in 2009.  Contact Jen Watkins if you are interested in being contacted about these opportunities.

Decommissioning Old Roads

This September Conservation Northwest also signed a memorandum of understanding with the Wenatchee-Okanogan National Forest to coordinate efforts to address priority restoration projects including returning abandoned roads to nature. This partnership allows us to bring private dollars and volunteer time to leverage public dollars to make a difference on the ground as soon as possible. Thanks to great volunteers and a grant from The Mountaineers Foundation we are already underway with projects to restore 40 acres of floodplain along the Cooper and Cle Elum rivers in the Cle Elum Ranger District, to restore to forest about 1 mile of roadway in the Wenatchee River Wild and Scenic area, and restore another mile of road in the Deadhorse Canyon Late Successional Reserve to increase security habitat for ungulates and sensitive species.

National Forest Watch

One of our longest running programs at Conservation Northwest operates by taking part in projects and policies on our local national forests to address issues on the landscape. This program combines tracking specific projects as they are proposed, commenting on policies that affect the lands, and engaging in collaborative efforts.

Our work on the Wenatchee-Okanogan National Forest focuses on restoring dry forest ecosystems while working to reduce fuels near homes and communities. We engage on both the Wenatchee-Okanogan National Forest and Mount-Baker Snoqualmie National Forest to promote restoration of second-growth plantations. On the east side of the Cascades, we are tracking the ongoing Wenatchee-Okanogan National Forest Plan Revision and Travel Management Planning.

Collaborative efforts we are involved in at this time include:

• Chumstick Wildfire Stewardship Stewardship Coalition.  This newly formed collaborative effort is a combined effort of local Leavenworth area residents, county officials, agencies, industry, and conservation organizations.  The mission of the group is to protect lives, property and infrastructure in the Chumstick watershed from wildfire through a collaborative partnership.  Approaches utilized will be outreach and strategic planning which will lead to actions on public and private lands to benefit people, wildlife, forest health and the community at large.
• Little Wenatchee LSR Stewardship Project.  This is a project specific collaborative effort in the Wenatchee River Ranger District to engage on direction for restoration through a stewardship contract sale on the Wenatchee-Okanogan National Forest. 
• North Central WA Prescribed Fire Council. The Council will work to protect, conserve, and expand the safe use of prescribed fire on the North Central Washington landscape to meet both public and private management objectives.  In addition to a representative from our organization, the group includes participation from the Forest Service, Nature Conservancy of Washington, DNR, and many others. 
• Stillaguamish Watershed Stewardship Pilot Project. This is a project specific collaborative effort led by the Stillaguamish Watershed Technical Advisory Group to explore restoration opportunities for plantation thinning and road restoration in the Stillaguamish Watershed on the Mount-Baker Snoqualmie National Forest.  This effort is on hold until completion of the Finney Adaptive Management Area Plan.
• Upper Yakima Watershed Action Group. This voluntary group has formed to coordinate and move forward restoration efforts in this crucial watershed that spans both south and north of I-90 while playing a critical wildlife connectivity role in the southern end of the North Cascades. Key issues involve not only prioritizing work in the watershed to be done, but also discussing the balance of social and other needs of the watershed with biological needs.

Wildlife Recovery

The habitat of our state's Cascades, from its peaks to the foothills, is important for a wide range of animals. The recovery zone for the North Cascades grizzly bear stretches from Interstate 90 north to the Canadian border, while the Canada lynx currently resides in a portion of its historic range in north-central Washington.  The protection of the existing populations of our native wildlife and the recovery of species in decline is a crucial part of our work across all programs in the North Cascades. 

Amazing efforts to better connect habitats in the Cascades are underway!  One example of this is the I-90 Wildlife Bridges Coalition's work towards wildlife bridges on Interstate 90 just east of Snoqualmie Pass to allow wildlife to move under or over the roadway. 

Our Rare Carnivore Remote Camera Program has been incorporated into a partnership effort in the North Cascades to form the Cascades Citizen Wildlife Monitoring Program.  The effort aims to contribute to the body of science on the current status of wildlife in the North Cascades by using volunteers to collect data through remote cameras and snowtracking.  Results from this year's cameras include the recent photographs of wolf pups in the Methow Valley.

Last year we focused our annual Wildlinks conference on this key landscape to better understand the situation for wildlife and the potential for improving upon it.  You can download presentations to learn more about the science, policy, and habitat efforts underway.

For further information on any of these activities or other issues regarding Washington's North Cascades, please contact Jen Watkins.