Community Forestry and Conservation: Columbia Land Trust

Date of Visit: June 5, 2019
Type of event: Study Tour
Topic: Community Forestry and Conservation
Organization: Columbia Land Trust
Location: Mount St. Helens
Hosts: Cherie Kearney / Forest Conservation Director, Ian Sinks /Stewardship Director, and Renata Kamakura / PhD student and volunteer
International Fellows: Richard Banda (Malawi), Fen-hui Chen (Taiwan), Temitope Dauda (Nigeria), Zhongyuan Ding (China), Ana Kanoppa (Brazil), Will Maiden (United Kingdom), Romain Matile (France), Rodolfo Vieto (Costa Rica)
WFI Staff: Shadia Duery / International Fellowship Program Manager

Ecosystems form the basis for human life on Earth; it is universal knowledge that people need nature to thrive. Human welfare and economic development depend on services and products provided by a healthy environment, such as water quality, food (fish, fruit), raw materials (timber, fuel), climate regulation and recreation, to name a few.

Recently, my colleagues and I had the opportunity to learn about the work undertaken by the Columbia Land Trust, a non-profit organization that provides sustainable funding for biodiversity conservation in five regions (Coast Range and Estuaries, Willamette Valley, West Cascade, East Cascade and Columbia Plateau) throughout the Pacific Northwest in Oregon and Washington. The Columbia Land Trust is funded through grants from the federal government and independent organizations and from private donations. Timber revenue from Management Plans that use silviculture tools to support restoration (including replanting with native tree species and the implementation of longer rotation intervals between harvest) also contributes to the Columbia Land Trust’s budget.

International Fellows with hosts Cherie Kearney, Ian Sinks, and Renata Kamakura

Hosted by Cherie Kearney, Ian Sinks, and Renata Kamakura, we visited the Columbia Land Trust’s project site at Mount St. Helens, bordering the Gifford Pinchot National Forest. Executed in four phases over a 10-year timeline, this project encompasses the conservation of 20,000 acres (slightly larger than 8,000 hectares) of forest in an area of high ecological importance due to the presence of innumerable waterfalls, wildflowers, and a high number of endemic species that depend on old-growth forest to survive. This area comprises an integral part of the Columbia River Gorge National Scenic Area.

Replanting with native tree species

Over the last two decades, after the construction of three dams and a period of heavy logging of old-growth forest, the local area has suffered high pressure from the real estate market. Population increase in Oregon and Washington has resulted in fragmentation of forestland and increased demand for infrastructure development. During the 2008 financial crisis, logging operations could not support the sawmills in the area. In addition, the rural location meant that access to resources, such as gas and electricity, was limited. This meant that the local community experienced greater levels of hardship during the economic recession and local employment rates were low. These factors have resulted in challenges to conservation in the immediate area. Salmon habitat is restricted by dams, forested land area is reduced, and wildlife is present at lower levels than in the past. In other words, this situation has resulted in a fragile habitat.

Degraded area left by timber activities,
recently purchased by the Columbia Land trust

The Columbia Land Trust uses a legal tool called conservation easements to implement conservation and restoration strategies in the Mount St. Helens region. A conservation easement (also called conservation servitude) is when an organization or institution buys the development rights of private land with the purpose of preserving it in perpetuity. A conservation easement is a voluntary act that, through an agreement between the involved parties (in this case, the Columbia Land Trust and landowner), establishes an area in which future land use cannot be changed. To avoid overcharging at the moment of acquisition, the Columbia Land Trust works with independent, third parties to identify the accurate market value of the purchased land.

Area with old-growth trees that the
 Columbia Land Trust is trying to conserve

A conservation easement is an extremely efficient tool from the triple-bottom line point of view. First, from an ecological aspect, a conservation easement has brought the return of wildlife to the area. For the landowner, conservation can come with high financial costs. So, through a conservation easement, you could transfer this responsibility to the Columbia Land Trust and, at the same time, earn some income through the sale of part of the property. The resulting improved wildlife habitat and migration corridors also make it possible to continue social activities, such as recreation, hunting, and fishing.


An International Fellow’s Thoughts and Perspectives

Ana Paula Kanoppa, International Fellow from Brazil

We had an excellent time with Cherie, Ian, and Renata. The biggest lesson that we learned is that climate change mitigation and a growing economy are not mutually exclusive (we must do both!). The Columbia Land Trust believes that communication is first and foremost in collaborative work. Cherie inspired me when she mentioned that, in conservation, it is important to listen to the voices of others. Talk to other interested parties (for example, Congress, the production sector, local communities and landowners), listen to their demands, identify their priorities, and discover what they have in common. This process is an intangible investment and the key to establishing meaningful, long-term working relationships.