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The Cascade Forest Conservancy (CFC) has grown a special partnership with the Cowlitz Indian Tribe (CIT) on a number of important projects. The Tribe has been a partner of ours for many years, collaborating in the field as well as on natural resources policy issues, but now we are rolling up our sleeves for several on-the-ground restoration projects. Most recently, the Cowlitz Tribe has been a key partner on our beaver reintroduction efforts, and a sub-grantee of a CFC Wildlife Conservation Society grant. This exciting collaboration is a major, landscape-scale restoration project in the Gifford Pinchot National Forest that grew out of our 2016 Wildlife and Climate Resilience Guidebook. To date, CIT has collaborated with us on many pivotal aspects of the project – joining us on beaver habitat surveys, forming agreements with wildlife trapping companies to gather the beaver, and creating holding facilities to keep the beaver comfortable until they can be relocated.
Read the full blog post here: https://cascadeforest.
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This weekend we will be out in the forests near Mount Adams collecting native seeds with volunteers as part of the multi-year effort to restore post-fire areas that were severely impacted by successive, high-intensity fires between 2008 and 2015. These seeds collected this weekend will be used for future seeding trips. Our trip will start with a training at the Mount Adams Ranger District office where the local Forest Service botanist will train volunteers on plant identification for target species and seed collection techniques.
Without active restoration, many native species are unlikely to re-colonize the area in the near future (or perhaps for decades), which will negatively impact local wildlife, decrease overall ecosystem resilience. This can also increase the establishment and spread of non-native invasive species. Reintroducing a diverse set of native plant species will improve the resilience of local wildlife and ecosystems and will create habitat for pollinators, birds, mammals, and other vegetation.[/vc_column_text][vc_empty_space][vc_separator type=”normal” color=”#444444″ thickness=”3″][vc_empty_space][vc_column_text]
It is currently peak huckleberry season, and pickers are out gathering berries all through the Gifford Pinchot National Forest. CFC has been out in the GPNF since late July working with volunteers, staff, and other organizations to collect data for our huckleberry monitoring project. This year and last, we have visited forest stand units that have been treated (thinned) using different techniques in hopes of optimizing huckleberry plant growth and fruit production. We have units that we are monitoring near Pinto Rock and the Sawtooth Berry Fields. These are both areas where huckleberry has been known to flourish but could use more sunlight to enhance productivity.Once we know which treatment types are most suitable for huckleberry, the results of the research will be written into the Gifford Pinchot National Forest Huckleberry Management Strategy. There is currently a draft of this document with our preliminary data, which can be found here https://pinchotpartners.If you’d like to head out to the GP and gather huckleberries, make sure to download a free permit online, visit this website for more details https://apps.fs.usda.
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Did you know that CFC’s fall banquet on 
In forest collaborative groups, diverse stakeholders including environmental organizations, timber companies, recreational organizations, and other interested members of the community come together to discuss timber sales and other proposed projects with Forest Service staff. Cascade Forest Conservancy is a founding member of, and active participant in, both forest collaboratives in the Gifford Pinchot National Forest. The Pinchot Partners, formed in 2003, focuses on projects in the Cowlitz Valley Ranger District, and the South Gifford Pinchot Collaborative, formed in 2011, focuses on projects in the Mt. Adams Ranger District. Through collaborative participation, our goal is to influence GPNF projects to be sustainable for wildlife, fish, water quality, and local communities.
Darryl and Darvel Lloyd were recently featured in an OPB special about their long history of conservation work on Mount Adams. The Lloyd brothers have been great partners of CFC for many years. We are lucky to get to work beside them in studying and helping to protect the unique landscapes of Mount Adams.
Beavers have a bit of a reputation as being nuisances for landowners. But to us, they are self-adapting ecosystem engineers! For that reason, we are beginning a project with Cowlitz Indian Tribe to reintroduce more beavers into the aquatic ecosystems of Gifford Pinchot National Forest.
From old-growth forests to snow-covered alpine areas, Washington’s South Cascades are home to a variety of habitat types that support unique plant and animal populations. Connectivity throughout the landscape allows wildlife to move between habitat areas, enabling populations to be more resilient to a changing climate. Cascade Forest Conservancy has identified some of the key areas in the Gifford Pinchot National Forest that, with increased protections, would improve the ability of wildlife populations to move between patches of habitat and be more resilient to climate change impacts.
Ballroom, and was a lovely evening. An array of silent auction items, the Wall of Beverages, the popular Heads & Tails bead game, the live auction, and the Dessert Dash were all a big hit with the crowd! This year’s Special Appeal, focusing on the Mt. St Helen’s mine campaign, was a great chance to support the important work that CFC does to protect the Gifford Pinchot National Forest from environmental degradation.
Evergreen High School and Heritage High School in Vancouver, WA and Robert Gray Middle School in Portland, OR participated in our Young Friends of the Forest program this October. Evergreen’s Environmental Science Class embarked on a wildlife camera survey where they helped set up the cameras and learned about animal track and scat identification. Classes from Robert Gray Middle School and Heritage High School assisted with the first stages of our beaver reintroduction project by assessing habitat suitability in wetlands and riparian areas. Each class also planted around 80 trees to improve aquatic habitat, increase bank stability and biodiversity, and create future forage for newly reintroduced beavers. A huge thank you to all the teachers and students involved with the projects this semester![/vc_column_text][vc_empty_space][vc_empty_space][vc_empty_space][vc_separator type=”normal” color=”#444444″ thickness=”3″][vc_column_text]
CFC’s Policy and Campaign Manager, Nicole Budine, recently wrote a .jpg "IMG_20170629_130058702 (1)")
House Republicans already passed HR 2936 through committee, and they are expected to vote this through any day now. We need our Republicans, like Rep. Jamie Herrera Beutler, to reject their party’s ill-advised plans, and we must make sure no Democrats end up supporting this bill. Please contact your Representative directly today (phone numbers listed at 
.jpg "August 2011 CSP Field Tour 027 (1)")
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a member, joining over three thousand other local residents who protect our forest, rivers and wildlife. A retired public administrator, here’s what Bob says about us: “CFC’s stewardship trips are fun and I learn something new each time! I love being out in our local forests and I think the Cascade Forest Conservancy is effective because they have productive relationships with the Forest Service and make decisions based on sound science and data.”
Suction dredge mining releases a plume of sediment downstream, along with the toxic metals that were previously settled out of the water column. This activity also harms fish habitat by vacuuming up the river bottom and destroying redds and refugia. Take a look at Rogue Riverkeeper’s pamphlet on suction dredge mining 
The road system of the GPNF, though, is out of date, too large to maintain, and starting to significantly impact both aquatic and terrestrial habitats. At the moment, the GPNF has over 4,000 miles of system road! This is quite high for a national forest, yet the recent rate of road closure here has been very low. The goal of our road surveys and advocacy is to identify the roads that are causing the most negative impact on ecosystems, highlight roads at-risk for failure, consider current access needs and preferences, and prioritize road segments for closing, decommissioning, and repair. 20160724_103652 2
In January, the Forest Service signed the Decision Notice for the Bear Creek Restoration Thin. Throughout the development of this project we worked closely with members of the South Gifford Pinchot Collaborative and Forest Service staff to develop a proposal that improves fish and wildlife habitat, protects water quality, and benefits local communities. We supported many components of this project including thinning in dense plantation stands, culvert replacement, and road decommissioning. Although we were concerned with proposed heavy thinning in near spotted owl historic nest sites, we were able to resolve these concerns through conversations with other collaborative members. We agreed on a modified proposal that reduced thinning near historic nest sites, lessening the risk to spotted owls and their prey species. Learn more about this project here.[/vc_column_text][vc_empty_space][/vc_column][vc_column width=”1/12″][/vc_column][/vc_row][vc_row row_type=”row” use_row_as_full_screen_section=”no” type=”full_width” angled_section=”no” text_align=”left” background_image_as_pattern=”without_pattern” css_animation=””][vc_column width=”1/12″][/vc_column][vc_column width=”5/6″][vc_column_text]
We have bittersweet news from our board of directors. Jurgen Hess is stepping down from his role as Director after many years of dedication to our organization and our mission to protect the forests, streams, wildlife and communities in the heart of the Cascades. He will be missed, but will remain active with Friends of Mt. Adams and other groups. Thank you Jurgen!
On the other hand, we are thrilled that John Miller will be joining our Board. John is a nonprofit management and development consultant with more than 30 years’ experience leading and growing organizations. His connection to the Gifford Pinchot started in 1972, when his family first camped on Yale reservoir, escaping the hot summer days in the forests flanking Mt. St. Helens. His parents fell in love with the area and built a log cabin near Cougar, which he still escapes to for play, relaxation and, occasionally, a quiet office away from the bustle of Portland.
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