THE PUBLIC LANDS FOUNDATION presents the Tillamook Resource Area Riparian Restoration Partnership with its 2010 Landscape Stewardship Award and this Citation.  This partnership includes: Lower Nehalem Watershed Council, Upper Nehalem Watershed Council, Nestucca/Neskowin Watersheds Council, Oregon Youth Authority, Scappoose Bay Watershed Council, Tillamook Bay Watershed Council, Tillamook County Soil and Water Conservation District, Tillamook Estuaries Partnership, Tualatin River Watershed Council, Yamhill Basin Council, and Columbia River Youth Group.  The Public Lands Foundation grants this recognition to honor private citizens and organizations that work to advance and sustain community-based stewardship on landscapes that include, in whole or in part, public lands administered by the Bureau of Land Management.

Recognizing the need to encourage riparian restoration on not just BLM lands, the Tillamook Resource Area Riparian Restoration Partnership entered into a Memorandum of Understanding with BLM in 2002.  The primary objective of the partnership is to promote healthy forest/riparian ecosystem conditions on priority sites in the various watershed and bay areas within the boundaries of the BLM’s Tillamook Resource Area.  The partnership supports resource management and restoration activities by collecting and growing native plant seeds and cuttings into large planting stock better able to withstand competition from surrounding vegetation and grazing by big game species.

The goal of the partnership is an annual commitment of 20 miles of streamside planting to restore existing but degraded riparian habitats.  The partnership provides approximately 20 different species of native plants throughout five major watersheds located in the Willamette Basin and the Coastal Zone in the Northwest corner of Oregon, many of which are not available on the open market.  Then, based on landowner participation, the partnership establishes viable planting projects and pursues grant funding primarily through the Oregon Watershed Enhancement Board, Oregon Department of Fish and Wildlife, and Department of Environmental Quality to accomplish site-preparation, planting, and continued maintenance until the plants are established and free to grow.   The watershed restoration partners work with private land owners to educate them on the importance of riparian habitats, awareness of non-native/invasive plant species, degradation of habitat due to human activities, and the importance and values gained from re-introducing native plant associations.

To date there have been 1,400 participating landowners, 900 additional landowners contacted, 193 education sessions, 5,700 volunteers, and 208 miles of completed plantings.  Because of this level of local involvement established through the partnership, entire communities have raised their awareness concerning the benefits of healthy riparian conditions affecting wildlife habitat and water quality.  These efforts encourage and produce respect for good stewardship on both private and public lands.

The Public Lands Foundation is pleased to present the Tillamook Resource Area Riparian Restoration Partnership with its 2010 Landscape Stewardship Award and this Citation for invaluable contributions to the stewardship of America’s public landscapes.

September 15, 2010