Tribe increases conservation properties to more than 2,900 acres

By Danielle Harrison

Smoke Signals editor

As of Thursday, Aug. 6, the Tribe is owner of the Jordan Valley property outside of Scio. The conservation property is 336.15 acres and was purchased through the Willamette Wildlife Mitigation Program with external funding, bringing the total to more than 2,990 acres of conservation land in Oregon.

The Tribe has acquired the acres for its conservation properties during the past 14 years in Marion, Polk, Yamhill, Lane and Linn counties. The acquisition of the Jordan Valley property is 100% externally funded and includes stewardship funding for ongoing management.

According to its website, the Willamette Wildlife Mitigation Program is a partnership between the Oregon Department of Fish and Wildlife and the Bonneville Power Administration to protect wildlife habitat in the Willamette River Basin. The main goal of the program is to offset the effects of federal flood control and hydroelectric facilities on wildlife, particularly those affected by the Willamette River Basin Flood Control Projects.

In 2010, BPA signed a settlement agreement with the ODFW to mitigate hydropower construction and operational impacts to wildlife. As part of that agreement, ODFW manages and BPA funds the Willamette Wildlife Mitigation Program through 2026, allowing entities such as the Tribe to acquire properties for fish and wildlife that includes a conservation easement.

Tribal Economic & Lands Director Jan Looking Wolf Reibach thanked various departments and Tribal Council for securing the acquisition.   

“Hayu-masi (hands raised) for your leadership, vision and support in the recovery and management of our homelands,” he said in an email. “There is no organization more connected to these properties than the Confederated Tribes of Grand Ronde, we are the first caretakers since time immemorial. Congratulations and gratitude to our teams in Natural Resources, Lands, Tribal Attorney’s Office and our support areas for yet another externally funded conservation property coming home to Tribal ownership.”

He noted that two other conservation property acquisitions were in progress with anticipated closing dates in 2027.

Tribal Fish & Wildlife Program Manager Kelly Dirksen said, “Great job team. Another amazing acquisition and a great property to add to the conservation portfolio.”   

According to Reibach, the property is located within the boundary of the Anson Dart 1852 Santiam Kalapuya Reservation. It includes oak woodland, wetland/prairie and mixed forest habitats. The southern half consists of open flatlands at the bottom of the valley draining Jordan Creek and its tributaries. There are year-round springs and emergent wetlands in the southwest corner.

The habitat also includes diverse native plant and wildlife species such as the chipping sparrow, purple martin, western gray squirrel, acorn woodpecker, band-tailed pigeon, western meadowlark, warbling vireo and western wood-pewee. The property also includes a water right for irrigation as well as a surface water right to use Feidler Creek and an unnamed stream.

Conservation properties owned by the Tribe include the following:

• Rattlesnake Butte – 96.98 acres, acquired Sept. 2012
• Rattlesnake Butte 3 – 172.47 acres, acquired May 2015
• Chahalpam – 348.11 acres, acquired May 2013
• Chahalpam 2 – 91.44 acres, acquired Jan 2015
• Chahalpam 3 – 30.86 acres, acquired March 2018
• Chankawan - 425.71 acres, acquired May 2016
• Noble Oaks – 667.5 acres, acquired June 2019
• Ahsney – 61.85 acres, acquired Dec. 2019
• Takilth – 108.12 acres, acquired May 2021
• Enchanted Oaks – 462.8 acres, acquired Feb. 2022
• Deer Path East – 57.68 acres, reimbursed Sept. 2024
• Deer Path West – 55.46 acres, acquired May 2025
• Kanawi – 75.3 acres – acquired Dec 2025
• Jordan Valley – 336.15 acres – acquired Aug 2026