Healthy Forests
Readying our forests for the future
Securing the last of our large forests and supporting our oldest, strongest trees helps fortify our communities for the changes ahead.
Healthy forests protect our clean air and clean water, store more carbon, provide windbreaks, support a wider diversity of wildlife and are more resilient to fire and stress.
To prepare for longer, drier summers, our Conservation Land Bank has prioritized the costly process of thinning up to 1,000 acres over the coming decades.
Photo: Lopez Hill Preserve
“The Land Bank remains at the forefront of tangible efforts to preserve the biological heritage of the San Juan Islands. I fully support the renewal of the Land Bank.”
— Carson Sprenger
Director Rain Shadow Consulting
Forester, Restoration Ecologist, Fire Ecologist
Why I Support the Land Bank
Explore Healthy Forest Preserves
This iconic 1600-acre preserve on Orcas supports Garry oak savanna and woodlands as well as mixed conifer forests. Grants secured with partners are helping fund forest management projects to reduce competition and improve forest health. Leaving downed wood, creating snags, and planting native plants in burn areas will further enhance habitat.
Photo: Conservation Core (ICC) members plant native plants in burn pile area at Turtleback.
Turtleback Mountain Preserve
With six strategic acquisitions totaling 470 acres over a 20-year period, this newly opened preserve connects to other protected areas to form one of the largest conservation areas on San Juan Island. Forest projects include thinning young conifers and removing non-native shrubs to create space for drought-tolerant Garry oaks.
Photo: Youth Conservation Corps (YCC) members visit Cady Mountain to assess old trees.
Cady Mountain Preserve
This 475-acre preserve at the highest point on Lopez protects a diverse forest including alder, maple, Douglas fir, shore pine, and what’s thought to be the largest Western red cedar on the island. A forest health assessment will help delineate areas that might need thinning to help retain the oldest trees. Lopez Hill has a remarkable citizen conservation story!
Photo: Lopez Island Conservation Corps (ICC) create trails at Lopez Hill
Lopez Hill Preserve
A recent assessment of this 131-acre shoreline preserve near Eastsound identified its dense dry forests as a top management priority to increase resilience to fire and drought, in part due to its proximity to town and access roads that connect east and west lobes of Orcas. Pending approval, a grant-funded thinning project will begin in early 2025.
Photo: Crescent Beach Preserve connects to other protected lands
Crescent Beach Preserve
A grant secured with partners helped fund an eco-cultural restoration project for Garry oak habitat on Mount Grant. Activities included thinning encroaching young Douglas fir, protecting high-quality understory and old growth trees, and planting wildflowers, grasses, and oaks that are culturally significant to Coast Salish peoples.
Photo: Volunteers load up excess firewood for the Family Resource Center