Land trust inks conservation easement with Pope Resources

Columbia Land Trust has inked a $2.4 million deal with a large industrial timberland owner to keep 6,900 acres of Southwest Washington in forest.

The deal, underwritten by a grant from the U.S. Forest Service, heads off the possibility of chopping it into future subdivisions. The state Department of Natural Resources administered the grant.

A broader deal remains in motion to protect another 13,000 acres of forest owned by Pope Resources along Pine Creek along the southern flanks of Mount St. Helens. Columbia Land Trust, a nonprofit organization based in Vancouver, spearheaded that initiative after several small subdivisions began to pop up in the hilly terrain near Swift Reservoir several years ago.

Skamania County officials, who worried about providing services to such remote locations, lauded Thursday’s announcement.

“This project is good for all concerned as it protects a working forest from development, produces a steady supply of timber for industry and contributes to the conservation of productive healthy forestland in perpetuity,” Skamania County Commissioner Paul Pearce said in a prepared statement.

The Forest Service provided the money to swing the deal as part of a nationwide initiative to conserve working forests. Officials noted, over time, land managed for timber production provides better long-term benefits for wildlife habitat and water quality than residential subdivisions.

“It will continue to be productive, (but) it cannot develop,” said Cherie Kearney, forestry initiative manager for the land trust.