Sue Doroff
President, Western Rivers Conservancy 71 SW Oak St., 100
Portland, OR 97201
RE: Western Rivers Conservancy’s Emigrant Creek Ranch project in the Cascade-Siskiyou National Monument
Dear Sue Doroff,
The Oregon Chapter of Backcountry Hunters and Anglers (BHA) is pleased to write this letter in support of Western Rivers Conservancy’s Emigrant Creek Ranch project within the Cascade-Siskiyou National Monument (Monument) in Jackson County, OR. Our support for this project includes supporting the search funding to realize the project’s important conservation goals.
Started around a campfire here in Southern Oregon, BHA has grown into a national organization with the mission to ensure North America's outdoor heritage of hunting and fishing in a natural setting, through education and work on behalf of wild public lands, waters, and wildlife. Representing over 1,000 sportsmen and women across Oregon, with an additional 4,000 supporters, our Chapter is eager to work with and support organizations working to protect and preserve public lands and waters. This project represents a unique opportunity to add to the Monument, designated specifically to protect biodiversity, by setting aside lands for public use and conservation for future generations.
The Emigrant Creek Ranch project is in an important location as a private land inholding within the Monument itself and near the Soda Mountain Wilderness – two areas publicly- owned and managed specifically to protect the rich biological and geological diversity in the mountains of Southern Oregon. Western Rivers Conservancy (WRC) has the exciting opportunity to purchase the ranch, and plans to convey it to the Bureau of Land Management (BLM) for inclusion in the Monument.
The project will permanently conserve approximately 1,425 acres of oak woodland and savanna habitat in the foothills of the upper Rogue River basin and the entire property made available for investments in restoration to benefit local flora and fauna. This area is an important transition between the higher-elevation conifer forests and lower-elevation grasslands, providing important habitat not only for elk, mule deer and bears but also over 200 bird species. In addition, the project will ensure that roughly three miles of stream in the Emigrant Creek watershed is protected, providing clean, clear water for salmon, steelhead and trout that call this watershed home.
The Oregon Chapter of BHA supports Western Rivers Conservancy’s efforts to conserve the Emigrant Creek Ranch. This is a unique opportunity to not only add to the Monument, but to ensure management, conservation and preservation of this property. If WRC is not successful, it is likely the property will be sold in pieces for homesite development, further fragmenting what remains of intact oak woodland and savanna habitat in the Rogue River foothills.
Thank you in advance for your time. If you have any questions, please do not hesitate to contact me.
Sincerely,
Justin P. Gindlesperger
Southwest Regional Director
Oregon Chapter of Backcountry Hunters and Anglers
See the full letter HERE