This summer, Metro received a donation from The Nature Conservancy of 249 acres of forest along the Sandy River upstream from Oxbow Regional Park. The donation included 10 plots of land in both Multnomah and Clackamas counties, ranging from just under two acres to more than 100.
The Nature Conservancy had owned and cared for some of these lands since 1970. After more than 40 years of management by the conservation group, the properties are high-quality habitat.
“These definitely rank among the best we’ve ever acquired,” said Metro natural resource scientist Kate Holleran. “They’re large blocks of older forest habitat that has all those cool things we like: large old live trees, large old dead trees, deadwood on the ground, a lot of complexity.”
The forests, which are a mix of riparian and upland habitat, include Douglas fir, western red cedar, red alder, black cottonwood, Pacific yew, bigleaf maple, and willows where pileated woodpeckers and northern flying squirrels will perch. The understory is filled with huckleberry, oso-berry, snowberry, trailing blackberry, baldhip rose, and plenty of other snacks for black-tailed deer, Roosevelt elk and black bears.
Normally, when Metro acquires a new property to become a natural area, the first few years are dominated by the removal of invasive weeds, seeding with native plants and other restoration activities that are the equivalent of house cleaning. Only after this can Metro’s land managers help a forest, prairie, wetland or other habitat begin to resemble its natural cousins.
These 10 plots, which are clustered in four groups along different bends in the Sandy River, don’t need that work. “The cool thing about getting these four large blocks is that they are well on their way to having the characteristics of old-growth forest,” Holleran says.
As the donation was being finalized, a few residents, questioned why it was happening. If The Nature Conservancy is doing such a great job managing the sites, why hand them over to a government agency?
“It allows us to focus on some of our other priorities across the state of Oregon,” Kreuzer said, pointing to work protecting sage grouse habitat in high desert habitat. “It frees up time for staff to focus on these other priorities.”
He continued, “The transfer of these lands into the public trust will ensure they benefit future generations with the ecosystem services the gorge and these properties provide.”
Holleran says Metro’s main task will likely be maintaining the good work The Nature Conservancy already accomplished, something the conservation group has full faith Metro can do.
“We’ve worked with Metro for quite some time,” said Doug Kreuzer, the restoration project manager at The Nature Conservancy. “They’ve been managers of some beloved natural areas, including Oxbow Regional Park, on the Sandy River.”
One of the donated tracts abuts Oxbow Regional Park, and another two sit across the Sandy from the park. The nearness of those lands, along with public lands owned by state and federal agencies, was a primary reason The Nature Conservancy sought to donate the properties.
“Most of these Sandy River properties border conservation land owned or managed by Metro. For us, consolidating the management makes sense,” said Kreuzer.
Holleran agreed, saying, “It allows us to bring a consistent conservation approach across those lands.”