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Collective Land Stewardship

Wildlands and farm lands play a key role in how communities adapt to and mitigate the impact of extreme weather. Different land types possess natural capacity to recover from disturbance, whether wildfires, floods, or drought. Protecting and caring for our natural lands helps us to protect the plant, animal and human communities of tomorrow.

Land Conservation

Washington has a tremendous diversity of ecosystems, including prairies, wetlands, estuaries, rainforests, shrubsteppe, marine waters, and grasslands.

However, these natural lands are in decline. Washington has lost more than 90% of its prarie lands since the 1850s. Since the 1980s, more than seventeen percent of Washington's commercial forests have been converted to other land uses. While in the 21st century, across the United States, approximately 2,000 acres a day of farmland and ranchland are paved over, fragmented, or developed (according to American Farmland Trust).

To ensure we have resilient landscapes, we need to preserve and protect all types of natural areas: forests, grasslands, and wetlands, all with different soil types, different micro-climates, different uses, and different forms of flora and fauna. Conserving landscapes, both natural and agricultural, is an essential component of protecting biodiversity and ecosystems, as well as helping defend our communities against ever-increasing threats posed by severe weather.

Here are some ways that building, protecting, and restoring natural lands can help build more resilient communities:

  • The Coast: Natural shorelines such as mangrove forests, estuaries, reefs, dunes, and barrier islands can absorb the shock of storm surge.
  • Watersheds: Wetlands, floodplains and riparian buffers slow and retain water to reduce flooding, while also filtering out pollutants and providing wildlife habitat.
  • Grasslands: Grasslands store carbon, reducing erosion and flooding through their deep-rooted plant systems, and mitigate wildfire. Grasslands also provide critical habitat for species.
  • Forests: Forests, including urban forests, play a crucial role in managing water flow, preventing landslides, and mitigating or reducing the impact of floods.
  • Agricultural landscapes: Diverse crops, perennial vegetation, and livestock helps create healthy soil, improve resistance to pests and disease, and provide a more stable habitat for wildlife.

Land Stewardship

Resilience is about the ability to adapt, recover, and thrive in the face of disruption. In land conservation, this means not just protecting land, but also managing those natural spaces to help them through extreme weather. Stewardship programs are designed to assess resource conditions and land health, identify potential problems and opportunities, and recommend practices to help achieve healthy landscapes. These programs are available whether you are caring for a forest, a farm, or your backyard.

One of the unique stewardship processes being studied in Washington state is assisted migrations. In 2021, the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law directed the USDA Forest Service to plant 1.2 billion trees in the next decade to address the millions of acres in need of reforestation. As part of that process, scientists with the Pacific Northwest Research Station are leading a study to learn how we can improve refrorestation success through novel forest management practices, including human-assisted migration of plant species. The project focuses on the movement of seed sources or populations of specific species, including Douglas-fir, Incense cedar, Jeffrey pine, Ponderosa pine, Sugar pine, and Western larch, from their existing locations to new, cooler areas within their habitat range.

What Can You Do?

Get Involved In Land Conservation and Stewardship

  • If you live on or near the Salish Sea in western Washington state, the WSU Shore Stewards program provides 10 guidelines and other resources to help you manage and maintain healthy land and waterways! There are recommendations for protecting water quality, dealing with pet and livestock waste, and selecting landscaping that will reduce the need for fertilizers. You will find tips on harvesting and growing shellfish, protecting eelgrass while boating, preventing the spread of invasive species, water conservation and more.
  • The Native Plant Stewardship Program educates community volunteers about our region’s native plants and plant communities, and teaches how to use this knowledge to protect and restore Washington’s natural ecosystems.
  • Forterra is a non-profit organization that works to conserve and care for wild and working lands across Washington state, to support equitable, green and prosperous communities.
  • Farm to Farmer works to protect threatened farmland in Washington, with the goal of keeping agricultural land in production to sustain farming in the state. They work to help farmers find land, build capacity, access resources, and ultimately, thrive as business owners and stewards of the land.
  • Protecting land starts with citizens! The Washington Community Forest Trust Program is designed to work with communities to identify Community Forest Trust lands for purchase from willing sellers of private forestland or from other state land trusts to be maintained as working forests
  • Washington Association of Land Trusts represents 36 non-profit conservation organizations who work collaboratively to conserve the lands that sustain Washington communities.
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