Washington DNR to Acquire Forestland

The Board of Natural Resources approved the purchase of a 170-acre parcel of forested land in Pacific County during its monthly meeting Tuesday morning October, 3rd, 2023, in Olympia.

The parcel, 14 miles southeast of Raymond, is surrounded on all four sides by state trust lands in the Washington State Department of Natural Resources’ Browning Block. DNR’s road system already connects to the parcel, and the purchase will help provide DNR with legal access to currently isolated land it manages in the area.

The $500,000 purchase will be paid for with funds that the Legislature allocated to DNR to help replace lands encumbered by habitat protection requirements under the Endangered Species Act. The land will be managed to support local services in Pacific County.

“Protecting wildlife habitat on state trust lands to comply with the Endangered Species Act is critical, but Pacific County bore a disproportionate amount of that impact,” said Commissioner of Public Lands Hilary Franz. “Thanks to this funding from the Legislature, we are able to continue working to make Pacific County whole by purchasing productive forests to sustainably manage to support local services and the rural economy.”

DNR has been active in purchasing forestlands in Southwest Washington recently. During its September meeting, the Board approved the acquisition of 182 acres of lands in Clark, Cowlitz, and Pacific counties; during its July meeting, the Board approved the purchase of 114 acres in Wahkiakum County; and in June, the Board approved the purchase of 640 acres of forestland in neighboring Clark County. DNR also added 266 acres of land in Wahkiakum County in 2021.

For decades, DNR has continued to acquire forestlands across the state to support schools and counties. Since 1980, the department has added more than 100,000 acres of sustainably managed forestland to public ownership through its transactions program.

A map of the parcel is available at the Board of Natural Resources website.