Protecting Watersheds and Wildlife Habitat in the Ochoco National Forest

If the Black Mountain Project continues as currently planned, a total of 6,469 acres of the Ochocos would be logged, including hundreds of acres of riparian habitat. Although riparian areas are intended to be protected from high-disturbance activities, the Black Mountain Project authorizes commercial logging in riparian areas, in addition to construction or reconstruction of dozens of miles of roads along stream corridors. 

Protecting Native Species and Habitats

One of the most important factors overlooked by the Forest Service in approving the Project was the numerous effects on fish and wildlife species, especially the impacts on Rocky Mountain elk and native fish. The Ochocos are home to elk, a critical “indicator species” of the health of the forest. Elk depend on riparian areas free from disturbance for their survival. Cow elk select areas near the water with sufficient forage and cover in the spring of each year to give birth.

Each fall, bull elk move to wetted areas where they cover themselves in mud, and their own urine and feces (their perfume), to attract cow elk for breeding.

Rivers and streams in the Ochocos also are home to numerous fish and amphibian species, including Redband trout and Columbia spotted frog. These species require clear, cold, well-oxygenated water and cover from predators under overhanging banks. 

The noise from logging and road work activities displaces wildlife and impedes essential life cycle functions. These activities also compact soil and trample stream banks, contributing to severe erosion into streams and impairing water quality. Unfortunately, the Forest Service dismissed these impacts and refused to impose measures to protect these species from disturbance during critical life cycle stages.

Water Quality

Riparian areas are unique ecological features that are located adjacent to streams, rivers, and wetlands and are essential for the survival of fish and wildlife. In riparian areas, biodiversity thrives. Riparian areas provide over 80% of the habitat for the native fish and wildlife species of the Ochocos. Despite the importance of these areas, they have been disproportionately impacted by land management activities. While riparian areas comprise only about 2% of the Forest, nearly all Forest management activities have direct or indirect effects on riparian areas and water quality.

The logging authorized by the Black Mountain project threatens to negatively influence water quality in two important ways:

1. First, the Project allows the removal of shade-producing trees. Stream shade is a key feature for maintaining the cool water temperatures aquatic species need to survive. 
2. Second, logging and road work activities would increase sedimentation into streams. Increased sedimentation increases turbidity. Turbidity is the measure of suspended solids in water; low amounts of turbidity is considered a good measure of water quality. High amounts of turbidity reduce the growth of aquatic plants and interfere with the ability of fish and other species to catch prey. Despite the fact that the Forest Service must, under its management plan, prioritize the protection of riparian areas to improve water quality, the agency has prioritized commercial logging instead. 

 Not only is this area ecologically vital, but the Ochocos have cultural impacts that predate the US Forest Service. Before this land was managed by the USFS, various Indian tribes resided in the Ochocos and the Deschutes Basin more generally which is where the Ochoco Mountains of Central Oregon inherit their name. The word “Ochoco” originates from the Paiute Indian Tribe name, meaning “Wind of the Willows”. Human habitation in the Deschutes Basin began at least 7,000 years before the establishment of the Ochocos as a National forest in 1954. The tribal residents since 1805 of the Ochocos include Wascopum, Walla Walla, Tenino, Northern Paiute, Klamath, Umatilla, Grande Rhonde, and Molalla.