Restoring the Rogue: A Plan to Prioritize Restoration on Federal Lands in the Rogue River Basin

For over ten years, KS Wild has provided public oversight of federal land management projects in the Rogue and Klamath River Basins. During that time, KS Wild has become increasingly involved  in working with federal land managers and contractors to advance restoration goals. Formally, we partner with the Southern Oregon Small Diameter Collaborative and the Josephine County Stewardship Group.

In 2009, KS Wild set out to develop a plan to more comprehensively guide regional restoration advocacy. We choose to focus on the Rogue Basin, the northern portion of KS Wild’s coverage area, where our most active collaboration is occurring. The purpose of Restoring the Rogue is to more clearly define what KS Wild sees as restoration priorities and opportunities on public lands in the Rogue Basin, thereby better informing collaboration and encouraging the most effective use of scarce restoration resources. Such restoration will enhance fish and wildlife habitat while creating high quality jobs in the forest. We hope that this plan is a useful tool for federal land mangers, decision makers and the many businesses and organizations working to restore the Rogue River Basin. 

This report does not attempt to make comprehensive recommendations for all lands in the Rogue Basin. Approximately 62% of the watershed in held in public ownership and therefore those lands offer specific opportunities for restoration activities. However, we recognize the necessity and possibilities for restoration activities on non-federal lands throughout the basin. While this report focuses on public lands and indicator species (Northern spotted owl in the terrestrial environment and Coho salmon in the aquatic environment), we encourage additional restoration projects that focus on other imperiled species and non-federal lands. 

This report could also serve as a launching pad for a more comprehensive restoration report for the entirety of the Rogue Basin. Some restoration activities that are not addressed here but should be considered in order to maximize forest and watershed health include strict riparian protection ordinances, sound rural/urban planning, private land conservation, water and energy efficiency and public transportation.

Read the report: Click here to download a web-quality version (9MB) of the report (if printed, this copy would be blurry).

Contact lesley@kswild.org if you would like to receive a print-quality electronic version or a printed copy.