By Danielle | Published: May 17, 2012 – 8:27 pm

This Spring, the Land Trust applied to Island County’s Conservation Future Fund program to help fund three incredible land protection projects – bird and wetland habitat at Crockett Lake, forest and shoreline on Southwest Whidbey, and working farmland on the north end of Ebey’s Reserve.

Next Thursday, May 24^th, the Land Trust will present these projects to a Citizen’s Advisory Board. The Board welcomes your thoughts – please come to the meeting or email DonMa@co.island.wa.us and voice your support. It makes a difference!

Citizen’s Advisory Board Meeting Details:

When: Thursday, May 24  6:00 pm

Where:
Island County Commissioners’ Meeting Room
Courthouse Annex Building, Room B102
1 NE 6^th Street, Coupeville

Project Details

Crockett Lake
Crockett Lake, designated an Important Bird Area by Audubon, attracts 238 species of birds and is a critical spring and fall feeding ground for migrating shorebirds along the Pacific Flyway.  Birdwatchers flock to Crockett Lake to view the incredible number and diversity of birds feeding on its extensive wetlands and mudflats.  Crockett Lake is considered one of the state’s most valuable wildlife areas. fact sheet

Indian Point
Indian Point is a wild and ecologically rich natural area with a rare maple forest community above an eroding feeder bluff along Admiralty Inlet.  Old growth Douglas fir and maple trees, along with fresh water wetlands are scattered throughout the forest. Osprey, eagles, owls and hawks occupy the property along with a myriad of other native birds. fact sheet

3 Sisters Family Farm

3 Sisters Family Farms is a locally-owned centennial farm producing natural, grass-fed beef, pork, poultry, and eggs.  The conservation easement will extinguish development rights on the property, which is the base of their operation, on the north side of Penn Cove within Ebey’s Reserve.  The landowners will reinvest the proceeds of the easement sale into increasing the capacity of their farm to meet the high local and regional demand for their products. fact sheet

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By Danielle | Published: February 9, 2012 – 5:53 pm

NEWS RELEASE
February 1, 2012
For Immediate Release:
Contact: Pat Powell, Executive Director (360) 222-3310; pat@wclt.org

Whidbey Camano Land Trust Announces Trillium Community Forest Restoration Project

Whidbey Island, WA – The Whidbey Camano Land Trust announced today that it has begun a six-week forest thinning restoration project on a dense portion of the 654-acre Trillium Community Forest to restore it to a more natural and healthy condition.

The restoration project to thin about 60 acres of dense, small trees in the central section of the community forest located between Freeland and Greenbank began January 16 and will continue until February 29, depending on weather and site conditions.

The work, managed by contractor Janicki Logging Company of Sedro Woolley, will help correct a poorly managed forest clogged with unhealthy stands of young Douglas fir fighting for light and nutrients and creating a forest floor barren of plants and wildlife, said Pat Powell, Land Trust executive director.

“Forest thinning work is something we approach very carefully and we absolutely feel it is essential to help return the Trillium Community Forest to a condition that is more natural and provides greater benefits to both the habitat and the public,” Powell said. “Our contractor utilizes specialized, low-impact equipment and is experienced in ecological restoration logging with demonstrated successes in Washington State.”

Powell said the Land Trust’s goal for the restoration project is to actively maintain and enhance the wildlife habitat and to encourage the forest to develop healthy, old-growth characteristics that correct poor forest management following the last commercial timber harvest in 1990 when the land was privately held.

“Removing some of the weaker trees will reduce competition, allowing more light to reach the forest floor and promoting growth of a native plant understory,” Powell said. “This, in turn, will enhance wildlife habitat, especially for a variety of bird life. Thinning young, dense forest stands has also been shown to improve tree growth, resistance to disease and insect invasion, ability to survive wildfires, and the forest’s visual appearance.”

Clinton-based wild land ecologist and restoration biologist Elliott Menashe agreed with the Land Trust’s plans to conduct “ecologically sound thinning operations” on over-stocked areas within the forest. “Judicious and responsible thinning of over-crowded trees at this time will improve overall forest health, reduce wildfire risk, improve wildlife habitat, and encourage the development of a more diverse forest community with larger and healthier individual trees, while significantly accelerating the advancement of old-forest characteristics within the thinned areas,” he said.
Whidbey Audubon Society past-president Sarah Schmidt said her organization “strongly supports the tree thinning at Trillium.” Schmidt took a recent Land Trust tour of the affected area and later said, “Once you step away from the trail just a few feet, you find yourself in a thicket of tightly packed trees of a single species. It is so dense with spindly trunks and interlaced dead branches that a bird would have a hard time flying through. Little light reaches the forest floor and there is no understory, meaning there are few insects for food, little shelter and no vegetation for nesting. The restoration thinning will help transform the forest toward one of greater diversity and much higher value as habitat for wildlife.”

The property will remain open during the thinning process, Powell said, but trails in the immediate vicinity of the thinning area will be closed.

The Trillium Community Forest, the largest remaining contiguous forest on Whidbey Island, was acquired by the Land Trust in late 2010 after a successful grass-roots community effort. Visit www.wclt.org to learn more about the Whidbey Camano Land Trust, the Trillium Community Forest and the forest restoration project.

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By Danielle | Published: November 23, 2011 – 9:23 pm

Taken from the Puget Sound Forest Stewardship E-Newsletter Nov. 2011

The flagship, popular and powerful program is coming to Whidbey Island in January. This 10-session practical, hands-on course will guide you through the development of your own stewardship plan with “coaching” from the top natural resource professionals in the state. In the process of creating a forest plan unique to your property and objectives, you’ll go in depth with us both in the classroom and in the field covering a wide range of forestry topics. Things we’ll cover in detail include ecology, silvics, soils, wildlife, forest health, fire, applied silviculture, water resources, aesthetics, regulations, special forest products, working with contractors, and more. The class includes nine evening classroom sessions, a Saturday field trip, a personal site visit to your property from a professional forester and/or wildlife biologist, and a forest stewardship notebook packed with information.

Your completed forest stewardship plan may qualify you for significant property tax reductions, as well as qualify you for a whole range of cost share and other assistance programs. It will also provide you with a road map for maximizing your enjoyment of your land and minimizing the costs of ownership. The class is open to all, regardless of how many acres you own or what your ownership objectives are. Space is limited, and registration is open for both classes:

The class will be on Wednesday evenings starting January 18th at the Pacific Rim Institute near Coupeville. Registration is open and the class is already beginning to fill. Details and registration information are available at http://snohomish.wsu.edu/forestry/CP12Coupeville.htm or by calling 425-357-6017. This class is made possible in part by a grant from the Whidbey Island Conservation District.

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By Danielle | Published: October 27, 2011 – 11:31 pm

We have two fun work parties scheduled for November. If you would like to participate and help plant (either cover crops or young Douglas firs), please rsvp to jessica@wclt.org and she will send you directions, additional information, and the gear you should bring. Thanks so much for your help!

Dugualla Work Party

Thursday, Nov. 10th 9 am to 12 noon

Over the last year, we have been removing blackberry colonies in the areas surrounding the Dugualla Heights lagoon. Now that the blackberries are gone, we need to establish a cover crop to prevent erosion and weed invasion in those areas. Come help us plant!

Hammons Work Party

Saturday, Nov. 12th 9 am to 12 noon
There are some beautiful Douglas fir trees just waiting for a new home! The nice cool, wet weather is perfect for planting these baby trees in the ground. We will be planting the native conifer trees to help expand our forest on the property. Spend a few fun-filled hours planting while enjoying a great view of Cultus Bay!

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By Danielle | Published: October 13, 2011 – 5:18 pm

Reminder: Trillium is OPEN to hunting and CLOSED to all other users starting October 15 until October 28.

If you have any questions regarding the hunting season contact jessica@wclt.org. Trillium will also be open to hunting from November 17 – December 11.

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By Danielle | Published: October 10, 2011 – 11:32 pm

Land Trust co-sponsors showing of Aldo Leopold documentary at the Clyde

What: “Green Fire” the first full-length, high-definition documentary film ever made about legendary environmentalist Aldo Leopold
When: Saturday, November 12 at 2:00
Where: Clyde Theatre

Aldo Leopold is regarded by many as one of the most influential conservation thinkers of the twentieth century. His A Sand County Almanac, published in 1949 after his death, is a classic in American literature.

Green Fire, the first full-length, high-definition documentary film ever made about this legendary environmentalist, will be presented by Whidbey Watershed Stewards on Saturday, November 12 at 2 pm at the Clyde Theater in Langley. Aldo Leopold’s daughter, a Seattle resident, will accompany the film and speak about her personal memories of her father.

Admission is $5 at the door. WWS welcomes the Whidbey Camano Land Trust, The Whidbey Institute and Transition Whidbey as event co-sponsors.

Green Fire highlights Leopold’s extraordinary career in the early part of the 20th century, tracing how he shaped and influenced the modern environmental movement. It shows the many ways his vision of a community that cares about both people and land—his call for a land ethic—continues to be applied all over the world by a population facing 21st century ecological challenges.

Green Fire was produced by a partnership of the Aldo Leopold Foundation, the Center for Humans and Nature, and the US Forest Service and has been shown around the country since the spring. It premieres in Seattle October 18. The film features commentary and insight from some of today’s scholars and conservation leaders, including three of Aldo Leopold’s children: Nina, Carl, and Estella.

Estella Leopold, now professor emeritus at the University of Washington after a lifetime of environmental research and activism, will give a brief talk before the film screening and will answer questions following the film.

Dr. Leopold received the International Cosmos Prize last summer from the Expo ’90 Foundation, a Japanese organization that honors “Those who have, through their work, applied and realized the ideals which the Foundation strives to preserve… how we as human beings can truly respect and live in harmony with nature.”

She helped prevent the flooding if the lower part of the Grand Canyon in the mid-1960s, and is fighting to keep the lava-coated land around Mount St. Helens intact as a research area and national monument. She is especially eager for children to experience the outdoors as she did in her Wisconsin youth.

The Leopold family loved the land they inhabited. “Love is very important in conservation work,” she says. “If you don’t love it, how are you going to work to protect it? And to love it, you have to know it.”

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By Danielle | Published: October 6, 2011 – 5:33 pm

In September and October the Clyde Theatre announced that their “Magic Change Jar is dedicated to the Whidbey Camano Land Trust, the hardworking nonprofit that has helped preserve land that provides beauty, miles and miles of trails for walkers, runners, bikers, and riders, and protection of wildlife and our aquifer. Every dollar put in the jar (up to a total of $250) is matched by The Clyde, Lindsay Communications, and Island Athletic Club, magically turning into $4 to keep Whidbey green.”

So, go enjoy the Clyde and its famous popcorn. Every tip you put into the jar supports the community. For October, those tips support the Land Trust.
A great big THANK YOU to the Clyde Theatre! Visit their website for movie times and upcoming films.

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By Danielle | Published: October 4, 2011 – 6:12 pm

Fall is for prepping and planting, especially on the prairie at our Naas Natural Area Preserve (south of Coupeville). Here are two more opportunities to help out with this great project.

Play Pick-up Sticks with Chuck.

Friday October 7, 9:00 am to 12:00.

We completed the last phase of tree clearing earlier this year and had someone rough-grade the soil. This fall, a local farmer will help us sow a cover crop until we have enough plants or seeds to restore native prairie in those two acres. In preparation for the sowing, Chuck Lowe is coordinating a volunteer work party this Friday to pick up the remaining branches and sticks, cut roots that are still connected but sticking up above grade, flag any stumps and boulders (so the farmer can avoid them) and level out soil piles. Weather looks like it should clear up by then.

Please let us know if you are planning to join us by calling (360) 222-3310 or emailing jessica@wclt.org. Please bring gloves and loppers that can be used to cut roots. We’ll supply the rest of the tools.

Planting the Prairie

October 28, 29, 31 and November 1,2,3, 4
Shifts are 9 am – 12 noon or 1 pm – 3 pm

At the end of the month, we will be planting thousands of native plants (including golden paintbrush and camas bulbs) with crews of volunteers, staff and land workers. Take your pick of shifts for morning or afternoon throughout the week. You could even wear your Halloween costume on October 31! This is a wonderful opportunity to learn about this increasingly rare habitat, native prairie species and the importance of this restoration work. Email jessica@wclt.org with preferred times and dates and she will get back to you with a final schedule.

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By Danielle | Published: September 8, 2011 – 10:40 pm

The Land Trust is looking for 4-5 approved, qualified Land Laborers who will be called on a temporary and as-needed basis, depending on available funding and property needs. Land laborers are independent contractors who work on an hourly basis to assist with maintenance, restoration and stewardship activities on Land Trust properties. Laborers will be supervised by Land Trust staff or project site managers in a manner consistent with the Land Trust’s mission, policies procedures and plans. Please submit cover letter and resume by September 30.

Read full job description>

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By Danielle | Published: September 6, 2011 – 10:24 pm

Under a beautiful, warm, sunny sky at the Land Trust’s annual picnic on August 21st, 200 people cheered, applauded, and sang along as the plot unfolded of “These are the Days of Our Lands”. This ‘melodramatic morality play accompanied by a Greek chorus’ succinctly told stories of land protection on Whidbey and Camano Islands. A dozen aspiring community members stretched their acting skill and brought to life the roles of the Land Trust, the history of Ebey’s Landing National Historical Reserve, and generous, willing landowners. With two large maps (of Island County and of the Reserve) as visual aids and a brief presentation by Pat Powell, people understood better how much has been protected and how much more still needs to be done.

Following the program, many people went on field trips to various locations in the Ebey’s Landing Reserve.

The verdict on the day? Informational. Engaging. Fun. Fabulous! Check back soon for photos!

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