The Nature Conservancy Buys 130 Acres on the Black River

OLYMPIA, WASHINGTON — The Nature Conservancy has purchased a 130-acre addition to Black River Preserve near Olympia, almost doubling the size of the preserve. The purchase helps stitch together a mosaic of protected lands involving national, state, local agencies and organizations, as well as private landowners.

Thurston County’s Conservation Futures program and the North American Wetlands Conservation Act (NAWCA) funded approximately 90 percent of the approximate $1.2 million cost. The Conservancy contributed additional funds, which came from the previous sale of the Black Lake Preserve to the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service.

“This project not only provides huge conservation benefits for fish and wildlife, it also demonstrates a diverse and innovative partnership of public agencies, conservation groups and private citizens, all with a compatible vision of how they want the Black River watershed to look in the future”, said Joe LaTourrette, Washington Coordinator for the Pacific Coast Joint Venture, one of the partners in the project.

The Mima Creek Corridor Project is part of the Black River Conservation Initiative, involving the efforts of multiple partners and funding sources, including the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, Pacific Coast Joint Venture, state Department of Natural Resources, Chehalis Tribe, Natural Resource Conservation Service, Thurston County, Capitol Land Trust, and the Conservancy.

The Black River is an important area for conservation because it’s the largest remaining free-flowing freshwater wetland system in the Puget Sound region of Western Washington, draining an area of 144 square miles. The new property lies at the confluence of the Black River and Mima Creek and includes a mile of the creek as well as its tributaries, and a half mile on the Black River. It reaches from the forested uplands adjacent to the Capitol State Forest down to the river’s wetlands, providing a corridor for wildlife such as elk, bobcat, and bear. It encompasses rich salmon habitat, with Mima Creek a primary stream for coho, steelhead, and sea-run cutthroat. The Conservancy will restore a large pasture and wetland area to improve habitat for waterfowl and the possible introduction of rare species such as the Oregon spotted frog.

Thurston County is developing a new, 12-mile walking and biking trail that will offer viewing access to this property. The trail will tie together the Black River-Mima Prairie Glacial Heritage Preserve and the Black River Natural Area, and link the urban trail system from Tumwater with the south county communities of Gate and Rochester.