* DNR * KING COUNTY * MOUNTAINS TO SOUND GREENWAY *
No. 08-184
October 7, 2008
Contact: Bob Redling, 360-902-1149
King County Transfers 1,491 Acres of Forestland to DNR
Revenue from DNR management of parcel in Raging River area will help support King County services
OLYMPIA – The Washington State Department of Natural Resources (DNR) will manage nearly 1,500 acres—located between Tiger Mountain and Rattlesnake Ridge—as a working forest in perpetuity and to provide long-term revenue to King County.
The transfer is part of a long-term agreement between DNR, King County and the Mountains to Sound Greenway Trust aimed at increasing the acreage and productivity of state forestland in the county. The 1995 agreement also allows DNR to use highly treated biosolids from King County’s wastewater treatment plants for fertilization and soil-enrichment on some of the forestlands it manages.
The state Board of Natural Resources, which guides the management of state trust lands and resources, was briefed today on the transfer of 1,491 acres of forestland from King County to state ownership. The land will be managed by DNR as a trust to produce long-term revenue for county services.
“This land transfer comes at no cost to the state and brings long-term benefits to the people of King County and to the State,” said State Land Commissioner Doug Sutherland. “We support the efforts of King County and the Mountains to Sound Greenway Trust as part of our stewardship of healthy upland forests and streams.”
“The forestland in this program will provide multiple benefits to the residents of King County and our region—clean air, clean water, wildlife habitat and wood products—for generations to come,” said King County Executive Ron Sims. “We are pleased to work with the state DNR to increase the amount of permanent working forests in King County.”
“This transfer of land from King County to DNR is another piece of a 13-year success story that started in 1995,” said Doug Schindler, Deputy Director of the Mountains to Sound Greenway Trust. “These lands in the Raging River area will stay in forests forever, providing wildlife habitat, recreation opportunities and a sustainable source of wood products that our society needs. This program not only preserves forests, but enriches soils and prevents erosion, provides revenue for King County schools and roads, all while providing long-term savings to King County utility rate payers.”
DNR will manage the site as a working forest and provide 75 percent of the revenue to the trust’s beneficiary, King County. A management fee of 25 percent of the revenue will be used to cover DNR’s costs of pruning, thinning, harvesting, and replanting trees on the land and maintaining access roads. University of Washington forestry scientists will continue to monitor the safe use of biosolids as they have since the early 1970s.
DNR – Caring for your natural resources . . . now and forever
DNR manages more than 5.6 million acres of state-owned forest, range, commercial, agricultural, and aquatic lands. These lands include 125,000 acres of Natural Areas that protect rare and threatened species as well as high-quality examples of the native ecosystems and landscapes of Washington.
The department also provides wildfire protection for 12.7 million acres of private and state-owned forestlands; administers Forest Practices rules and surface mine reclamation on state and private lands; gives technical assistance for forestry and mining; and provides financial and grant assistance to local communities and individuals.
King County Wastewater Treatment Division
People enjoy clean water and a healthy environment because of King County's wastewater treatment program. The county’s Wastewater Treatment Division protects public health and water quality by serving 17 cities, 17 local sewer utilities, and more than 1.4 million residents in King, Snohomish and Pierce counties. Formerly called Metro, the regional clean-water agency now operated by King County has been preventing water pollution for more than 40 years.
Mountains to Sound Greenway
The Mountains to Sound Greenway Trust is a nonprofit conservation organization established in 1991 to protect the Interstate 90 corridor between Seattle and Central Washington. The Greenway Trust works to promote public land acquisitions, connect a continuous regional trail system, teach people of all ages about the importance of conserving forests and wildlife, improve recreation access, create new parks and trails and mobilize thousands of volunteers.
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