Yaquina Bay Acquisitions

Accomplishment: Acquisition of more than 400 acres of high quality tidal marsh and forested buffers around Poole and McCaffery sloughs.

Location: Along the Yaquina River between Newport and Toledo on the central Oregon coast (Lincoln County).

Partners: The Wetlands Conservancy, the Central Coast Land Conservancy, Oregon Watershed Enhancement Board, Pacific States Marine Fisheries Commission, the Midcoast Watersheds Council, U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, Green Diamond, Pacific Forest Trust, Lincoln County.

Notes: The Wetlands Conservancy completed acquisition in 2008 of more than 400 acres encompassing tidal wetlands identified as high priorities for protection in a comprehensive assessment of Yaquina estuary. The bulk of the funding was provided by the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (Coastal Wetland Conservation grant) and the Oregon Watershed Enhancement Board. Yaquina Bay has lost 70% of its historic estuarine marshes. The remaining marsh habitat supports some of the highest waterfowl use among Oregon estuaries. Poole and McCaffery sloughs are among the least impacted tidal marshes on the coast, habitat that is critical for migratory birds, salmonids, and a half-dozen at-risk species, including coho salmon, brown pelicans, bald eagles, marbled murrelets, sea-run cutthroat trout and steelhead trout.

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