Yamhill County Upland Oak Restoration Partnership

NRCS Regional Conservation Partnership Program (RCPP) funding will provide investments in oak and prairie habitats in Yamhill County. This will fund practices typically associated with oak and prairie restoration projects under similar contracting procedures as the Environmental Quality Incentives Program to address the primary resource concern of Wildlife Habitat Degradation/Terrestrial Habitat. This unique project will protect USDA investments and critical wildlife habitat by leveraging other investments made by partners that protect and preserve land. An investment in oak habitat conservation in the project area will facilitate implementation of numerous regional conservation plans and priorities. With the secured funding, we plan to restore at least 700 acres within Yamhill County. Depending on project sizes, this could total 35-60 contracts by the end of 2025. A large part of the leveraging funds will come from securing properties with permanent conservation easements which harbor oak and prairie habitat. We plan to acquire at least three properties in the county to fulfill this goal. Properties with an RCPP contract will undergo extensive restoration efforts for a three-year period. Practices will focus on removing invasive weed species in the understory and will remove a variety of trees that are competing with native Oregon white oak