This grant is applicable to the odfw south willamette watershed district (swwd) which comprises all or portions of lane, linn, benton, marion, polk, lincoln and yamhill counties

The U.S. Department of the Interior's Fish and Wildlife Service Region 1 awarded the State of Oregon Department of Fish and Wildlife (ODFW) a Wildlife Restoration and Basic Hunter Education and Safety formula grant (CFDA 15.611) in the amount of $751,938 effective July 1, 2025, through June 30, 2026. Under this award, ODFW provides wildlife habitat protection, enhancement, and restoration services across the South Willamette Watershed District, which encompasses portions of seven Oregon counties (Lane, Linn, Benton, Marion, Polk, Lincoln, and Yamhill). The grant funds technical assistance and habitat management activities on approximately 2,500 acres of ODFW-owned wildlife areas, including E.E. Wilson (1,800 acres), Junction City Pond (25 acres), Courtney Creek Wildlife Area (75 acres), Millers Riverside Wildlife Area (411 acres), and Tami Wagner Wildlife Areas (141 acres).

Grant-funded activities focus on habitat renovation and management to support diverse wildlife species, including game species such as deer and elk, sensitive species, and non-game wildlife. ODFW staff stationed at the District Office in Adair Village implement projects targeting the long-term protection and recovery of wetland, wet prairie, upland, and woodland habitats throughout the West Region. The program prioritizes enhancement activities in hunter-accessible areas and regions where target species populations fall below established objectives. Additionally, ODFW provides opportunistic support for private land management and restoration projects enrolled in the Access and Habitat Program and collaborates with the Fish and Wildlife Service on additional conservation initiatives in the Willamette Valley.

The district is comprised of multiple landscapes, varying in size and topography that are owned and managed by both private and public interests. Odfw technical assistance is provided by the grant to protect, enhance and or restore habitat for wildlife on approximately 2,500 acres of land holdings. EE wilson (1,800 AC), junction city pond (25 AC), courtney creek WA (75 AC), millers riverside WA (411 AC) and tami wagner wildlife areas (141 AC) are partially managed under this program by the odfw. The swwd habitat program is administered by staff stationed at the district office (adair village)and responsible for the projects implementation. The focus of this grant is to support activities on seven odfw owned wildlife areas. Additionally we will continue to support several small odfw owned parcels that are either unmanaged or unmanned. As time and workloads allow we will develop projects on private lands that are enrolled in odfws access and habitat program (a h). The focus of these projects will be to enhance deer and ELK populations in areas accessible by hunters and or in areas where the populations of target species are below population objective. Opportunistically, we will support FWS on private land management and restoration projects in the willamette valley. Projects contribute to the long-term protection and recovery of wetland, wet prairie, upland and woodland habitats across the west region. Renovation of these important habitats contributes to the sustainability of many diverse sensitive, game and non-gamewildlife species found within the ECO-region.