The CTUIR Ceded Area Priority Stream Corridor Conservation and Protection Project is an effort led by the CTUIR in partnership with other conservation partners to secure permanent protection for core anadromous fish habitat areas in the ceded territory of the CTUIR. This includes the river corridors and watersheds of the Grande Ronde, Umatilla, Walla Walla and John Day Rivers. Protection and long term conservation of core fish and wildlife habitats is crucial piece of a comprehensive strategy to maintain productive naturally producing native fish and wildlife populations.  The project focuses on prioritizing lands for fee title acquisition or purchase of permanent conservation easements that would assure future development and management would maintain or enhance fish and wildlife habitat capability. Conservation lands would establish opportunities for habitat restoration efforts with persistent benefits.

The project relies heavily on individual subbasin plan’s Ecosystem Diagnosis and Treatment (EDT) modeling to direct specific conservation actions to optimize benefits to anadromous fish. Conservation opportunities are evaluated and prioritized using criteria including:

1.    Direct benefits to ESA listed species.
2.    Multiple species and life stage benefits.
3.    Opportunities to extend the downstream limit of anadromous fish production within the watershed due to cumulative upstream benefits.
4.    High degree of defensibility relative to size and configuration of acquisition tract and adjacent threats
5.    Adjacency to existing protected areas and/or direct enhancement of connectivity between conservation areas
6.    Enhancement of administrative or logistics associated with management of existing adjacent conservation areas.
7.    Does the project protect  high value or establish good restoration

This contract provides for  pre-acquisition efforts, including obtaining appraisal, property surveys, due diligence activities for acquiring lands.