Category Overview
As Washington continues to grow, many of our most beautiful areas are threatened with development. In addition, native ecosystems are receding, and important wildlife habitat and migratory pathways are being cut off. The Natural Areas category helps combat this by funding projects that protect wildlife habitat and rare geological features while also preserving public access for back-country recreation.
Project Highlights
The Department of Natural Resources (DNR) proposes to acquire approximately 84.75 acres of important mature forest cover habitat within the Stavis Natural Resources Conservation Area (NRCA). The NRCA is located along Hood Canal near Seabeck in Kitsap County. The priority property is currently at risk of conversion in an urbanizing area and its addition to the NRCA will support wildlife and protect Puget Sound nearshore habitat, mature upland forest, and critical wetlands complexes. The Stavis Natural Area, combined of the NRCA and Kitsap Forest Natural Area Preserve (NAP), provides high quality and regionally diminishing wildlife habitat, making up a crucial part of a larger landscape of forest lands on the western Kitsap Peninsula. The project area provides biodiversity conservation in the Puget Trough, containing WDFW priority habitats that include freshwater wetlands, instream and riparian habitat, estuaries, and marine/estuarine shoreline, along with mature and old-growth forest. This proposal is a continuation of the project identified in contract 22-1295A, Stavis NRCA Riparian Protection 2022, awarded to DNR in July 2023, and will serve as the second part in DNR’s acquisition strategy of significant riparian and nearshore habitat.