Category Overview
Farmland Preservation protects valuable farmland and habitat for recreationally important animals, like salmon, birds, deer, and elk. These projects allow families to continue farming the land they have worked on for generations, and provide Washingtonians with healthy local food and a diverse economy. WWRP is the only source of farmland preservation funding in the state budget.
Project Highlights
The State Conservation Commission will use this grant to buy a voluntary land preservation agreement, also called a conservation easement, to conserve the 107.7-acre Thornton Ranch, a livestock and hay ranch near Cowiche. The land has prime farmland soils and is considered both farmland of statewide importance and farmland of unique importance. The ranch is bisected by more than a half-mile of Cowiche Creek, which is home to steelhead trout and Chinook and coho salmon.