Proposed Habitat Conservation Plan Could Negatively Impact Oregon County’s Annual Revenue

Oregon’s Clatsop County Board of Commissioners on Wednesday (10-12-22) voted 4 to 1 for a proclamation opposing a habitat conservation plan that would limit logging in state forests.

The plan, which was prepared by the Oregon Department of Forestry, would protect species under the federal Endangered Species Act by creating protected habitat across nearly 640,000 acres of Oregon state forests.

Most of the forests set aside are within the Clatsop and Tillamook counties’ boundaries, which in turn is causing local leaders to fear the impact of a significant reduction in timber revenue.

As an example, Clatsop County relies on timber revenue. County leaders say a projected 30% to 38% reduction, the result of the plan, could result in an annual loss of $7.3 million to $9.1 million for the country and local taxing districts.