Support like yours makes all of our work possible.
Would you like to make your donation go even further? Check if your employer will match your gift.
View the recent updates below to learn more about our wide-ranging work to protect what we love about Central Oregon.
In the first month of the new administration, environmental advocates have faced a maelstrom of threats to the foundations of environmental protection and community well-being.
At LandWatch, we are determined to stay focused on the positive changes we can affect. We are here to defend the land and water of Central Oregon and ensure a livable future for all its residents — and we won’t settle for anything less.
Our Cities & Towns team is focused on two key priorities during Oregon’s 2025 legislative session: affordable housing and transportation.
We’ve detailed some of the key opportunities on our radar in Salem this year that will move Complete Communities forward in our cities and towns east of the Cascades.
Oregon’s land use planning system is hailed as a model for preserving its unique agricultural and forest landscapes while fostering sustainable growth.
Despite this, a troubling trend has emerged in recent years: spot zoning of farm and forest lands.
Today, the National Marine Fisheries Service’s “non-essential experimental population” (NEP) designation for Upper Deschutes Basin steelhead expires — meaning all steelhead above the Pelton Round Butte dams are now officially listed as threatened under the Endangered Species Act (ESA).
So much happened throughout 2024. The LandWatch team is proud to have realized some big accomplishments in the name of regional livability on behalf of Central Oregonians like you. Here is a brief retrospective of some of the things we got up to in the field, in the courtroom, and alongside our amazing community of supporters!
Over the past year, LandWatch added staff and board capacity to keep pace with the rapid change in our region, expand our impact, and achieve our ambitious vision for the future.
Now, we’re excited to introduce four inspiring community members who will be joining the LandWatch Board of Directors in 2025. Get to know Jackie Dingfelder, Nancy Hinnen, Erin Rifkin, and Peter Shepherd!
Join us as we delve into the intersectional intricacies of the United States’ most famous wildlife conservation law and Central Oregon’s prevailing framework for (theoretically) balancing the needs of water users and threatened species to better understand a path toward meaningful steelhead habitat restoration and population recovery in the Upper Deschutes Basin.
Responses to our joint survey of Central Oregon Irrigation District patrons clearly show that local irrigators are eager to improve irrigation system efficiencies and reduce water waste.
As climate change and drought continue to place pressure on water resources in Central Oregon, an integrated approach to solving water scarcity issues is needed; a concerted effort to pipe private laterals must be part of the solution.
The City of Sisters and its residents have been hard at work planning to accommodate a 20-year supply of needed housing and employment lands.
Five UGB concept alternatives will be discussed at a Dec 9 Open House. Thanks to their thoughtful approach, the City is poised to preserve the attributes that make Sisters the distinctive town it is today.
With a long holiday weekend ahead, our team hopes you will soon be enjoying meals with your cherished friends and family and time amidst your favorite native plants and rushing rivers.
