BLM, Confederated Tribes of Warm Springs complete land exchange 12 years in the making

Goal: To consolidate tribal, federal lands

 PRINEVILLE, Ore. (KTVZ) -- After 12 years of collaboration, the Bureau of Land Management said Thursday it has completed a land exchange with the Confederated Tribes of Warm Springs Reservation of Oregon, with support from the Bonneville Power Administration.

The Pine Creek/Spring Basin Land Exchange was authorized in the Omnibus Public Land Management Act of 2009, to consolidate both tribal and federal lands.

As part of the exchange, the BLM conveyed approximately 4,200 acres to the tribes. The BLM acquired roughly 4,500 acres, adding over 2,700 acres to federal ownership within the Spring Basin Wilderness Area and over 2.25 miles of federally managed river frontage along the John Day River.

The Confederated Tribes of Warm Springs owns and manages the 34,012-acre Pine Creek Conservation Area, adjacent to the newly designated Spring Basin Wilderness Area.

The federal lands being conveyed to the Confederated Tribes are within the 10 million acres ceded to the US by the tribes in their 1855 Treaty.

With this exchange, the CTWSRO will be able to incorporate the BLM parcels, currently scattered throughout the Pine Creek Conservation Area, into their conservation area and manage them for fish, wildlife and watershed mitigation purposes, in collaboration with the BPA, under an approved conservation easement and management plan.

"The completion of this exchange exemplifies the coordinated effort by the BLM, the CTWSRO and the BPA to work together through the years toward the common goal of providing for more efficient land management for all agencies and an increased benefit to the public who enjoys these lands," the BLM said in a news release.