Science-Based Restoration on the Columbia Plateau

Washington’s Columbia Basin has a long history of agriculture, grazing and other human activities that have gradually transformed the landscape. This includes the disruption of natural fire regimes and the introduction of non-native plants and invasive species. For the past two decades, the Bureau of Land Management has been focused on restoring the natural shrub-steppe ecosystem to improve rangeland health and productivity, benefit native wildlife, and reduce fuel loads. In that time, the BLM has restored thousands of acres of public lands in some of the most complex and sensitive areas in the Pacific Northwest. Much of this effort is driven by collaboration among partners and contractors to collect and distribute native seed genotypes adapted to this unique area. Learn more about these dynamic efforts in this short video.