September 10, 2015, Portland, Ore. — Ecotrust Forest Management (EFM) has sold 1,340 acres of forestland near Quilcene-Dabob Bay, in Jefferson County, WA to the Washington State Department of Natural Resources (DNR). The Mt. Walker property was assembled by Ecotrust Forests II, LLC in December 2013 through acquisitions of adjoining parcels from Rayonier and Pope Resources. At the time of purchase this property was under high risk of development given its scenic views and proximity to Hood Canal. Development would have led to significant consequences for water quality, loss of habitat, and conversion of productive, working forestland. EFM’s acquisition facilitated the sale of a permanent development easement while maintaining the property’s capacity to provide timber, carbon storage, habitat, recreation, and other important private and public forestry values in perpetuity.

The transaction was arranged by the Trust for Public Land (TPL), a national non-profit organization that protects land for people, ensuring healthy, livable communities for generations to come. EFM is working with TPL to limit sprawl and land use conflicts around Navy facilities in Hood Canal through fee acquisitions, and sale of conservation easements to the US Navy on qualifying forest properties. In April 2015 EFM purchased the second property under this partnership – the 854 acre Chimacum Ridge property.

DNR will continue the ecological forest management practices established by EFM. DNR manages its forestlands under a Habitat Conservation Plan (HCP), developed in partnership between NOAA Fisheries Service and the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service that seeks to provide long-term conservation of designated species and support an economically viable timber industry. DNR manages lands to provide revenues for public services including prisons, universities, and construction of public K-12 schools throughout Washington.

Through the sale of the development rights to the US Navy and the transition of underlying fee ownership to DNR, EFM has mitigated impacts to water quality resulting from potential shoreline development and maintained the acreage in productive and ecologically significant working forestland.

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EFM is a forestland investment and management company that acquires and manages forestland in the Pacific Northwest region on behalf of private investors that are seeking positive financial, social and environmental outcomes associated with their investment. EFM works to improve forest health, productivity, and diversity, while managing towards higher-quality timber and the monetization of conservation values and ecosystem services. Founded in 2004, EFM is a Forest Stewardship Council (FSC) Certified manager with over 30,000 acres and $80M in assets currently under management. For more information, visit www.ecotrustforests.com.