Douglas County
Douglas County is in the southwest part of Oregon in the Umpqua River valley and stretches from Crater Lake in the Cascade Mountains to the Pacific Ocean at Reedsport. It includes about 3.2 million acres, of which 47 percent is privately owned. Historically, Douglas County's economy has been based on timber and agriculture. Agriculture is important because of the fertile soil and moderate climate that exists in the Umpqua Valley, making this valley one of the most productive timber and grazing areas in the nation. Agricultural covers much of the valley floor and extends in to the foothills with timber production in the foothills of the Cascade and Coast Range mountains. Timber production, livestock production and viticulture occur on the highly productive agricultural soils.
Current Financial Assistance Opportunities for Farmers, Ranchers and Forest Owners in Douglas County
The following Conservation Implementation Strategies are available to help Douglas County agricultural producers address targeted resource concerns identified in the Long Range Plan. Click the project names below for more information:
- Climate-Focused Sustainable Livestock Production in Oregon
- Prescribed Fire Management Planning
- Elk Creek Forest Stand Health and Fuels Reduction
- Forest Management Planning
- Umpqua Oak Partnership - Oakland - Northbank Phase Conservation Project
- Local Foods and Food Systems Resilience Initiative
- Siuslaw Floodplain Reconnection
- Conservation Reserve Enhancement Program: In exchange for removing environmentally sensitive land from production and establishing permanent resource conserving plant species, farmers and ranchers are paid an annual rental rate along with other federal and state incentives as applicable per each CREP agreement. Participation is voluntary, and the contract period is typically 10–15 years. Administered by the Farm Service Agency with technical support from NRCS.
Additional Funding Opportunities...
In addition to the local projects above, producers may also apply for statewide programs such as the Conservation Stewardship Program, the Organic Initiative, Seasonal High Tunnel Initiative, On-Farm Energy Initiative, and conservation easement programs. Visit with your local District Conservationist for more information on these and other programs or visit the NRCS Programs webpage.
Local Work Group Meetings
Every year, NRCS hosts a Local Work Group meeting where farmers, landowners, conservation partners and other members of the community discuss the natural resource needs for the county. Based on feedback from those meetings, NRCS updates the county's Long-Range Plan and develops new Conservation Implementation Strategies to address those resource concerns. You may contact us anytime to express concerns or comments about conservation needs in the county, and we encourage you to attend the next Local Work Group meeting in your county. For more information about Local Work Group meetings, contact your local NRCS office.