Union County
Union County is located in northeast Oregon and is composed of three distinct physiographic areas. The 450 square mile Grande Ronde Valley is in the center of the county flanked by the Blue Mountains to the west and the Wallowa Mountains to the east. The four major drainages in the county are the Grande Ronde River, the Minam River, Catherine Creek and the Powder River. Union county covers 1,300,480 acres. Fifty percent of the county is publicly owned. Land uses include approximately 141,000 acres of cropland of which 63,000 acres are irrigated, 258,000 acres of pasture or rangeland, 121,000 acres of non-industrial private forest land and 115,000 acres of private industrial forestland. The NRCS office is located in La Grande. The NRCS staff provides technical assistance and administers NRCS financial assistance conservation programs.
Current Financial Assistance Opportunities for Farmers, Ranchers and Forest Owners in Union County
The following Conservation Implementation Strategies are available to help Union County agricultural producers address targeted resource concerns identified in the Long Range Plan. Click the project names below for more information:
- Catherine Creek Mid-Elevation Irrigation Efficiency
- Climate-Focused Sustainable Livestock Production in Oregon
- Drought and Wildfire Watering Strategy
- West Valley Forest Management
- East Oregon Forest Restoration (RCPP)
- Sage Grouse Initiative - Oregon Strategy (WLFW)
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.