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ADAM PEARSON
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August 27, 2006 The individual members of Partnership for the Umpqua Rivers may not always see eye-to-eye, but their collaborations have earned a 2006 Take Pride in America award. Partnership for the Umpqua Rivers, comprised of landowners, industrialists, ranchers, conservationists, recreationists and other interest groups, strives to improve water quality and fish runs in the Umpqua watershed. Because the watershed is a hodgepodge of federal, state, county and privately owned lands, the partnership’s main obstacle is bringing different interest groups together on a level playing field. “That’s what we do — irregardless of who the landowners are,” said Bob Kinyon, executive director of Partnership for the Umpqua Rivers. On Sept. 14, the partnership will be recognized for its workings — with over a dozen other Take Pride in America award recipients from around the country — at a formal awards ceremony at the Department of the Interior in Washington, D.C. Take Pride in America is an initiative of the U.S. Department of the Interior and is a nationwide partnership program. Its goal is to inspire the care of public lands by citizens. The announcement earlier this month that the partnership had been chosen for the award took its members off guard. They weren’t even aware their organization had been nominated. “We were tremendously surprised,” said Jake Gibbs, president of the partnership’s board. Jake Winn, restoration coordinator for the Roseburg-based Bureau of Land Management, nominated Partnership for the Umpqua Rivers for the Take Pride in America award because, he said, the organization is instrumental in BLM’s stream improvement projects. “We’ve been partnering with them closely in restoration work that spans ownership boundaries,” Winn said, which “allowed us to restore entire streams instead of bits and pieces.” Because BLM land exists in a checkerboard format on either side of the Umpqua Valley, a myriad of land ownership exists in the in-between gaps. Winn said the BLM had not undertaken the complexity of approaching numerous landowners for collaborative streamenhancement projects before the Partnership for the Umpqua Rivers’ formation, more than 10 years ago. Partnership for the Umpqua Rivers was previously known as the Umpqua Basin Watershed Council, until changing its name in December 2005. The organization originally formed in 1992 and called itself Umpqua Basin Fisheries Restoration Initiative. Now, Winn says, the organization serves as the federal agency’s essential intermediary with landowners. “They’re all at the table,” Winn said. Over the last decade, the partnership has worked closely with a wide variety of landowners and agencies for projects such as tree planting, fencing, livestock crossings, stock water, in-stream log and boulder structures, culvert replacements, volunteer water-quality testing, watershed assessments and public education and outreach. Kinyon said the partnership completed $2 million worth of restoration work this past fiscal year. BLM provided $639,000 of that funding with other sources, providing $1.3 million in matching funds. “With their help we have been able to accomplish work that previously seemed out of reach,” said Jay Carlson, the BLM’s Roseburg district manager, in a press release. This year’s Take Pride in America award winners were chosen from nominations representing individuals, groups and projects from 32 different states. Representing Partnership for the Umpqua Rivers, Gibbs, Debbie Thornton, the partnership’s fiscal manager, board member Sandy Lyon and treasurer Chuck Schnautz will travel to the nation’s capitol to accept the award. Winn will travel on behalf of the BLM. “It’s a big deal to us,” Gibbs said. You can reach reporter Adam Pearson at 957-4213 or by e-mail at
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