Blue Mountains Conservancy board members are excited to welcome a new mission, vision and strategic plan to ground the organization and focus solely on our Pete's Pond property in La Grande and two conservation easements at End Creek in Summerville and in the Elkhorns. This new direction represents our intention to create a focused effort to protect these three properties, and offer accessible environmental education opportunities to the surrounding community.
New Vision
Blue Mountains Conservancy envisions healthy ecosystems at our Heritage Pond Education Center, End Creek, and Elkhorn properties that provide wildlife habitat, educational opportunities and local places for the community to connect to nature and history.
New Mission
Blue Mountains Conservancy is a non-profit grassroots organization dedicated to the habitat enhancement, historic conservation and public enjoyment of Heritage Pond Education Center, End Creek and Elkhorn properties.
Land Acknowledgement
It is important to acknowledge our Indigenous neighbors, the Cayuse, Umatilla, Walla Walla and Nez Perce people who have been the original inhabitants of the land now known as Pete's Pond and surrounding area, and to recognize that we are here because of the sacrifices that were forced upon them. We also must do our best to honor indigenous people, through authentic cultural narratives and continued stewardship of the water, plants, and wildlife at Pete's Pond. To follow up our acknowledgement with action, we will continue to use our resources to prioritize partnerships with Indigenous tribes for guidance.
Organizational History: Blue Mountains Conservancy was founded by a dedicated group of volunteers who came together initially in support of two projects, to build a foundation to insure perpetual stewardship of the End Creek wetland, and to help facilitate a solution with Union County that would transfer 3,700 acres of privately owned industrial timberland to public ownership and guarantee public access in perpetuity (MERA).
End Creek: In the first three years, the Conservancy sought grants and volunteer contributions aggressively, and developed a large-scale educational and research program around the End Creek wetland. In partnership with Eastern Oregon University, many students and faculty have been involved in furthering the wetland restoration, studying the ecological recovery of the area, and understanding the important role that private lands can play in conservation of natural resources and biological diversity.
MERA: When Boise Cascade divested itself of its industrial timber lands in Union County, an area close to La Grande that had been used extensively for recreation (hiking, mountain biking, horseback riding, hunting, ATV riding, mushroom picking, etc…) was placed on the market. The area was destined to be sold in 240 acre parcels and public access would have been lost. The newly-formed BMC board hoped to help negotiate a purchase of the property that would have retained the timber and high quality esthetic values of the property. Ultimately, Union County acquired an Oregon State Parks ATV grant to purchase the property, but not the timber value. Consequently, the area now know as the Mt. Emily Recreation Area (MERA) is county-owned and operated primarily as an ATV park, with a smaller area (700 acres) set aside for non-motorized recreation. Logging proceeded on an industrial scale. Lannce Colburn, founding BMC board secretary, serves as the Chair of the citizen’s advisory board for the MERA.
New Vision
Blue Mountains Conservancy envisions healthy ecosystems at our Heritage Pond Education Center, End Creek, and Elkhorn properties that provide wildlife habitat, educational opportunities and local places for the community to connect to nature and history.
New Mission
Blue Mountains Conservancy is a non-profit grassroots organization dedicated to the habitat enhancement, historic conservation and public enjoyment of Heritage Pond Education Center, End Creek and Elkhorn properties.
Land Acknowledgement
It is important to acknowledge our Indigenous neighbors, the Cayuse, Umatilla, Walla Walla and Nez Perce people who have been the original inhabitants of the land now known as Pete's Pond and surrounding area, and to recognize that we are here because of the sacrifices that were forced upon them. We also must do our best to honor indigenous people, through authentic cultural narratives and continued stewardship of the water, plants, and wildlife at Pete's Pond. To follow up our acknowledgement with action, we will continue to use our resources to prioritize partnerships with Indigenous tribes for guidance.
Organizational History: Blue Mountains Conservancy was founded by a dedicated group of volunteers who came together initially in support of two projects, to build a foundation to insure perpetual stewardship of the End Creek wetland, and to help facilitate a solution with Union County that would transfer 3,700 acres of privately owned industrial timberland to public ownership and guarantee public access in perpetuity (MERA).
End Creek: In the first three years, the Conservancy sought grants and volunteer contributions aggressively, and developed a large-scale educational and research program around the End Creek wetland. In partnership with Eastern Oregon University, many students and faculty have been involved in furthering the wetland restoration, studying the ecological recovery of the area, and understanding the important role that private lands can play in conservation of natural resources and biological diversity.
MERA: When Boise Cascade divested itself of its industrial timber lands in Union County, an area close to La Grande that had been used extensively for recreation (hiking, mountain biking, horseback riding, hunting, ATV riding, mushroom picking, etc…) was placed on the market. The area was destined to be sold in 240 acre parcels and public access would have been lost. The newly-formed BMC board hoped to help negotiate a purchase of the property that would have retained the timber and high quality esthetic values of the property. Ultimately, Union County acquired an Oregon State Parks ATV grant to purchase the property, but not the timber value. Consequently, the area now know as the Mt. Emily Recreation Area (MERA) is county-owned and operated primarily as an ATV park, with a smaller area (700 acres) set aside for non-motorized recreation. Logging proceeded on an industrial scale. Lannce Colburn, founding BMC board secretary, serves as the Chair of the citizen’s advisory board for the MERA.