Hundreds of acres of old-growth forest land near the North and Middle Forks of the Snoqualmie River are now under the protection of Forterra, a Seattle-based land conservation organization, and the Washington Department of Natural Resources.
On Dec. 29, Forterra and the DNR finalized two deals with property owner Cugini Land and Timber to buy two properties totalling 376 acres of old-growth forest. Forterra worked with the DNR to purchase the 220-acre Blethen Lake property, located in the Upper Quartz Creek area of the Middle Fork, and the 156-acre Titicaed Creek property, in the North Fork Tolt River watershed.
Charlie Raines, director of forest conservation at Forterra, said the total cost of both properties, which were purchased by the DNR with grant funding from the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, was $1.2 million. An appraiser visited both sites to calculate the value of the timber. Forterra had been hoping to acquire these properties for more than a decade.
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