The Latest
Supporters like you make our ambitious work to create a more livable future for all of Central Oregon possible.
If you would like to make your donation go even further, please check if your employer will match your gift! You can also view recent updates below to learn more about our wide-ranging work to protect what we love about Central Oregon.
This summer, to help mark our 40th anniversary, we headed out to explore three places that Central Oregon LandWatch has played an integral role in preserving and shaping.
The Deschutes Basin is a dynamic watershed, an Indigenous homeland, a municipal water supply, a productive agricultural region, and the backbone of Central Oregon’s recreation economy. Unlike other basins across the West, the Deschutes Basin is fortunate to have enough water to reasonably meet all of these water users’ needs—if sensibly managed and allocated.
Those who need water least often get the most, while the most productive farms in the region, municipalities, and river ecosystems struggle to get by with whatever water is left.
An antiquated system for allocating Central Oregon’s surface water is colliding with 21st-century urbanization and county land use practices in ways that magnify waste and inequity.
The City of Bend has constructed more than 50 roundabouts to date, and that number grows every year. We look into the reasons why, and share some insight into the future of roundabouts in Bend.
Across Central Oregon, irrigation districts deliver nearly twice the water local crops require; water is applied to weeds and lands not currently practicing agriculture; porous canals lose up to half the water diverted from the river.
It sounds like something has gone very wrong. But in many ways, Central Oregon’s water management system is actually designed to create waste.
It’s National Rivers Month, so we’re taking a look at two Central Oregon streams that are near, dear, and deserving of our care: the Crooked River and Whychus Creek.
Central Oregon LandWatch is delighted to have two thoughtful students supporting our regional livability efforts this summer. Here’s your chance to get to know Rita Powers and Grant Strother and their reasons for being here, in their own words.
Wildfire has always been part of Central Oregon’s landscape, but in today’s world of increasing heat and a growing development footprint in fire-prone areas—the risks we face are also increasing.
Thankfully, land use planning is one of the most powerful—and often overlooked—tools we have to reduce wildfire risk over time.
Friendly neighbors needed for a new video series!
Live in Bend? Love your neighborhood? Have thoughts about what could make it even better? We want to hear from you—and potentially share your story.
(Plus, we’ll give you a $50 gift card to a beloved local business in your neighborhood!)
