The Chehalis Watershed in Peril: a tale of floods, droughts, forest practices, and climate change

The Chehalis watershed is the second largest watershed in Washington State.  From its headwaters in the Willapa Hills, it runs about 130 miles in a circuitous path to the Chehalis River estuary.  It is a rain-fed watershed that has been heavily logged since the 1850s.  Tree plantations, both privately and publicly owned, dominate the watershed.  Only 14,000 acres of older, structurally complex forests remain in the watershed, where there are no National Parks or other protected areas.

In the summer of 2023, the Chehalis River experienced the lowest water levels in 94 years – since recordkeeping began.  Clear-cut logging of old forests has a huge impact on stream and river hydrology, with flows reduced by as much as 50% in summer as water is sucked up by young plantation trees.  Clear-cut logging also has a clear connection to the devastating floods that dominate the watershed in the last 30 years. 

In this talk, Lee will give a general overview of environmental issues in the Chehalis watershed, as well as highlight the connection between forest practices and water quality.  She will highlight the importance of preserving the last of the older, structurally complex and diverse forests that remain in the watershed.