A massive restoration project is expected to begin next year in the Deschutes National Forest outside Sisters and continue through the year 2040. The U.S. Forest Service signed the final decision to treat 25,000 acres in an area known as Green Ridge, 13 miles north of Sisters. The goal is to restore forest resiliency to disease and reduce the risk of a large-scale wildfire.
“My final decision incorporates dozens of public and agency comments and field visits, best available science, and strikes a solid balance between active forest and fuels management and protection of habitat critical to some of the last remaining Northern Spotted Owls on the Sisters Ranger District,” Sisters District Ranger Ian Reid said in a news release.
Planning for the project began in 2017. Over the years, several changes were made to address concerns about impacts to the Northern Spotted Owl, large trees, deer habitat and the Metolius Late Successional Reserve. The reserve is an area with older, larger trees, a multi-layered canopy and critical habitat for wildlife.
“The planning and approval process for the Green Ridge Landscape Restoration Project has taken many years and Friends of the Metolius has been involved at every step along the way,” said Doug Hancock, President of the Friends of the Metolius nonprofit group. He said the project is a necessary compromise to begin restoring the Green Ridge landscape. The Confederated Tribes of Warm Springs was also closely involved in the process of planning the restoration and supports the final plan.
Documents provided by the Forest Service state that work is needed in the Green Ridge area to address extensive past actions like clearcutting and high-grade logging. The plan also calls for removing shade-tolerant tree species such as grand or white fir and encouraging the growth of fire-resilient trees, restoring special habitats like Prairie Farm Meadow, aspen and cottonwood stands and providing recreational opportunities to support local economies and lifestyles. Other treatments will include commercial and noncommercial thinning, mowing, prescribed burning, trail reroutes and road closures and decommissioning. It’s estimated that the road closures will increase wildlife habitat by 10% in the area.
This summer, Forest Service employees will be preparing the project area to begin forest thinning.
This article appears in Source Weekly June 5, 2025.
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