Tualatin River Watershed Demonstration Project: Drinking Water Source Protection and Habitat Conservation Landscape Analysis 

In 2009, Oregon participated in one of several national demonstration projects integrating land use and water quality issues, “Enabling Source Water Protection: Aligning State Land Use and Water Protection Programs.” Project work concluded in 2010 under an EPA grant in partnership with The Trust for Public Land, Smart Growth Leadership Institute, Association of State Drinking Water Administrators and River Network. 

The Oregon project's goal was to create a replicable GIS-based tool to help prioritize lands and sensitive areas for protection in watersheds above drinking water intake(s) by:

• Identifying healthy lands most important to water quality conservation
• Identifying impaired lands that should to be restored to help protect water quality.

Additional grant funding by the Dorris Duke Charitable Foundation allowed The Trust for Public Land to complete a third module to identify areas for habitat conservation. The demonstration project focused on the Tualatin watershed due to its mix of urban, rural, forest and agricultural land uses and the potential for increasing population growth and land-use changes that may threaten the quality of the drinking water supply for the region. Methods used for the Tualatin project can be applied to other Oregon watersheds.

A summary of project results are on The Trust for Public Land Tualatin project website. The website includes:

• A summary of the data and GIS information gathered, including over 40 separate GIS data layers created, developed, or acquired as part of the project. The GIS data layers can be used independently or in combination with a few others to implement important elements of drinking water protection or other water quality efforts. For more information, see Tualatin Landscape Analysis Criteria Matrix and Metadata Report on the Documentation tab.
• A summary of Tualatin Watershed information collected prior to the analysis (See Current Conditions Report dated Sept. 11, 2009 on the Documentation tab.)
• Summary maps of prioritized areas for protection and restoration. (See Final Project Maps tab.)
• An online interactive mapping site and user guide. You need a username and password to access the online interactive mapping tool since it contains parcel scale tax-lot data. Contact Steve Aalbers, DEQ Drinking Water Protection Information Coordinator, Portland 503-229-6798 or by e-mail to discuss and gain permission to use this portion of the site.
• A final report detailing the project's steps, final products and strategic recommendations for voluntary land conservation work and regulatory land protection is posted under Documentation.