Protecting Drinking Water at Jetty Creek
The city of Rockaway Beach, Oregon, depends on Jetty Creek for its drinking water. The small coastal watershed supplies water to more than 3,000 residents and is the sole source for the community. For years, the forested land surrounding the creek was held by a private timber company and managed primarily for harvest, raising concerns about water quality, erosion, and the long-term reliability of the municipal water supply.
In 2025, a coalition of local leaders, water district officials, and conservation partners completed the acquisition of nearly 1,200 acres of forestland in the Jetty Creek watershed, establishing it as a community forest managed for watershed protection. Sustainable Northwest played a key role in the effort, helping to secure federal and state funding, conducting stakeholder outreach, and providing technical assistance on forest management planning.
Under the new management plan, the forest will be gradually transitioned from even-aged plantation stands to a more diverse, multi-age structure that better protects water quality and aquatic habitat. Streamside buffers will be widened, road drainage will be improved, and thinning operations will focus on reducing stand density to improve forest health and resilience to climate change. A small amount of sustainable timber harvest will continue, generating revenue to help cover management costs.
The Jetty Creek Community Forest is a case study in how protecting forests and protecting drinking water go hand in hand. As climate change brings more intense storms and longer dry seasons to the Oregon Coast, intact forested watersheds are one of the most cost-effective tools communities have to ensure clean, reliable water supplies. Rockaway Beach is now better positioned to face those challenges because its residents chose to invest in the health of the land that feeds their taps.
Sustainable Northwest is proud to have supported this effort and will continue to provide technical assistance as the community forest enters its first years of management under public ownership.