Oregon nonprofit returns Wallowa land to Nez Perce Tribe

Wildlife will have easier access to the waters of Wallowa Lake thanks to a gift from an Oregon nonprofit.

Kathleen Ackley is the executive director of the Wallowa Land Trust. As more Northwest lake communities are being developed with vacation homes and Airbnbs, she says her organization’s focus is protecting natural areas, open spaces and farms in Northeast Oregon.

The nonprofit recently gifted 30 acres of undeveloped land near the lake to the Nez Perce Tribe.

“The more we began to work with the tribe and really understand where their values are, it made more sense that they could manage it just as well as we could, if not better,” Ackley said.

Portland General Electric settled a lawsuit in 2011 over emissions from a Boardman coal-fired power plant. The court awarded $2.5 million for environmental restoration and clean energy projects as part of the settlement.