Expertise in Action
Our Tools for Conserving Legacy Forests

Natural Climate Solutions

In 2023, State legislators in Olympia invested a landmark $83 million in forest conservation and ecological forest management practices to boost carbon sequestration on state lands. This funding marked the first time the state government conserved legacy forests strictly for their carbon value, by designating it a high-impact “natural climate solution” worthy of funding under the Climate Commitment Act’s Natural Climate Solutions (NCS) account.

 

This funding protects state trust lands with mature forests of exceptional value for carbon storage and habitat, without adversely impacting the trust beneficiaries like counties and schools that currently receive money from DNR timber sales. DNR will use NCS funds to purchase private timberlands that will be managed to generate replacement revenue, allowing the agency to conserve mature forests that would have otherwise been logged. The replacement lands will be logged to generate revenue, but they’ll be managed to a higher standard than they had been previously under private ownership.

 

Since 2023, NCS funds will have permanently conserved approximately 2,800 acres of “structurally complex, carbon dense” state forests across Western Washington by purchasing younger replacement forests to provide revenue to rural communities. Some of the replacement timberlands bought by the funds also replaced “encumbered” lands that were previously removed from the timber sale schedule due to endangered species requirements. This funding also purchased replacement acres of commercial forestlands to support “encumbered” counties impacted by past conservation due to endangered species requirements, ensuring both ecological and economic justice for rural communities. This program has also funded silvicultural practices like thinning on state lands to improve forest health and increase carbon sequestration.

 

NCS Current Status

 

Through CRF’s work with coalition partners, we secured another $10 million of NCS funds in 2025 that will protect approximately 500 acres of legacy forests!

 

A new exciting addition to this NCS conservation program is the “Cash for Counties” clause. CRF and state partners worked with Washington State Association of Counties (WSAC) and the legislature to provide counties the option to get a portion of their replacement value in cash up front, in addition to replacement lands that grow the total number of acres managed in trust for beneficiaries. 

 

We championed this small but powerful change to address the unique circumstances of trust beneficiaries—such as underfunded rural school districts—that face urgent short-term financial needs while waiting for the long-term benefits of expanded trust lands to materialize. By providing greater flexibility in replacement revenues, counties can choose the options that best meet their immediate priorities while investing in the long-term resilience of their communities.

 

County governments play an important role in deciding whether these funds will be spent in their county. To educate counties about this amazing conservation opportunity, we put together this Fact Sheet for County Governments.

 

If your community would like assistance proposing a forest in your county for conservation through the 2025 CCA funding, please contact us!