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- By Native News Online Staff
The Yurok Tribe, California's largest federally recognized tribal nation, was given 73 square miles of land -- or 47,097 acres -- along the eastern side of the lower Klamath River on Thursday. The land exchange is being called the argest single “land back” deal in California history. The land deal was announced by the Tribe, the Western Rivers Conservancy (WRC), the California Wildlife Conservation Board (WCB) and the California State Coastal Conservancy (CSCC).
The 73 square miles of land is now owned and managed by the Yurok Tribe as the Blue Creek Salmon Sanctuary and Yurok Tribal Community Forest.
“On behalf of the Yurok people, I want to sincerely thank Western Rivers Conservancy for their longtime partnership and commitment to return a major part of our homeland. The impact of this project is enormous,” Joseph L. James, chairman of the Yurok Tribe, said. “In working together for over two decades establishing the Community Forest and Salmon Sanctuary, we are forging a sustainable future for the fish, forests and our people that honors both ecological integrity and our cultural heritage.”
The 47,097 acres of ancestral lands in the lower Klamath River watershed are vital to the health of Blue Creek—a place of deep spiritual importance to the Yurok Tribe and a critical source of cold water for Klamath River fish. These lands—comprising forests, river corridors, and prairies—support essential habitat for many imperiled species, including coho and Chinook salmon, marbled murrelets, northern spotted owls, and Humboldt martens. In the face of climate change, Blue Creek remains a crucial cold-water refuge for salmon, steelhead, and other native fish.
Nelson Mathews, president of Western Rivers Conservancy, emphasized the broader environmental benefits of this achievement: “This project exemplifies the power of partnership, showcasing how conservation efforts and the land back movement can come together to benefit the rivers, fish, wildlife and people of an entire landscape. After more than 20 years of close collaboration with the Yurok Tribe, we have together achieved this magnificent conservation success while ensuring these lands and waters are in the hands of those most deeply committed to their future health and sustainable use. Blue Creek and its watershed are critical to the health of the entire Klamath fishery. The Yurok Tribe has the resources and the deep cultural connections that sustained this land for millennia, and now they can continue to do so.”
Thursday’s announcement marks the culmination of Western Rivers Conservancy’s 23-year effort to return 47,097 acres of vital ancestral lands along the Klamath River—including the entire lower Blue Creek watershed and its confluence with the Klamath—to the Yurok Tribe. Between 2009 and 2017, WRC acquired or facilitated the transfer of these lands from Green Diamond Resource Company in multiple phases, and has since conveyed them to the Tribe in stages. The final phase—14,968 acres—officially transferred to the Yurok Tribe on May 30, 2025.
This landmark $56 million land transfer, the largest of its kind in California history, includes 25 miles of the Klamath River’s eastern bank and dozens of miles of key salmon-bearing tributaries, such as Blue Creek, Bear Creek, Pecwan Creek, and Ke’Pel Creek. Formerly managed as industrial timberlands by Green Diamond and its predecessor, Simpson Logging Company, for nearly a century, these lands are the ancestral homeland of the Yurok people, who have lived along the Klamath River and depended on its salmon for generations. The project represents a powerful model of collaboration between a Native American Tribe and a conservation nonprofit, reflecting a growing national movement at the intersection of land back and environmental stewardship.
To fund the initiative, WRC developed an innovative financing strategy that combined $56 million from diverse sources. Just $8 million came from direct public grants, while the rest was raised through private foundations, corporate and individual philanthropy, carbon credit sales, and the federal New Markets Tax Credit program. Revenue from ongoing carbon credit sales will continue to support the long-term success of the project.
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