Keeping water in streams while supporting working lands

Farms and ranches need water. And so do fish. At The Freshwater Trust, we know that agriculture and healthy rivers can coexist. Just ask Pat Voigt, a rancher in Grant County. His ranch is located at the top of the Middle Fork John Day Watershed, a critical place for spawning spring Chinook in late August and early September and home to healthy stocks of bull trout and steelhead. In 2005, The Freshwater Trust approached Pat with a plan to improve irrigation practices and pay him to keep his water in stream – with success on both accounts. By working hand-in-hand with willing a landowner, The Freshwater Trust identified ways to keep both his land working and the river flowing.