Lower_Snake-Tucannon CSP Watershed| Washington NRCS

Additional information regarding state specific guidelines for the Lower Snake-Tucannon CSP Watershed will be posted to this page as it becomes available.

Lower Snake-Tucannon Watershed
The Lower Snake-Tucannon Watershed is located in the southeastern corner of Washington state. The watershed is approximately 945,000 acres in size and includes all of Garfield County with the exception of the Umatilla National Forest. Other counties included in the watershed are portions of Whitman, Columbia, and Asotin Counties.

The sub watersheds within Garfield County are the Alpowa Creek, Pataha Creek, Meadow Creek, Deadman Creek and Tatman Creek. The northern most part of the watershed is located in Whitman County and includes the Alkali Flat Creek, Penawawa Creek and Almota Creek drainages that all empty directly into the Snake River. The Tucannon portion of the watershed includes eastern Columbia County and western Garfield County. A small portion of Asotin County is on the eastern border of the watershed and includes the sub drainage of Alpowa Creek.

April 14^th (Monday) 6:30 p.m. Colfax – Community Education and Training

Center, N. 123 Main Street, Colfax

April 15^th (Tuesday) 6:30 p.m. Dayton – Youth Building

105 Columbia County Fairgrounds, Dayton

April 16^th (Wednesday) 6:30 p.m. Pomeroy – High School Gym (Auditorium),

1090 Pataha Street, Pomeroy

April 17^th (Thursday) 6:30 p.m. Clarkston – USDA Clarkston Service Center

720 6th Street, Clarkston

Physical Description
The major land uses in this watershed are dry cropland and rangeland. There are a few hundred acres of irrigated hay ground and a few orchards.

The cropland is generally silt loam, very deep and well drained. Rainfall varies from 10” to 24” and crops are mostly all cereal grains with some legumes in the over 18” precipitation zones. The south slope range is rocky and generally very steep with the majority of acres falling in the 12” to 16” rainfall zone. Bluebunch wheatgrass, Idaho Fescue and downy brome grass are common as well as rabbit brush and sage brush. North slopes are primarily in the 16” to 20” rainfall zone and are deeper, better drained and not as rocky as the south slopes. Idaho Fescue, Bluebunch wheatgrass, lupine, yarrow, phlox, big bluegrass, vetch, wild rose bushes, Douglas Hawthorne and many species of wildflowers are plentiful.

Wildlife includes California Quail, China Pheasant, Chucker, a variety of ducks, Canada geese, song birds, ravens, magpies, a variety of hawks, owls and a few golden eagles. Large game species are mule and white tail deer, elk, and an occasional moose. Coyotes and cougar are also common.

Garfield and Asotin Counties are presently at the maximum acres allowed for CRP with emphasis on wildlife food, cover and water. There are literally miles of riparian forest buffers in Asotin, Garfield and Columbia Counties and hundreds of acres of field grass buffer strips.

Map of Lower Snake-Tucannon Watershed

Counties in Lower Snake-Tucannon Watershed

Land Cover/Use

The Lower Snake-Tucannon watershed contains approximately 114,000 acres of public lands.

For General and Application Information, visit our national NRCS CSP home page.

Program Contacts

David Brown
Asst. State Conservationist for Programs
USDA - Natural Resources Conservation Service
316 W. Boone Ave Suite 450
Spokane, WA 99201
509.323.2971

Ed Teel
District Conservationist
Walla Walla USDA Service Center
Phone: (509) 522-6347 Ext. 106
Fax: (509) 525-2811
1501 Business One Circle, Suite 101
Walla Walla, WA 99362-9526