The Snag Conservation Working Group (SCWG), also called the Snag Committee, was initiated in 2016 and is a collaborative group with members from Yakima Valley Audubon Society (YVAS), Washington Department of Fish and Wildlife, Washington Department of Natural Resources, the US Forest Service (USFS), Yakama Nation and Conservation Northwest.

This group has been working to educate woodcutters and the general public about the value and importance of leaving dead trees (snags) standing in the landscape, both on public and private land. The areas on which the USFS allows woodcutting have been cut to the point where the abundance of snags has been seriously depleted, and some woodcutters have resorted to cutting wood illegally as a result. The SCWG has been working with the USFS to find new sources of wood that can be harvested without removing additional snags from the forest. Examples include trees removed during wildfire fighting, allowing downed “green” trees to be cut, and slash piles from logging operations. In addition, we have been working to find new areas on USFS land that could be opened for woodcutting in order to allow areas depleted of snags to recover.

The group has held meetings with woodcutters to discuss the topic of snag conservation and we have also surveyed woodcutters on the opening day of woodcutting season, asking them where they cut wood, the type of wood they prefer (e.g., pine, fir, etc.), and how much they cut annually.

SCWG has produced a brochure on the value of snags, a copy of which can be found below.  We have distributed these brochures to USFS district offices, including the Naches Ranger District, Cle Elum Ranger District and Okanogan-Wenatchee National Forest Headquarters in Wenatchee. We also distributed copies to all of the Audubon Chapters east of the Cascades.

In addition to the brochure, SCWG produced a video, “Identifying Snags with Cavities: Protecting a Critical Wildlife Resource.” The purpose of the video is to educate woodcutters (and the general public) on how to identify cavities in snags, and to leave snags with cavities in place. These snags should not be felled for firewood. Even though the woodpecker that created the cavity may be finished nesting, successive cavity nesting species will use that cavity for many nesting seasons to come. Here is a link to the video on the WDFW website: Snags – The Wildlife Tree | Washington Department of Fish & Wildlife. You can also view the video on YouTube: https://youtu.be/EviIMA3ihN0

In 2021, the SCWG started a new project to monitor standing snags on state lands in the Wenas Creek area. The area has high recreational use by campers, horseback riders, off-road vehicle enthusiasts, hunters and birdwatchers. Due to this high use, snags are routinely cut down, primarily for campfires, even though it is illegal to cut standing snags on state owned lands.  With help from YVAS funding, signs were purchased to place on existing snags in the area in the hopes that these signs will deter hunters and campers from cutting the snags for firewood. GPS coordinates and measurements (e.g., distance from road, diameter, height) will be taken for the signed snags and snags without signs in order to compare harvest rates. Volunteers will monitor the snags for three years to gauge the effectiveness of the signs. Additional signs were procured with YVAS funds to give to private landowners to protect snags on their property and bring awareness to the importance of protecting snags during timber harvests.

In 2020, leadership at the USFS Naches Ranger District changed and, with COVID restrictions and wildfire issues, we have not been able to meet, but we will update this page with new projects and the results of the Wenas Snag Study.

If you would like more information on the SCWG, please contact SCWG chair Jeff Kozma at kozj@yakamafish-nsn.gov .

Click here for the lastest information on the Wenas Snag Study.

Snag Brochure

Here is a link to our printable full color brochure: Snags for Wildlife Brochure

Two snags which were illegally cut over the winter in the Wenas Study area – February 2022, photo: Jeff Kozma