The Klamath Basin provides a disproportionately high abundance of important habitat for waterfowl and waterbirds during spring and fall migration and the breeding season. The Basin is characterized by a complex set of water-related challenges that requires sensitivity to partner readiness and timing. In 2018, the IWJV launched the Water 4 Initiative to bring diverse stakeholders together to address water challenges and achieve multiple benefits.

In the Klamath Basin, that means (among many other things) highlighting the history of collaboration between agricultural producers and refuge managers in sustaining habitat for sage grouse, waterfowl, and a host of other species. A series of journalistic articles and related social media created in 2020 portrays the connections between local agriculture, wetlands conservation, and wildlife habitat through the lens of FWS refuge programs and successful partnerships and agricultural producers.

Back from the Brink
April 2020
This sage grouse story remains an ongoing example of conservation success as a result of hard-won partnerships.

Farming and Wetlands Coexist in the Klamath Basin
May 2020
National Wildlife Refuge programs tightly link agriculture and wetland conservation in the Klamath Basin.

Woven Together By Water: Ecosystems, Communities, and Irrigation in the Klamath Basin
July 2020
People, wildlife, and the landscape itself are all bound to the past, present, and future of irrigation infrastructure in the Klamath Basin.

Completing the Puzzle for Waterbird Habitat Conservation in the Pacific Flyway
November 2020
Conserving waterfowl habitat in the Klamath Basin is critical for waterfowl populations in California’s Central Valley.