Clark County seeks 135 acres in Camp Bonneville

Clark County wants to add 135 acres of forestlands within the Camp Bonneville property to the roughly 3,800 acres it already owns.

Kevin Tyler, lands manager for Clark County Public Works, said the county filed an application with the state Department of Natural Resources’ trust lands transfer program in July.

“Most of the property that we have sought as part of the application is within the fence line of the former military reservation, and it’s property that we actively manage as part of the consent decree,” Tyler said.

He said the land primarily consists of steep terrain along the western side of the property that would eventually be included in the wildlife management area.

Under the trust lands program, the state manages over 2.1 million acres of forestlands. Along with protecting habitat for wildlife, the state logs a portion of the lands to generate revenue for public schools and other trust beneficiaries.

Tyler said the application process for land transfers, which begins in the fall of odd-numbered years, is slow.

“In the late spring or early summer … the trust land transfer advisory committee evaluates and ranks the applications and then those go to the Board of Natural Resources in the fall. They said right after Labor Day is when they usually (decide),” Tyler said.

During even-numbered years, the state focuses on tribal outreach and also seeks letters of support from communities for transfer applications. Once the application is approved, the Board of Natural Resources submits a funding request to the Legislature, which is considered as lawmakers work through the biennium budget process.

“That’s when they’ll consider funding the trust lands transfer program and how much they’ll consider,” Tyler said. “The Legislature would fund these transfers, so essentially DNR receives money to offload these properties and then the money is used to acquire different properties they can manage more effectively for the trust. The county doesn’t pay anything.”

Tyler said the county should hear by August or September, prior to the Board of Natural Resources meeting, if the application is moving forward. A decision from the Legislature would come in early 2027.

Friends of Camp Bonneville said it will be writing a letter in support of the application but did not have a statement available yet. Public comment can be submitted to the state at dnr.wa.gov/land-transactions/trust-land-transfer/proposed-and-current-transfers.