Over the past 10-15 years, the budget for Umatilla National Forest Management has been declining and the workforce is shrinking. Facilities such as toilets, picnic tables and cabins are aging, maintenance needs are growing, and Recreation Program Manager Larry Randall predicts “around two million dollars worth of backlog repairs that need to get taken care of.”Aiming to reverse these trends, Umatilla is considering a Five-year Proposed Program of Work, outlining the proposed management of 116 developed recreation sites, including campgrounds, trailheads and cabin rentals. This proposal could reduce annual operation costs on the forest 25-42 percent by implementing options such as adjusting campground operating seasons, repairing some facilities scheduled for replacement and changing the size of some campgrounds.A key component to meeting these objectives is an increase in fees at the 25 campgrounds and recreational cabin rentals where fees are currently charged. The forest is also considering phasing an additional 19 campgrounds, 13 trailheads and 2 cabins into the fee program over the next several years in order to help cover the costs of operations and maintenance.

“Because we currently have a program where use is going up and resources are going down, it’s time to focus our assets and resources to those sites that are most important,” Randall said.

Umatilla started looking at its data last winter and “it helped paint a picture of where we are and where we need to be,” Randall said.

Management staff came up with what’s called a “forest niche,” the setting the forest provides that makes it unique. Umatilla’s niche is kind of a rustic, self-reliant campground. “These spots which may seem plain to one person could be spots where families have been coming for years,” Randall said.

The proposed plan was based off of a ranking system which ranks each site on niche conformance, financial sustainability, environmental sustainability and community sustainability. “If this goes according to plan, sites will be maintained up to standard, and we will be able to take care of that backlog,” Randall said.

Umatilla hasn’t been receiving much feedback from the public. “I think it’s because people are getting used to paying fees. And the comments we have been getting have been understanding because the people who enjoy those campsites will hopefully see some tangible benefits,” Randall said.

Although this plan could affect frequent visitors to the modified campsites, this is a gradual process and a fairly modest change over the next few years.