"The Mohawk Watershed Partnership exists to assess, evaluate, improve and restore the condition of the Mohawk River watershed through promotion, involvement, education, coordination, and development of goals and plans, using the collective wisdom and voluntary action of our community members.” Mohawk Watershed Partnership Mission Statement

The Mohawk River Watershed

Located just north of Springfield, Oregon, the Mohawk River is the largest tributary to the McKenzie River. With its headwaters in the foothills below the Cascade Mountain Range, the Mohawk River flows more than 30 miles to its confluence with the McKenzie River. The McKenzie River then flows into the Willamette River which in turn flows into the Columbia River. The Columbia River eventually flows into the Pacific Ocean.

The area that drains to the Mohawk River (also known as the Mohawk watershed) encompasses approximately 115,000 acres within Lane and Linn counties and ranges in elevation from about 450 to 3,859 feet above sea level. The upper reaches of the watershed are mostly industrial forest lands interspersed with federal forest lands managed by the Bureau of Land Management. The lower portion of the watershed, approximately 18,000 acres along the stream corridor, is predominately privately owned agricultural land, small timber farms, small homesteads and rural residential homes. There are no incorporated towns with the boundaries of the Mohawk watershed; Marcola is the largest community. Other smaller settlements include Mohawk, Wendling, and Mable.

Once home to a native run of spring chinook salmon, the Mohawk River still serves as primary spawning area for what appears to be the strongest population group of fluvial cutthroat trout in the entire Willamette Basin. The State of Oregon has identified the Mohawk River as a water quality limited stream because of it high temperatures. Restoration efforts that focus on solutions to this problem, as well as others, are underway.

For More Information…

For more information about the Mohawk River Watershed and the Mohawk Watershed Partnership's restoration work click on one of the following main topics:

• History of the Mohawk Valley
• The Mohawk Watershed Partnership - History and Organization
• The Assessment and Action Plan
• Focus Sub-basin Project
• Partnership Activities (Past, Ongoing, and Upcoming)
• Getting Involved
• Links
• Comments and Questions

Please contact us with questions or comments. Contact our coordinator, Jared Weybright at 687-9076 or email projects@mckenziewc.org or click on "Comments and Questions" above.