SALEM - Eight and a half years after the wood chip ship New Carissa ran aground off the Coos Bay North Spit, an Indian Tribe in Lincoln County has been assigned the task of protecting a species of seabird impacted by the accident.

The Confederated Tribes of Siletz Indians took stewardship of a 3,851-acre property from the federal government Tuesday. Its primary function: Serve as a protector of habitat for the marbled murrelet, a threatened species in the eyes of the state and the United States. The black and white seabird saw its population decline by at least 262 after the New Carissa ran aground Feb. 4, 1999, spilling tens of thousands of gallons of oil into the Pacific Ocean, according to Phil Carroll, a public affairs representative of the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service.

Delores Pigsley, chairwoman of the Confederated Tribes of Siletz Indians, explained the land was once part of their 14 million acres of ancestral land.

“We are very proud to receive it back and we will take care of the land, as usual,” she said.

The federal government purchased the property from two timber companies for $15.5 million. The land, previously owned by Forest Capital Partners of Portland and Plum Creek Timber Company of Seattle, was obtained last year after government officials surveyed 60 separate tracks of land.

Larry Mangan, a U.S. Bureau of Land Management wildlife biologist in North Bend, said the location was selected because it's close to the ocean and it's prime habitat for murrelets, with big, tall trees that can house nests.

He said the feds chose a location on the northern coast because there isn't enough murrelet habitat in the region. A significant amount of land on the South Coast is already protected, he said. Also, according to Mangan, most of the marbled murrelets were killed or injured by the oil spill near Waldport.

Mangan said the BLM considered managing the land itself, but Lincoln County Commissioners opposed it, saying they did not want to see land removed from county tax rolls. So a search was conducted for a tax-paying entity to manage the land. The tribes were selected at the end of last year out of a pool of three finalists that included two conservation organizations.

“They were selected because they were able to demonstrate experience with not only timber management but land management as well,” said Carroll. “They also have an experienced staff and experience in the local area.”

All parties spent a great deal of time hammering out an easement on the land. The agreement, signed July 20, strictly protects about 1,300 acres of land, considered to be the amount necessary to sustain 262 murrelets. Another third of the timber can be harvested to generate revenue for road maintenance, fire protection and county property taxes. The final area of land will not be logged, and instead managed to eventually support breeding murrelets.

“Trees need to be essentially old growth for murrelets to nest in them,” Carroll said. “It will take years and years, but ultimately two-thirds of the property will be timber that could support murrelets.

“Of course, it will be up to the birds to decide to nest there.”

Carroll said the original goal was to buy enough land to sustain the number of murrelets killed by the New Carissa accident, but no such parcels were on the market. It was decided to pursue the land near Waldport at a pricetag of $15.49 million, based on its value as timberland. With $4 million from a settlement with the New Carissa's owners and insurers, the restoration trustees needed additional funding. They looked to the U.S. Coast Guard's National Pollution Fund Center for help.

“We had to make our case to the Coast Guard and when we presented it to them, they said, ‘Gee, that's a lot of money,'” Carroll said.

But the Coast Guard gave them the money.

Brian J. Kernohan, a forest manager for Forest Capital, said the timber company still owns about 600,000 acres of land in Oregon and 52,573 acres in Lincoln County. Of that land, 2,000 to 3,000 will not be harvested to protect murrelet nesting areas.

Carroll said all the land sold by the two companies was harvestable, but both consciously chose not to do so.

“They should be commended because not all private companies would have been as conservative with their management as they have been,” he said.

Recent surveys indicate 17 nests have been built in the strictly protected land.

By adding the territory to its existing land holdings, the Siletz Indians' landbase will double in size.

It also is expected to contribute between $17,000 to $20,000 in county property taxes annually, which was important to Lincoln County Commissioner Terry Thompson

“It's a unique situation we have here. I think it's a turn for land management in the West,” he said.

Bob Garcia, the chairman of the Confederated Tribes of Coos, Lower Umpqua and Siuslaw Indians, said he was glad to see an Oregon tribe involved and managing the land. He acknowledged the need for more protected land farther up the coast, though if land had been acquired in Coos County, they would have been happy to manage it.

“We are very happy for the Siletz tribes and look forward to the continuation of the tradition of not just thinking about what we do today but for seven generations,” he said Tuesday in Salem.

The Confederated Tribes of Coos, Lower Umpqua and Siuslaw Indians are one of several trustees for the restoration project, including the BLM, Oregon Department of Fish and Wildlife and the FWS.