What is an Ecoregion?

An ecoregion is a geographic area with characteristic features such as climate, geology, geomorphology, soils, and ecosystem processes, and natural assemblages of plants and animals. There are a number of ecoregional classifications used in the Northwest. The Natural Heritage Plan uses a system developed cooperatively by the EPA and Jim Omernik (2002). It is quite similar to those used by the U.S. Forest Service and The Nature Conservancy, based on a system developed by Bailey (1995).

Learn about Oregon Ecoregions by viewing a 3 minute video clip from the OSU Forestry Media Center