Nearly a mile of Spavinaw Creek will be forever preserved as a natural area thanks to a local landowner who has donated a conservation easement permanently protecting his property. The easement will restrict development of the property and create 100-foot "buffer zones" along both sides of the creek, ensuring that the shorelines remain in a natural, wooded state.

Tim and Josephine Driskill, owners of the property, decided to donate a conservation easement on the property "to ensure the land will always stay open and to help protect Spavinaw Reservoir." Spavinaw and Eucha reservoirs provide drinking water for the City of Tulsa and surrounding areas.

The donation was announced recently at a press conference that included Congressman John Sullivan and Tulsa Mayor Bill LaFortune. Congressman Sullivan said at the gathering "Mr. and Mrs. Driskill are extraordinarily generous citizens who are making Oklahoma a better place." Mayor LaFortune called the donation "a major step forward in ensuring clean water for the City of Tulsa."

In recent years, water quality in Spavinaw and Eucha reservoirs has been compromised by contaminants that are carried by Spavinaw Creek. Buffer zones, such as the one established on the Driskill property, help to prevent contaminants from entering streams by allowing native vegetation along creek banks to flourish. The vegetation helps to trap contaminants before they reach the stream.

"The Driskill's donation is a huge step forward in protecting water quality in Eucha and Spavinaw reservoirs," said Donald E. Walker, Co-chair of Land Legacy, a nonprofit conservation organization located in Tulsa. "We hope this donation will be the first of many along Spavinaw Creek and throughout the watershed."