Cold Springs National Wildlife Refuge in northeastern Oregon protects a desert-edge landscape of wetlands, riparian cover, uplands, and the Cold Springs Reservoir. Established in 1909 soon after the U.S. Reclamation Service completed Cold Springs Dam for the Umatilla Basin Project, it joined irrigation history to wildlife protection. Willow and cottonwood grow around the water, while sagebrush and native steppe grasses cover surrounding areas, creating habitat for wildlife adapted to an arid, seasonally cold environment. Known especially for wintering waterfowl and abundant songbirds, the refuge also supports western mule deer and desert elk. Its mission later expanded from bird breeding and protection to broader habitat conservation and restoration.