The Northwest Indian Fisheries Commission (NWIFC) is a natural resources management support service organization for 20 treaty Indian tribes in western Washington. Headquartered in Olympia, the NWIFC employs approximately 65 people with satellite offices in Burlington and Forks.

NWIFC member tribes are: Lummi, Nooksack, Swinomish, Upper Skagit, Sauk-Suiattle, Stillaguamish, Tulalip, Muckleshoot, Puyallup, Nisqually, Squaxin Island, Skokomish, Suquamish, Port Gamble S’Klallam, Jamestown S’Klallam, Lower Elwha Klallam, Makah, Quileute, Quinault, and Hoh.

The NWIFC was created following the 1974 U.S. v. Washington ruling (Boldt Decision) that re-affirmed the tribes’ treaty-reserved fishing rights. The ruling recognized them as natural resources co-managers with the State of Washington with an equal share of the harvestable number of salmon returning annually.

Read more on our About Us page.

  • Senior Restoration Ecologist – Skagit River System Cooperative (SRSC)

    March 13, 2020

    Download Announcement The Senior Restoration Ecologist will work on a team with other technical specialists to implement salmon habitat planning, design, and construction projects that advance tribal objectives for salmon recovery. Projects can occur throughout the Skagit River basin and associated estuary and nearshore environments. The Senior Restoration Ecologist will initially work on a portfolio […]

  • Hatchery Maintenance Technician 1/2/3/4 – Stillaguamish Tribe of Indians

    September 30, 2019

    Download Announcement This position performs a variety of fish hatchery, maintenance activities for the Tribe’s hatchery facilities. The position may provide input to the Hatchery Manager, Enhancement Biologist, or Fisheries Program Manager regarding scheduling, grounds keeping, activities, and efficiencies relative to the successful completion of hatchery activities and preventative maintenance. Along with the rest of […]

  • Introducing Northwest Treaty Tribes

    August 24, 2015

    Tribes. Treaty Rights. That’s what we’re all about. This week, the treaty tribes in western Washington are launching a new communications effort called Northwest Treaty Tribes: Protecting Natural Resources for Everyone. At first blush, the only change you’ll notice is that instead of getting tribal natural resources news from social media and web platforms of […]

RSS News from nwtreatytribes.org

  • Tribes Track Duckabush River Elk Herd with Collars and DNA
    The entire Duckabush elk herd is sitting about 100 yards away from Charin Godbolt, who is keeping her eye on a particular young bull. The Port Gamble S’Klallam Tribe wildlife biologist is hoping the 2.5-year-old branch-antlered bull gets a little closer so she can outfit it with a GPS/VHF collar. For several weeks this winter, […]
  • Jamestown S’Klallam Tribe, Partners Preserve River Floodplains, Farmlands
    The Jamestown S’Klallam Tribe and local conservation partners are preserving local farmland and restoring floodplain habitat at the same time along the Dungeness River. Called the River’s Edge Project, the tribe, North Olympic Land Trust (NOLT) and its subsidiary, Olympic Peninsula Conservation Resource (OPCR), recently purchased more than 100 acres of the McLane-Wallacker Trust property […]
  • February Floods Cause Loss of Young Coho in Tribal Hatcheries
    Flooding in February caused the loss of at least 100,000 tribal hatchery coho from rearing ponds. High flows also damaged equipment and mud had to be cleaned repeatedly from trays with young salmon in them. The Puyallup Tribe of Indians lost two fish-acclimatization ponds, each holding 50,000 coho. The Cowskull pond filled with sediment from […]