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 established 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.

  • Restoration Biologist/Natural Resources Specialist II – Lummi Nation

    May 21, 2018

    Download Announcement Provide expertise in habitat assessment and restoration to the Watershed Restoration Program of Lummi Natural Resources Department. S/he leads restoration teams in developing restoration plans, setting project priorities, permitting, and implementing projects that restore natural biological, physical, and chemical watershed processes in WRIA 01. Participates in project monitoring to evaluate attainment of restoration objectives. S/he conducts […]

  • Senior Research Scientist – Skagit River System Cooperative (SRSC)

    May 16, 2018

    Download Announcement The Research Program at the Skagit River System Cooperative (SRSC) provides technical support to SRSC tribal fisheries managers to achieve salmon fishery and recovery goals through research and monitoring activities. Monitoring and research activities may occur through the Salish Sea and its watershed, but will focus on the Skagit River basin, its estuary, […]

  • Hatchery Manager – Skokomish Indian Tribe

    May 16, 2018

    Download Announcement Oversees all aspects of the Skokomish Tribe’s Enetai hatchery and Quilcene Bay net pen.  The purpose of this position is to direct hatchery operations in a manner that ensures maximum production, while meeting or exceeding established quality standards. Will supervise the hatchery technicians and seasonal hatchery workers. Manage the chum production at the […]

RSS News from nwtreatytribes.org

  • Sauk-Suiattle Tribe Rears Chum Fry at New Hatchery Site
    The Sauk-Suiattle Tribe reared about 20,000 chum fry at a remote site incubator this spring as part of a developing hatchery program. The fry are being released in Sauk tributaries Hatchery and Lyle creeks, as well as the river’s confluence. Lyle Creek was a traditional chum harvesting area for the Sauk-Suiattle Tribe, but no salmon […]
  • Tracking steelhead from the sky
    The Upper Skagit Indian Tribe is tracking steelhead from the sky, using drones in tributaries that can’t be surveyed on foot. Estimates for steelhead returns depend on counting their egg nests (redds). Some waterways can be walked or floated, and others can be viewed from a helicopter, but that requires advance planning. “The Suiattle and […]
  • Anchovies likely gave steelhead a boost in the Nisqually
    A population boom of anchovies three years ago may have saved Nisqually juvenile salmon from getting eaten by seals. A resurgent run of more than 2,000 steelhead returned this spring. “One of the things we’re assuming about the limitations of steelhead survival is that they’re preyed on by marine mammals, like harbor seals, when they’re […]