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Introducing Northwest Treaty Tribes

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NWIFC News is transitioning to Northwest Treaty Tribes, so articles will now appear at nwtreatytribes.org. Information like technical reports and job postings will still be found on nwifc.org.

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 the NWIFC, you’ll be getting it from Northwest Treaty Tribes. NWIFC is not changing its name and will continue to function as it has since its inception.

The Northwest Indian Fisheries Commission has been around for 40 years, supporting tribes in the exercise of their treaty rights. One way we’ve helped is by telling the story of the tribes protecting and restoring natural resources.

Over the next few months, we’ll be rolling out other projects under the Northwest Treaty Tribes banner that will help the broader community better understand the role of treaty tribes.
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Puyallup Tribe: Will a wall of warm water stop salmon?

The Puyallup Tribe is keeping a close eye on the harm caused by warm water to salmon returning to the river, including hundreds of thousands of pink salmon.
The Puyallup Tribe is keeping a close eye on the harm caused by warm water to salmon returning to the river, including hundreds of thousands of pink salmon.

Will a wall of warm water prevent salmon from migrating into the Puyallup River watershed this year? High temperatures and low river flows are combining for what might be a remarkably bad salmon return.

To better understand the conditions, the Puyallup Tribe has more than doubled the number of temperature monitors in the watershed to 13 to track a feared “thermal barrier” to fish returning from the ocean.

“If the water in the lower river is too warm, it’s likely these fish will delay entry or go somewhere else,” said Russ Ladley, resources protection manager for the tribe. “Even if some fish do try to head upstream, they might die before they spawn because of the warm water.”

Warm water is deadly for salmon. If a stream’s water gets too warm, salmon have to expend more energy to survive, which can often lead to starvation. Diseases that kill salmon are also more virulent and spread easily in warm water.
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Restored, opened habitat leads to record run of coho from Goldsborough Creek

Scott Steltzner, biologist for the Squaxin Island Tribe, inspects a newly constructed logjam in 2013.
Scott Steltzner, biologist for the Squaxin Island Tribe, inspects a newly constructed logjam in 2013.

SHELTON – A combination of dam removal and aggressive habitat restoration has meant record runs of juvenile coho salmon in Goldsborough Creek for 2015.

This year’s run of 113,000 juveniles counted by the Squaxin Island Tribe continues a strong trend of increasing the number of juvenile coho leaving the Goldsborough watershed. The previous record was 61,000 coho.

Almost 15 years ago the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers removed a dam on Goldsborough, opening over 30 miles of near intact habitat to salmon. Since then, the Squaxin Island Tribe has worked with community partners to further improve the habitat through restoration projects throughout the watershed.

“The lesson of Goldsborough Creek is pretty basic: If you give salmon habitat, they’re going to succeed,” said Andy Whitener, natural resources director for the Squaxin Island Tribe.

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Read more about the article Nettles are a vital part of tribal diets, culture
Janell Blacketer, and the rest of the staff at the Nisqually Tribe's community garden, prepares nettles for use by tribal members.

Nettles are a vital part of tribal diets, culture

Thanks to a concerted effort by staff at the Nisqually Tribe’s community garden, tribal members can have regular access to nettles, an important traditional food. Nettles – despite their stinging…

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Read more about the article When you add more wood to a river, it means more salmon
Over the past three years, the Squaxin Island Tribe has tracked 100,000 coho to see where they go.

When you add more wood to a river, it means more salmon

Over the past three years, the Squaxin Island Tribe has tracked 100,000 coho to see where they go.
Over the past three years, the Squaxin Island Tribe has tracked 100,000 coho to see where they go.

Coho in the Deschutes River are in trouble. In fact, every three years, no coho at all return to the river.

The results of a study recently completed by the Squaxin Island Tribe point to a deadly combination of a lack of trees making their way into the river and high concentrations of sediment. Each spring for the last three years, the tribe released 100,000 juvenile coho into the Deschutes. The releases were followed up with snorkel surveys to see where the fish go.

“What we discovered was that coho are attracted to wood in water, no matter where in the watershed they were,” Steltzner said. Because coho salmon spend an extra year in freshwater before heading out to the ocean, they are more dependent on river habitat than other salmon species.
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Read more about the article How the Squaxin Island Tribe is boosting shellfish populations
Doyle Foster, a shellfish technician with the Squaxin Island Tribe, bags clam seed from the tribe's FLUPSY.

How the Squaxin Island Tribe is boosting shellfish populations

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The Squaxin Island Tribe recently constructed a floating upwelling system (FLUPSY) to help maintain a growing shellfish enhancement program. “This gives us much more flexibility in our shellfish growing operation,”…

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