The Swinomish Fish Co. has found a purpose for the meat left on a salmon’s frame after it is filleted. Salmon bacon. The tribally owned company is smoking and packaging the remaining meat into a new ready-to-eat product. The Native Catch brand salmon bacon should be in stores by mid-June, along with its new sockeye […]
Nisqually tribal surveyors are hitting the water with a new piece of equipment that will help them better track endangered steelhead. “We’ve been adapting our surveying techniques to gather more precise information on not only how many steelhead make it back each year to spawn, but where exactly they spawn,” said David Troutt, natural resources […]
Treaty tribal and state salmon co-managers reached agreement late Tuesday on a package of fishing seasons that will fairly share the burden of conserving weak wild salmon stocks while providing limited harvest opportunities. “Cooperation on both sides helped to ensure that everyone will be able to fish this year,” said Lorraine Loomis, chair of the […]
Port Gamble S’Klallam tribal member Brian Perry has dabbled in small carving projects the past 20 years, but knew he needed support for creating his first totem pole. Perry, under the eye of accomplished Northwest carver David Franklin, spent 2014 carving the 12-foot tall cedar totem pole that is now mounted at the entrance of […]
Divers from the Nisqually Indian Tribe Marine Services Division are reducing fish mortalities and helping to restore the Salish Sea habitat by removing lost fishing gear from the bottom of Puget Sound. “Recreation and commercial fishermen have been on the water for decades,” said David Troutt, natural resources director for the Nisqually Tribe. “There’s lots […]
Sauk-Suiattle elders still talk about the old days harvesting chum salmon from Lyle Creek. With chum runs on the decline since 2007, and no fish in Lyle Creek, the Sauk-Suiattle Tribe is testing a method of enhancing the population using a remote site incubator. Salmon runs across Puget Sound are in decline because of lost […]
Farming interests in Skagit County often seem at odds with salmon habitat restoration, but an ongoing project by the Swinomish Tribe aims to show that it doesn’t have to be that way. The tribe owns the land known as the Smokehouse tidelands along the Swinomish Channel south of the Swinomish Casino and Lodge. Historically, the […]
As the flow of the White River was held back by the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, Russ Ladley carefully searched for young salmon stranded in small pools. Unfortunately, most of the fish he found weren’t able to make it back to the river before the river’s flow dropped by two-thirds. The U.S. Army Corps […]
The Nisqually Indian Tribe is taking a look at how improvements to a creek meant to benefit salmon could also be helping elk, deer and beavers. “For over a decade we’ve been planning and conducting restoration on miles of salmon habitat on Ohop Creek,” said David Troutt, natural resources director for the tribe. “But, what […]
Climate change threatens not only the environment, but also tribal communities whose culture, livelihood and identities depend on natural resources. “Current climate change assessments omit key community health concerns, which are vital to successful adaptation plans, particularly for indigenous communities,” said Jamie Donatuto, environmental health specialist for the Swinomish Tribe. “Recent assessments show that indigenous […]
