Local Governments

Don’t let fishing be the scapegoat

Fishing opportunities in Northwest waters have just about disappeared. It’s a situation that has strained relations between Indians and non-Indians – the state, local governments, environmental organizations, businesses and even fishermen. It’s also a condition we can improve, if we follow the truth, and that truth goes right to habitat. Fishermen have made the lion’s share of sacrifice so far, and cutting back on fisheries to the degree we have has not been easy on our people. Empty freezers and smoke houses hurt deeply, physically, economically and culturally.

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The Healing Path

There is only one path that leads to the healing of Puget Sound, and it is one that we all must walk together. Puget Sound is sick. It’s becoming filled with poison and starved of oxygen. The eelgrass and other plants that support life in the Sound are dying. Orcas and salmon are not far behind.

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Being Frank: Don’t Wave Goodbye

OLYMPIA (August 7, 2006)  Thousands of fishermen took to Lake Washington recently to fish for sockeye – arguably the most prized salmon in the Northwest. More than 50,000 sockeye were harvested by treaty tribal and non-Indian fishermen in the Lake Washington fishery. It was a thing of beauty to see this harvest accompanied by more than a hundred traditional tribal cedar canoes gliding through the lake, the culmination of the annual canoe journey hosted this year by the Muckleshoot Tribe. The canoes opened many eyes to the long-practiced traditions of the tribes in the Pacific Northwest. So did the sockeye fishery, which must be credited to another long-practiced tradition – cooperation.

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Being Frank: Wisdom, Foresight, Courage And The Three “G’s”

OLYMPIA (April 11, 2006) — It’s a simple fact of Nature. Salmon need clean, cool water.

But meeting the water needs of salmon in today’s world is no easy task. It takes wisdom, foresight and courage. It also takes the cooperation and collaboration of the three “G’s” the federal, state and tribal governments. Local governments are also obviously important, as are non-governmental entities, but let’s concentrate on the owners and managers of the water resource rather than those who need state permits to use it.

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Tribal And Local Input Must Go Into Creation Of Marine Protected Areas

LAPUSH (Aug. 19, 2005) – The fish and marine mammals of Washington’s ocean waters are blissfully unaware of the blankets of bureaucracy that have been overlaid on their home.

Washington tribes, however, are painfully aware of the thicket of federal and state agencies and regulations dealing with marine protected areas which are constantly threatening tribe’s sovereignty and way of life despite treaty-guaranteed rights to fish as they always have.

Proposals for marine protected areas range from complete no-take zones to areas allowing limited use while still meeting long-term management goals. Maintaining federal recognition of tribal sovereignty was the goal of Mel Moon, natural resources director for the Quileute Tribe, during the process that produced the recommendations to create a national system of marine protected areas (MPAs).

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Mel Moon Named to National Marine Protected Area Federal Advisory Board

LAPSUH (Jan. 16, 2002) — Mel Moon, Natural Resources Director for the Quileute Tribe, has been named to the National Marine Protected Area Federal Advisory Committee. The 30-person panel’s duties will include providing advice and recommendations to the Secretaries of Commerce and the Interior on implementation of aspects of the Marine Protected Areas executive order. The group is composed of a broad stakeholder community, including scientists, academia, commercial and recreational fishermen, resource users and managers, and environmentalists.

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