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Puyallup Tribe wants your signature to help save elk

Last fall, the Puyallup Tribe of Indians took a public stand against a proposal by the state of Washington to expand hunting on the fragile South Rainier elk herd.

Now, the tribe of Indians is asking for signatures to a petition to oppose the increase in harvest of female elk from the South Rainer herd near Packwood. The proposal would more than double the number of dead female elk from 35 to 79. The herd numbers fewer than 1,000 animals while the target population is more than 2,100, according to the tribal and state co-managers.
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Tired of Salmon?

OLYMPIA – There’s a new bug that’s been going around for the last couple years. State and federal elected officials and bureaucrats seem to be coming down with it more than anyone else.

It’s called “salmon fatigue” and from what I can tell, it’s a brain infection that makes you tired of trying to save the salmon.

If we cried about fatigue every time we came up against a difficult problem in this country, where would we be? I don’t understand how you can get tired of trying to save the salmon.

What those infected with salmon fatigue are really saying is “stop coming to me and talking about salmon.” (more…)

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Puyallup Tribe opposes expanded hunt on weak elk herd

The Puyallup Tribe of Indians is opposing a proposed expanded hunt on the fewer than 1,000-animal herd. To decrease the number of human and elk interactions, the State of Washington is proposing an expanded hunt on antlerless elk along state Route 12 between Packwood and Morton. An expanded harvest on the South Rainier elk herd could cause the weak elk population to crash. The herd's target population is more than 2,100, according to the tribal and state co-managers.

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Sport fishermen benefit from short tribal fishery

Sharp cuts in fishing by the Puyallup Tribe of Indians this year will allow sport fishermen to start fishing for chinook on the Puyallup River two weeks early. "The tribe is going to be off the water more this year to reduce impacts on returning chinook, and this gave more opportunity for sport fishermen," said Chris Phinney, the tribe's salmon fisheries management biologist. The cuts by the tribe were agreed to last spring during the tribal and state salmon fisheries management process.

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Being Frank: Certainty is Key

This year’s North of Falcon salmon management process, for the coast and Puget Sound, was tougher than it’s ever been. North of Falcon is the key part of annual planning that brings state and tribal co-managers together with input from stakeholders to set fishing regulations north of the Oregon Coast cape of the same name. As in years past, it was a give-and-take process of shaping fisheries to fit under the “impact lid” that helps us protect weak wild salmon stocks while, to the extent possible, harvesting abundant hatchery salmon. We are especially concerned about protecting Puget Sound chinook listed as “threatened” under the Endangered Species Act.

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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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Salmon Are Killed By More Than Just Fishing

OLYMPIA (April 5, 2005) – Did you take a shower this morning? Eat a bowl of cereal? Drive to work? If you did any of those things, you killed wild salmon.

You see, millions of other folks did the same thing. Together, these and other everyday activities take a toll on salmon and the habitat they need to survive.

No one is telling you to stop showering, eating, driving to work or any of the other things you do each day. So why do some people keep saying that the tribes should stop fishing?

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Nisqually River Chinook Trending Towards Recovery

NISQUALLY (January 19, 2005) – A decade ago, only 400 chinook salmon spawned in the Nisqually River. This year more than 2,600 chinook returned. “Nisqually River chinook are making a comeback because of sacrifices by tribal fisherman and a dedication by the Nisqually Tribe and it’s neighbors to protect and restore salmon habitat,” said David Troutt, natural resources director for the Nisqually Tribe.

“Restoring and protecting habitat, along with restricting fisheries, are the reasons more chinook are returning to Nisqually River to spawn,” said Troutt. Nisqually River chinook are part of a larger Puget Sound population of chinook that were listed as “threatened” under the federal Endangered Species Act in 1999.

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