State to adjust fish consumption standards
State environmental regulators have proposed increasing the fish consumption rate used to determine water quality safety standards. The state's current rate of 6.5 grams a day was set in the…
State environmental regulators have proposed increasing the fish consumption rate used to determine water quality safety standards. The state's current rate of 6.5 grams a day was set in the…
The Swinomish Tribe is cleaning up a former lime storage area by removing about 280 cubic yards of contaminated soil and 100 creosote wood pilings. The contaminated site is adjacent…
Swinomish tribal members beach seined for pink salmon last weekend at Lone Tree Point. A guest at the Thousand Trails campground on the reservation took some photos and video, which…

Washington Gov. Chris Gregoire arrived on the shores of the Swinomish reservation today on the canoe Salmon Dancer with Swinomish Chairman Brian Cladoosby. Salmon Dancer was one of more than 100 canoes participating in the Tribal Canoe Journey.
View more photos of the landing on NWIFC’s Flickr feed.
Read more about the Canoe Journey and see photos of the landing last week at Port Gamble in the New York Times: (more…)
Canoe families already are on their way to Swinomish for the annual Tribal Canoe Journey. A landing schedule and map can be found on the Paddle to Swinomish 2011 website.…

Unfortunately, with salmon runs in decline and fewer tribal members making their living as fishermen, the resource is harder to come by.
The Swinomish Fish Co. has long provided canned salmon to Swinomish tribal elders, and in recent years, has started providing it to the Suquamish and Tulalip tribes as well. (more…)
The Institute for Environmental Professionals featured the Swinomish Tribe's Climate Change Initiative on its website, crediting the tribe with being "At the Forefront of Planning for Climate Change": The Swinomish…
The Skagit Valley Herald reports on the record Fraser River sockeye returns and the importance to the Swinomish Tribe: This year’s Fraser River sockeye salmon run is shaping up to…
Treaty tribes in western Washington are having a bountiful Fraser River sockeye fishery this season, with at least three times the number of fish returning as expected. More than 30 million sockeye are estimated to return to the Fraser River in British Columbia this year – the highest run size recorded since 1913.
View photos of the fishery in the San Juan Islands on NWIFC’s Flickr feed.
Nine treaty tribes in western Washington have treaty-reserved rights to catch Fraser River sockeye in U.S. waters before they migrate upstream. The Fraser River sockeye treaty tribes are Lummi, Jamestown S’Klallam, Lower Elwha Klallam, Nooksack, Makah, Port Gamble S’Klallam, Suquamish, Swinomish and Tulalip. (more…)
In June 2010, the Swinomish Indian Tribal Community and Washington State Parks and Recreation Commission bought Kiket Island to co-manage as a state park. On July 30, 2010, representatives from the tribe and state gathered for a dedication ceremony.
Read the story here, and see Billy Frank Jr.’s column here.
You can watch a video of the celebration after the jump:
(more…)