The Northwest Indian Fisheries Commission recently released its 2021 Annual Report, outlining the work of 20 member tribes that co-manage natural resources in western Washington in support of exercising their treaty-protected rights.
From NWIFC Chair Lorraine Loomis:
It was another challenging year for tribal natural resources co-management in western Washington during 2020. The year was marked by poor salmon returns, the ongoing loss of salmon habitat, impacts from COVID-19, increasing seal and sea lion predation, and a growing invasion of European green crab.
Few bright spots appeared on the horizon, but the treaty Indian tribes in western Washington remain committed to sustainably co-managing the region’s natural resources and protecting tribal treaty-reserved rights.
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It could take another 50 years or more to achieve salmon recovery, but tribes remain confident we will get there. Indian people have always lived in western Washington and we always will. We will never stop fighting for the health of our cultures, communities and natural resources – and we will never stop defending our treaty rights.