Top Story Archives - Page 130 of 157

Crude zones: Exporting fossil fuels in the Pacific Northwest

Jay Taber, Intercontinental Cry

As expansion of oil pipelines is reined in, oil trains are rolling out. Since last fall, the volume of oil shipped by rail from the Alberta Tar Sands and the Bakken Fields of North Dakota has increased dramatically. As Cory Morningstar reported in the April 12 edition of Counterpunch, this strategic shift in the delivery system from pipelines to trains heading for fossil fuel refining and export facilities has already made an end run around campaigns to stop new pipelines. The question now is whether British Columbia, Oregon and Washington State — the refining and export terminals destination for many of these oil trains — are capable of dealing with the consequences of suddenly becoming “crude zones”. All the evidence so far suggests they are woefully unprepared.

In the May 15 edition of Bakken Oil News, it was reported that the Bakken Fields alone could bring upwards of 200 million barrels of crude oil by train to Northwest ports and refineries each year. While the first Bakken oil train arrived last September, all five Washington refineries handle or plan to handle oil trains. Five new terminals are proposed for Washington ports.

In 2008, railroads in the US carried 9,500 carloads of crude; in 2012, that number grew to 200,000. Due to the boom in fracking oil from shale, US oil production is projected by 2020 to exceed that of Saudi Arabia. As reported yesterday at Business Week, several big pipeline projects will be finished in the next couple of years, including the southern leg of Keystone XL. In the meantime, oil trains are on a roll.

While Congress outlawed most exports of US crude in the 1970s, oil industry executives are making a case for changing that. Over the last several years, with refined products exempt from export restrictions, motor fuel exports have nearly tripled.

Last fall, Oregon and Washington received just 50 trainloads of oil. If all the proposed oil terminals are built, that figure could climb to 3,000 oil trains a year for oil terminals alone, excluding trains delivering directly to oil refineries. All of that could come on top of the 7,000 coal trains a year to coal terminals proposed on the Columbia River and the Salish Sea.

As reported in the May 20 blog of the Seattle P-I, the Affiliated Tribes of Northwest Indians (ATNI) passed a resolution opposing fossil fuel exports in their territories as a threat to their treaty-protected resources like endangered salmon. As reported in the May 18 edition of The Daily World, ATNI member Quinault Indian Nation — along with Audubon Society and Sierra Club — filed an appeal of Washington Department of Ecology’s approval of the first of three proposed oil terminals at Grays Harbor.

As I reported at Intercontinental Cry on June 1, the 57 ATNI Tribes of Oregon, Idaho, Washington, southeast Alaska, Northern California, Nevada and Western Montana are already targeting investors in fossil fuel exports like Goldman Sachs. Whether the Wall Street/Tea Party/AFL-CIO convergence supporting fossil fuel exports will overwhelm the treaty rights of these tribes remains to be seen. Meanwhile, endangered species like the Orca whale and Chinook salmon persist, oblivious to the looming threat.

South Dakota Six Sioux Tribes Announce Wind Power Initiative

Former President Bill Clinton (c) with Tribal Leaders

Levi Rickert, Native News Network

CHICAGO – Six tribal leaders of the South Dakota were on hand at the Clinton Global Initiative to announce with former President Bill Clinton a new power initiative that will harness South Dakota’s greatest natural resource: Wind.

Representing their respective tribes were: Vice Chairman Wayne Ducheneaux, Cheyenne River Sioux, Vice Chairman Eric Big Eagle, Crow Creek Sioux, President Bryan Brewer, Oglala Sioux Tribe, President Cyril Scott, Rosebud Sioux, Chairman Robert Shepherd, Sisseton-Wahpeton Oyate, and Chairman Thurman Cournoyer, Yankton Sioux.

The initiative is receiving critical legal and public policy counsel from Arent Fox LLP. The Arent Fox team representing the Sioux Tribes includes former Senator Byron Dorgan, co-chair of the Government Relations practice, and Communications, Technology & Mobile partner Jonathan E. Canis and associate G. David Carter.

“Having served as Chairman of the US Senate Committee on Indian Affairs, I understand the strong desire of the Indian Tribes to build “Indian owned” wind power projects to create new jobs and affordable power for their Tribes,”

said Senator Dorgan.

“This project is a unique opportunity for the Sioux Tribes in South Dakota to chart their own destiny. They live on lands that are rich with wind resources and they can use those resources to build a large wind energy project that can both help the Tribes and produce clean, renewable power for our country for decades to come. Together with my colleagues at Arent Fox, I have been honored to work with elected leaders of the Tribes to plan this project and I am especially proud of the recognition given it today by President Clinton and the Clinton Global Initiative.”

The Tribes’ initiative comes at a time when renewable energy investment is increasingly a national priority. Through the project, the Tribes stand to infuse up to $3 billion directly into the South Dakota economy, an amount roughly equal to the impact of the entire manufacturing sector in South Dakota in a given year. The planned project could generate 1-2 gigawatts of power annually. Measured conservatively, that’s more than enough power to electrify the homes in Denver, Colorado for the next 20 years, the typical useful lifespan of the wind turbines.

The majority of the projectâ€™s funding will come through the sale of bonds by a Multi-Tribal Power Authority, which are expected to be made available to investors in about two years, following a critical planning and preparation stage. For this reason, the Tribes have partnered with the crowd funding platform Rally.org to seek funding and raise general awareness for the project. Individuals may visit rally.org/siouxwind to join in and follow developments.

Already several years in the making, the project has received significant pro bono support from Arent Fox, along with Herron Consulting LLC, the Intertribal Council on Utility Policy, the LIATI Group, the Bush Foundation, and the Northwest Area Foundation. Rockefeller Philanthropy Advisors, a nonprofit philanthropic services firm, is providing strategic counsel and incubating the project until the new power authority is created.

“When the idea of the wind project was brought to the Bush Foundation we saw an alignment with our goal to support tribal self determination and native nation building. A multi-tribe authority requires tribes to transition from passive beneficiaries to a position of authority and accountability and to develop the institutions, regulations and polices necessary for success,”

commented Nez Perce Jaime Pinkham, vice president of Native Nations at the Bush Foundation to Native News Network on Sunday afternoon.

“The Foundation also provided support for the tribes to attend the Clinton Global Initiative event in Chicago. We felt CGI presented a unique and timely opportunity to bring this project to the attention of additional prospective partners. The Foundation supported two summits for the tribal leaders and their partners to develop a collective understanding of the strategies and capabilities needed to develop and sustain a power utility. Financial, legal, and technical experts participated in the summits,”

Pinkham continued.

The Clinton Global Initiative is an annual event that brings together leaders from the business, foundation, and government sectors in an effort to promote economic growth in the United States.

Klamath Tribes Historic Treaty Right Water Call

Native News Network

CHILOQUIN, OREGON – Yesterday, June 10, the Klamath Tribes delivered to the Oregon Water Resources Department a “call” requesting that the Department take action to enforce the Tribes’ water rights that have been determined in the Klamath Basin Adjudication.

The Tribal Water Rights have been in litigation since 1975.

A “call” is a request that the Department’s Water master reduce illegal water uses and water uses whose priority date is junior to the calling party, until enough water becomes available to meet the party’s rights. Other calls are also expected from Irrigation Districts and others with senior water rights. These are the first such “calls” of their type in the Klamath Basin because prior to the Department’s recent order in the Adjudication determining the pre-1909 and federal and tribal rights in the Basin, Oregon Water Resources Department did not have a basis to enforce for or against junior or senior water rights.

The Klamath Tribes’ rights are based on the needs of plant, wildlife, and fish species the Tribes reserved the right to harvest in the Treaty of 1864, including fish in several rivers, lakes and marshes of the Upper Klamath Basin. The Tribes’ water rights have been affirmed in the courts to have a “time immemorial” priority date, and are the most senior in the Basin. The rights provide that specific quantities of water are to be maintained in stream to provide for fisheries and other treaty resources. Because the stream flows are currently lower than the Tribes’ rights, the Tribes have asked for illegal uses and junio ruses to be restricted until the flows are met.

Klamath Tribes Chairman Don Gentry explained

“Our water rights are essential to the protection of our Treaty resources. I think everyone knows the Tribes are committed to protecting our Treaty fisheries, and this is an important step in that direction. These are not rights granted to the Tribes by the state or the federal government; they are rights our ancestors reserved in the Treaty of 1864.”

The tribal water rights have been in litigation in the Adjudication since it began in 1975.

Most people in the Basin have long known that the Tribes’ senior water rights would one day be enforced, and there would be a transition from unregulated water use. Gentry observed

“Everyone has known this day was coming. It is unfortunate that more people did not join in our cooperative effort to resolve water issues without litigation and calls, but that was their choice. Currently this is the only path available to us to protect our resources.”

Water use in the Basin has not been closely monitored or measured in the past, so it is difficult to say specifically what the impacts of the call will be. But it seems safe to predict that enforcement of the Tribes’ rights will bring changes to Basin water management.

The call is partly due to the shortage of water resulting from the drought plaguing the Basin this year. The water supply is well below normal. Will Hatcher, Director of the Klamath Tribes Natural Resource Department and member of the of the Tribes’ Negotiating Team observed

“A drought emergency has been officially declared, and that provides some flexibility. But in the end, the Water master is required to allocate water according to the priority-date system.”

How long the call will remain in effect is difficult to predict because there has never been a call of this type in the Basin before. Also, the result depends in part on the weather and duration of the drought.

The Schimmel Sisters of Art: Contemporary Native Artwork From Umatilla

Indian Country Today Media Network

Crow’s Shadow Institute of the Arts is housed within the historic St. Andrews mission schoolhouse, itself situated at the base of the Blue Mountain foothills on the Umatilla Indian Reservation in Oregon. Since 1992, it has been a peaceful and inspiring place to go and create art and a gathering place for contemporary Native artists. The nonprofit institute draws artists from around the world to its state-of-the-art printmaking studio, Crow’s Shadow Press. Its goal is to provide opportunities for Native Americans through artistic development.

Although Umatilla artistry of a much different variety, the hardcourt play of Louisville Cardinals basketball players Shoni and Jude Schimmel, has been making headlines recently, it’s now the extraordinary contemporary artwork being created at Crow’s Shadow that is drawing much deserved attention. Now open and running until January 5, 2014 a the National Museum of the American Indian’s Gustav Heye Center in New York City is the exhibit Making Marks: Prints from Crow’s Shadow.

Rick Bartow, “Facing Left Raven,” 2008. (Crow’s Shadow Institute of the Arts/NMAI)

The exhibition showcases 18 works by seven contemporary Native American artists: Rick Bartow, Wiyot, Phillip John Charette, Yup’ik, Joe Fedderson, Colville Confederated Tribes, Hock E Aye Vi Edgar Heap of Birds, Cheyenne/Arapaho, James Lavadour, Walla Walla, Wendy Red Star, Crow, and Marie Watt, Seneca. The prints in Making Marks were collaborations between Crow’s Shadow master printer Frank Janzen and visiting artists; they are part of the Crow’s Shadow permanent collection.

Crow’s Shadow is located on the Umatilla rez in the gorgeous foothills of Oregon’s Blue Mountains

Although Crow’s Shadow places an emphasis on contemporary, fine-art printmaking, it also functions as a venue to practice traditional Native American art practices — weaving, bead working and regalia making — of the Plateau region. To learn more about Crow’s Shadow Institute of the Arts, go to CrowsShadow.org.

And for more information about the NMAI exhibit in New York, Making Marks: Prints from Crow’s Shadow, go to AmericanIndian.si.edu.

National Memorial to Native American Veterans May Finally Be Built

Indian Country Today Media Network

Amid all the controversy and ugliness associated with the surging push to have NFL team owner Dan Snyder change the widely considered racist name of his Washington, D.C. franchise, something truly positive for Indian country is developing in the U.S. capital.

This week, Congressman Markwayne Mullin introduced H.R. 2319, the Memorial Amendments Act. This follows Senator Brian Schatz (D-Hawaii) introducing S. 1046, Native American Veterans’ Memorial Amendments Act of 2013 on May 23.

This legislation amends the Native American Veterans’ Memorial Establishment Act of 1994 to allow the National Museum of the American Indian to construct a memorial to Native Veterans on the museum’s grounds, which is on the National Mall. Current law authorizes a memorial inside the confines of the museum, but there is not sufficient space within the facility to construct a proper tribute to Native American Veterans.

A Cherokee, and a member of the Natural Resources subcommittee on Indian and Alaskan Native Affairs, Mullin noted the importance of the introduction and passage of H.R. 2319.

“Our Native American heritage is one we can take pride in and one we should respectfully honor,” said Mullin, in a press release. “Passage of this legislation is vital to get this project off the ground and get our brave Native Americans who fought for our freedoms the memorial they deserve. I thank my colleagues for their support and look forward to working together as we pay tribute to our Native American veterans.”

Members have shown strong, bipartisan support for H.R. 2319, with 10 cosponsors including Congressman Tom Cole (R-Oklahoma) and Congressman Raul Ruiz (D-California). (Senator Schatz’s bill also enjoys bipartisan support, an encouraging sign. The original 1994 memorial legislation too was passed with support from both sides of the aisle.)

“I am pleased to co-sponsor this legislation with Congressman Mullin,” said Cole, who is a member of the Chickasaw Nation. “We both have great pride in our Native American heritage and recognize the importance of sharing that heritage with others. It is high time that the National Museum of the American Indian is able to move forward with the construction of a memorial to honor our veterans on its grounds. This bill facilitates that goal and also approves museum fundraising efforts, paving the way for us to truly recognize those Native Americans who bravely served our country.”

“Throughout American history, Native Americans have served our country with honor and bravery,” said Ruiz. “It is important that we highlight their patriotism and sacrifice with a Native American veterans’ memorial on the National Mall, and I’m proud to join my colleagues in strong bipartisan show of support for this legislation.”

Cherokee Nation Principal Chief Bill John Baker said he supports the bipartisan changes in the Native American Veterans’ Memorial Amendments Act of 2013.

“I respect and admire any man or woman who has donned a uniform and played their role in securing and defending America’s liberties,” Baker said. “The Cherokee people have a deep tradition in American military history. Many fine young men and women have served and to all of them we owe a debt of gratitude. A memorial in D.C. near the National Museum of the American Indian is a fitting tribute and I thank Representative Mullin and the other sponsors for making it a priority. Every one of us has a family member with a veteran’s story. They served and they fought – and many of them died – for the freedoms that we all enjoy today. I hope we keep their history alive.”

To track the progress of Senator Schatz’s bill in Congress, click here.

To track the progress of Representative Mullin’s bill in Congress, click here.

Get salmon and fly-fishing tips this weekend at Tulalip Cabela’s Store

Mark Yuasa, The Herald

The Tulalip Cabela’s Store is hosting some Father’s Day weekend activities:

Sunday, June 16

Fly Fishing on Highland Lakes: 1 p.m. in the Conference Center. The snow will be melting soon, so get ready now to hit the road for some highland lake fly fishing. Learn from expert Mike Benbow from the Evergreen Fly Fishers Club as he walks you through the ins and outs of fly fishing on highland lakes.

The store is located at 9810 Quil Ceda Blvd. in Tulalip. For more information, go to www.cabelas.com/tulalip.

Strawberries, art, jousting and more weekend fun

Tulalip Tribal members Carol McKay and her brother, Peter Henry, will be representing the Tulalip Tribes as this year’s Marysville Strawberry Festival King and Queen. Photo by Diane Janes.

Lauren SalcedoHerman Williams Sr. has been selected to be the Strawberry Festival Grand Marshal. — Lauren Salcedo
Herman Williams Sr. has been selected to be the Strawberry Festival Grand Marshal.

The Herald

Strawberries: The Marysville Strawberry runs through Sunday, with a carnival, market, parades, fireworks and, of course, strawberry shortcake. For even more strawberries, the Biringer Strawberry Festival is Saturday and Sunday in Arlington with U-pick fields, pony rides and lots of other family-friendly fun. Get the details on both events in our story here.

For art lovers: The Edmonds Arts Festival is Friday through Sunday. More than 240 artists will sell their fine arts and crafts. There will also be food vendors and fun for kids. Get more details in our story here.

In honor of Dad: Sunday is Father’s Day. So, Dad gets a pass to do whatever he wants, of course. If he like cars, he might enjoy an event meant just for him. The Father’s Day celebration in Monroe includes a car show, pageant, music, soda fountain, beer, wine and more. Read more about it here.

Garden art: The Schack’s latest exhibit, “Art of Garden” is now open. It features more than 40 regional artists. The exhibit includes a variety of mediums, and artwork for display indoors or out. Read more here.

Meet an astronaut: NASA astronaut Mike Foreman will present a talk from 1 to 1:45 p.m. Saturday at the Future of Flight Aviation Center in Mukilteo. Admission is free. Foreman will be available to sign autographs and pose for photos from 1:45 to 2:15 p.m. For more information, click here.

Jousting: The Seattle Knights will present two jousting shows on Saturday at the Rhodes River Ranch in Oso. You’ll see jousting and plenty of choreographed stage combat, with real weapons. You’ll also get to enjoy dinner from the Ranch’s restaurant. Get more information here.

Get active: A Youth Fitness Expo is Saturday at McCollum Park in Everett. Kids can get information on a ton of activities. Kids can race on or simply try out the BMX track at the park. Get more information here.

For hikers: Craig Romano, a prolific Washington state guidebook author, will speak at 7 p.m. Friday at the Everett Firefighters hall. He will focus on day hiking the Columbia River Gorge. The event is the monthly program meeting for the Pilchuck Audubon Society. Get more information here.

Horses: All Breed Equine Rez-Q has an event from 11 a.m. to 3 p.m. on Saturday. The event will raise awareness about rescue groups in the area. There will be demonstrations with horses at liberty, games, raffles and more. Get more details here.

NW Grind: Two skateboarding and scooter competitions are this weekend. The first is Saturday at 10 a.m. at the Arlington Skate Park. The second is Sunday at 1 p.m. at Lake Tye Skate Park in Monroe. Check out NW Grind’s website for details or to register.

Weather casts pall over summer salmon opener

Tulalip Cabela’s offers free seminars on major upcoming fisheries this weekend

Wayne Kruse, The Herald

The first major saltwater salmon fishing season of the summer opened over the weekend, and results were probably better than had been anticipated.

Coastal marine areas 1 and 2 (Ilwaco and Westport) opened for their early hatchery chinook fishery — marked kings only — and despite all handicaps managed to produce decent fishing.

Wendy Beeghley, coastal creel sampling coordinator for the Washington Department of Fish and Wildlife, said Saturday’s weather was really lousy — bad enough that the Westport bar was closed for part of the day — and only marginally better on Sunday. Add to that a forecast for a smaller run of chinook to the Columbia River this year than last (although still pretty decent) and the normal day or two needed by the charter fleet to locate the fish at the start of a season, and the average of a half-chinook per rod on Sunday at Westport wasn’t half bad.

There was little effort at Ilwaco, Beeghley said, probably attributable to the weather, and an average on Sunday of about one-third fish per person.

Best fishing in the Westport area was north, Beeghley said, off Ocean Shores, and the fish ran the whole range, size-wise, from 8 to about 20 pounds.

“We expect fishing to improve in the region as the weather calms down,” Beeghley said. “The offshore troll fishery has continued to improve, indicating better numbers of fish coming down the coast.”

The selective chinook fishery in area 1 runs through June 21, and at Westport, through June 22, allowing two fin-clipped kings per day. The regular summer salmon season opens in both areas the day after the early season closure, while the early selective season off La Push and Neah Bay runs June 22-28.

Shad

It’s the peak of the season right now for shad in the Columbia River, with daily counts over Bonneville reaching 200,000 fish on Monday, and the cumulative count at 1.75 million. “That’s about double what it was last year at this time,” said state biologist Joe Hymer in Vancouver.

“It’s crowded on the weekends,” Hymer added, “but fishing has been pretty good. The creel checks last week were about 10 shad per rod, river-wide, and most of those were incomplete fishing days so the average was probably higher than that.”

He said that unlike some previous years, most of the shad caught in this Washington-side fishery are being kept.

“More user groups are showing up that like to eat the fish,” he said, “and we’ve seen stringers of 100-plus fish. You do need a license, but there is no limit on shad in the Columbia.”

The sporty little 1- to 5- or 6-pound fish are bony, but considered fairly good table fare when properly prepared, and some anglers like the roe, grilled in the skein like sausages and served with scrambled eggs and toast. Others catch and release, or save a few for crab bait.

The area immediately below the Washington-side “new powerhouse” portion of Bonneville Dam is a popular, but crowded, spot, from the yellow deadline marker 600 feet below the dam, downstream. Hamilton Island, below the dam, is also a good bet. Drive east on Hwy 14 a couple of miles past the town of North Bonneville to a line of transmission towers, and take the turnoff to the right. That road leads to the Hamilton Island boat launch and there are good, public, bank fishing spots both above and below the launch. Any small point and its attendant eddy marks a good place to try for shad, which will generally be close to shore and out of the heavy current.

A heavy-trout-weight spinning rod with soft action is about right, and a reel loaded with 6- or 8-pound test line. Use a slinky or piece of pencil lead, or a one-ounce sliding sinker, and about three feet of leader. Lure can be most anything small and shiny or colorful — spoon, spinner, crappie jig, shad dart, bare size 1 or 2 hook with three yellow or red beads strung above it. A lot of bank fishing spots can be grabby, so go equipped with plenty of gear.

Cast upstream and about 30 feet out, let the lure sink until you think it’s just above the bottom, then retrieve slowly and let it swing around below you. Most popular spots are too crowded for float-and-jig fishing, Hymer said.

The shad fishery is considered a very good family experience, but youngsters should definitely be equipped with flotation jackets when anywhere near the Columbia’s often heavy currents.

Seminars

Good stuff this weekend at Cabela’s Tulalip store, in the form of free seminars on major upcoming fisheries:

Fishing for Kings in Area 9, Saturday, 11 a.m., in the fishing department, Hear special tips and techniques of local experts and bring your stories to share.

Fly Fishing on High Country Lakes, Sunday, 1 p.m. in the Conference Center. The snow will be melting soon and Mike Benbow has been there, done that, on many of the Cascades’ best high country waters. He’ll walk you through the ins and outs of fly fishing the highland lakes.

Waterfowl festival

Over the past 12 years, the Oregon Waterfowl Festival Association has donated nearly $20,000 to Ducks Unlimited for improving habitat on lower Columbia River estuary wetlands. This year’s event runs June 29-30, 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. at the Columbia County Fairgrounds in St. Helens, Oregon. For information go to oregonwaterfowlfestival.com.

Lingcod

Marine Area 7, the San Juan Islands, close to ling fishing at the end of the day Saturday, offering one last shot at what has been an excellent season. WDFW checks at the Washington Park launch on Sunday showed 25 anglers with 9 lings and 2 cabezon. Kevin John at Holiday Sports in Burlington said that reports have slowed around Lopez Island, but that the north end of the islands has held up well. He said that while Deception Pass and Burrows Island were hit hard in the first few weeks of the season, he thinks new fish have moved in to fill the habitat and that fishing has remained good. Dunk a herring in Deception Pass, or a white or rootbeer grub on a jighead. Around Burrows, he said, work the shallower water and rockslides with a 6- or 9-inch swimshad.

Potholes Reservoir

Arguably the best all-around fishery in Eastern Washington, Potholes Reservoir is coming on as water temps warm. Mike Meseberg at MarDon Resort said bass fishing on the face of O’Sullivan Dam offers top early-season action on smallmouth bass, using topwater lures. Or run over to the Lind Coulee Arm and toss diving plugs in crawdad pattern, or half-ounce spinner baits in chartreuse or white. Work the rocky points, Meseberg said, and you might also nail the occasional walleye.

Tribal partnership with utility keeps salmon eggs under water

Northwest Indian Fisheries Commission

A rainy April and a hotter-than-normal week in May have created a challenge for the steelhead fry expected to emerge in August.

The rain, combined with heavy snowmelt after a string of 80-degree days in May, built up in the reservoir of Seattle City Light’s Skagit River Hydroelectric Project. In order to prevent an overflow that could scour out steelhead redds (nests), the utility released more water than usual, increasing the flow of the Skagit River. As a result, spawning steelhead dug redds in places at risk of being dewatered before the last fry emerge this summer, when flows are lower.

Water management in the Skagit River is guided in part by salmon spawning surveys conducted by biologists Stan Walsh of the Skagit River System Cooperative and Dave Pflug of Seattle City Light. The Skagit River System Cooperative is the natural resources extension of the Swinomish and Sauk-Suiattle tribes.

Based on data gathered by Walsh and Pflug, Seattle City Light will release enough water in August to keep vulnerable steelhead eggs under water.

“We haven’t had a steelhead redd dewatered in years,” Walsh said.

Walsh and Pflug have monitored salmon and steelhead redds between Rockport and Newhalem on the Upper Skagit River since 1995. They document new redds, note the condition of existing redds, and measure the depth of the shallowest redds to make sure the river’s flow stays high enough for those eggs to survive, but not so high that the eggs are washed away.

They also share data with state fisheries co-managers to help forecast runs sizes.

“Seattle City Light has been a great partner to the tribes in water management,” Walsh said. “They’ve gone out of their way to protect fish beyond what’s required in their license agreement.”

Unlike chinook, chum, pink and coho salmon, steelhead are repeat spawners, which means Walsh and Pflug don’t encounter very many steelhead carcasses. However, this year, they have counted more steelhead redds in this stretch of the river than they have seen in the past 18 years of surveys.

New Law in Seattle Could Help Natives Disproportionate Statistics

Indian Country Today Media Network

American Indians in the state of Washington are disproportionately represented in the criminal justice system according to Chris Stearns, which has made it difficult to find a job upon release – not anymore. On June 10, the Seattle City Council unanimously (9-0) passed a new law that will allow people with criminal records to have a fair shot at getting jobs.

Stearns, chairman of the Seattle Human Rights Commission praised the passage that will prevent employers in Seattle from simply rejecting them outright or denying them work solely on the basis of a conviction (not an arrest) unless the employer believes there is a direct connection between the crime and the work sought.

“We are grateful to Council Member Bruce Harrell who took a chance on this bill way back when it was not popular at all but who saw the need for justice nonetheless. We are grateful to the women of Sojourner Place who came to the Commission over three years ago asking for help in changing the laws so they could be reunited with their children and start off a new life with dignity and hope. And that is what this new law is all about. It’s about hope, dignity, and redemption,” Stearns said.

“The legislation is important in making our local economy work for everyone, removing barriers to accessing jobs and creating a pathway for re-entry and success,” Harrell said in a Seattle Council release following the passage.

With the bill’s passage comes the banning of any ads by employers stating that people with criminal records need not apply.

“This bill helps create the opportunity for a real second chance by giving people with criminal records an opportunity to get their foot in the door, to meet a potential employer and to make their case for why they should get the job. It creates this opportunity while still allowing employers to use criminal history in hiring decisions,” Councilmember Mike O’Brien said in the Council release.

“The Commission believes that this bill is especially important for Native Americans because they are disproportionately represented in the criminal justice system,” Sterns (Navajo) said. “For instance, Native Americans comprise only 1.5 percent of the total state population, yet they account for 4.3 percent of those in Washington prisons. While African Americans make up only 3.6 percent of Washington’s population, they account for nearly 19 percent of the state’s prison population. In Washington State 80 percent – 90 percent of all felony defendants are in extreme poverty at the time of charging. Native Americans have the highest rates of poverty nationwide (27 percent) and in Seattle (33 percent).”

The statistics are staggering and are not just connected to Seattle. According to a 2011 article at Crosscut.com, “an arrested Native American had a 4.1 times greater chance of getting prison time than a similar white arrestee. That chance was 7.2 times as much in King County (Seattle). Other ratios were 4.7 in Pierce County (Tacoma), 3.6 in Thurston County, 3.5 in Kitsap County, 2.7 in Snohomish County and 27.3 in Chelan County.”

“The new law gives all people looking for work, including those who have made mistakes, the chance to be considered on the basis of their strengths not their weaknesses. We are so proud of this law and what it says about Seattle’s heart,” Stearns said.