February 25-27, the Tulalip Tribes hosted their very own Gathering of Native Americans (GONA) at the Don Hatch Youth Center. Our three-day GONA was an event inspired to bring our community together to work on creating a vision for a healthy community.
Tulalip was fortunate to be nominated as one of the eight tribes in the United States by the Indian Health Service to serve as a Community Partnership grantee. As a grantee, Tulalip received the materials and resources necessary to undergo an intense community training and technical assistance that became our GONA.
GONA is for Native Americans and others who want to become change agents, community developers, and leaders. The four parts of GONA (Belonging, Mastery, Interdependence, and Generosity) incorporate the values of four levels of human growth and responsibility that are found in Native cultures.
Based on several ideas:
Community healing is necessary for substance abuse prevention;
Healthy traditions in our community are key to effective prevention;
The holistic approach to wellness is a traditional part of our belief systems;
Every community member is of value in empowering the community; and
GONA is a safe place to share, heal, and plan for action.
The three-day event focused on increasing the strengths of Native youth and community, healing the past and building the future. Over the last few years, countless GONAs have been held all over North America. Thousands of Native people from hundreds of tribes with their friends, families, and communities have experienced the powerful, culturally-centered training and resources GONA offers.
Through the four components of Belonging, Mastery, Interdependence, and Generosity we start to examine how to be an active participant in our own life and in creating a healthy community.
Belonging. Day 1 of Tulalip’s GONA started off by building and strengthening the sense of team, family and community. A place for all ages, a place for all kinds of people. The first day represents infancy and childhood, a time when we need to know how we belong. It is the most important first lesson a person must learn to live comfortable and to work effectively.
Mastery. After dinner, day 1 moved to the component of gaining mastery and healing from what holds us back. Empowerment, for the individual and community. This second stage honors adolescence as a time of vision and mastery. Understanding our Tulalip communities and the local contexts that inform work in partnership with other tribes/communities/governments.
Interdependence. Day 2 was dedicated to working together interdependently for positive change. A day of action and community leadership. The third stage is symbolized by adults, integral and interdepending within their families and communities. How do we interconnect with our environment and social network of our community?
Generosity. Day 3, the final day of our GONA was all about giving back to self and community. The final stage honors our elders, who give their knowledge and teaching to our generations of the future. Looking at our responsibilities to give back to our communities and share graciously.
During each day, GONA attendees participated in various team breakout activities, heard and told stories integral to our culture, and helped to create individual affirmations and community goals.
Storytelling is traditional for Native peoples. Oral histories and legends were used to transmit knowledge, teachings, and values from one generation to the next. During GONA, storytelling was used to convey the same teachings as we heard, valued, and respected everyone’s contributions while establishing a foundation for a community-wide prevention plan.
The group and team activities were all exercises that demonstrated the core components and helped participants identify some of the rituals or ceremonies from Tulalip culture that have helped our community to remain healthy and in balance. The activities also provided everyone with the opportunity to embrace wellness while recognizing the importance of traditional healing practices.
by Sandy Evans, RN, MPH, Tulalip Tribes Preparedness/MRC/CERT Volunteer Coordinator
Disasters can strike at any time and being prepared for these and other unexpected events is critical to saving lives. Each one of us has a responsibility to understand the risk natural and man-made disasters pose to our communities, and to recognize we each have a role in preparing for these events. We have a duty to build a Culture of Preparedness in which our neighbors, families and friends are ready for any disaster event, and to make our communities safer, stronger, and better prepared.
The Community Emergency Response Team (CERT) concept was developed and implemented by the City of Los Angeles Fire Department in 1985. They recognized that people will likely be on their own during the early stages of an emergency or disaster. Accordingly, the fire department decided that some basic training in disaster survival and rescue skills would improve the ability of people to survive until responders or other assistance could arrive. For 30 years CERT trainings have taken place across the U.S., even here on the Tulalip Reservation several years ago. Our pilot program in 2015 successfully graduated 9 participants and finished on November 19th, during a storm-caused power outage! Recognizing the value of this program the Tulalip Tribes Office of Emergency Management and Volunteer Preparedness Team is again offering CERT classes to our community.
CERT Basic Training is a free, instructor-led course consisting of over 20 hours of instruction on topics such as Personal and Family Preparedness, Earthquake Preparation, Team Organization, Medical Operations and Triage, Damage Assessment, Fire Suppression, Utility Control and Light Search & Rescue that can provide you will the skills you will need to stay safe and resilient during a disaster or emergency.
Our next CERT training will be held at the Administration building in the mornings from eight to noon for five sessions over 2 weeks. Each class will last 4 hours. The dates are Tuesday & Thursday March 15 and 17, Tuesday, Thursday and Friday March 22, 24 & 25. Because this is during usual work hours, supervisor permission is required and participants will be expected to attend all 5 sessions, establish a three (3) day home survival kit, obtain personal safety equipment, and be a willing team participant. CERT is about people helping people.
If you are interested in taking this course, ask your supervisor if you can get this time off and request an application/release form at Tulalip CERT (tulalipcert@tulaliptribes-nsn.gov).
There are three sites under consideration for the Gathering Hall location: The Administration Building – Site A, “Old Boom City” – Site B, and “Autoshop” – Site C.
By Niki Cleary, Tulalip News
If you attend tribal gatherings on a regular basis you’ve probably heard concerns about the fact that we hold funerals in the same places that our kids play. You’ve heard frustration that one event was cancelled to make room for another. You may have opted not to rent a building for your birthday or reunion from the tribe because of the potential that it would be cancelled. What if we had a place dedicated to gathering together? Somewhere to celebrate, meet about the governance of our tribe and hold ceremony, as well as a place to hunker down together in case of an emergency or natural disaster. A Gathering Hall has been on the community wish list for years and now it’s becoming a reality.
For Executive Director of Housing, Jay Napeahi, the Gathering Hall is one more step in building shared spaces and walkable neighborhoods within the heart of the reservation. Jay’s department is also planning for parks, walking trails, neighborhood stores and other amenities.
“It only makes sense, if we’re bringing people out here [to live], that we serve that population. We want to provide services so that you don’t have to leave the reservation. We want to bring services back to the marina. At the Everett Marina, for example, you have places for fishermen to do things, eat and get supplies then get back on the water. If you’re a fisherman, our marina is not really serving that purpose, other than mooring your boat. You can’t get supplies or refuel.
“Raising kids, when we were walking around we just wanted a place to get something to drink, or change your kid, maybe someplace to watch the wildlife and enjoy the area. We always thought it was important to walk trails. [Cultural Resources] used to have a historic pictograph trail. We’re developing to bring that back to the area.”
On January 23rd, the Housing department presented potential sites for the Gathering Hall to the community and asked for community input.
The three sites under consideration are: The Administration Building – Site A, “Old Boom City” – Site B, and “Autoshop” – Site C. The architects who reviewed the sites evaluated each for: relationship to the community; ease of access and connectivity; challenging site conditions; views provided to and from the properties; potential impact on adjacent residents and businesses; and public safety hazards. None of the sites are perfect, and none are significantly more expensive to develop, which is why it comes down what people want.
While the plans for the building aren’t complete, there are some general ideas about the size. The gathering hall itself, not counting lobby, offices restrooms, etc., is estimated at 14,000 square feet. For comparison, the Orca Ballroom is 12,000 square feet. It has a capacity of approximately 2,000 people and will include 428 parking stalls. The kitchen is an additional 10,000 square feet and includes spaces for cooking, cleaning, banquet set up, storage and support areas.
Site A – the Administration Building
When the current Administration Building was constructed, the site was prepped with plans to house a gathering hall as part of future expansion. This means that the site already has utilities, and the Administration Building generator was oversized to serve an additional building. It’s also right next to much of the existing services provided by Tulalip and Tulalip Transit services the area, and both buildings can share parking. Because of its elevation, the soils are better for building and high water table and wetlands are not as much of an issue.
The downside of the site is that it’s right next to one of Tulalip’s primary workspaces and gatherings may impact the workforce. Also, there is a single road currently entering and leaving the site. While another road can be constructed, the steep grade of both roads is a concern in winter and bad weather. For funerals, walking to the cemetery would likely not be an option due to the grade of the hill and distance from the cemetery.
Site B – Old Boom City
This site provides some of the best views of the bay. It’s proximity with the Karen I. Fryberg Health Clinic, Betty J. Taylor Tulalip Early Learning Academy, Tulalip Boys and Girls Club, Elders Village and the Marina mean that it’s centrally located and already a commonly accessed area. The site holds many fond memories for the community and was a favorite in the room.
The cons of this site include its natural composition. Surrounded by wetlands and fill soils, it’s not the ideal site for building. Much of the fill would need to be removed and replaced, and wetlands would have to be mitigated. In order to accommodate the size of the building and parking, the road may need to be moved. For funerals, walking to the cemetery would be a challenge. Additionally, the area has previously been proposed as a community park, if chosen for the gathering site, it would no longer be available as a park site.
Site C – Autoshop
Centrally located near the Don Hatch Youth Center, the Autoshop site seems ideal for many events. It’s within walking distance of the cemetery and several neighborhoods, and is serviced by public transportation. The site can be built to provide shared parking between the Youth Center and Gathering Hall, and both spaces can be opened for a campus feel during some events. There are currently adequate utilities and good road access to the site.
Unfortunately, the shared space can also be a detriment when two events happening at the same time have a different feel, for example, a funeral and a tournament. The shared parking can mean that simultaneous events can put the parking lot over capacity.
Community comments
Approximately 10 community members attended the meeting; four gave input. Most of the comments focused on the need to be connected to the bay, and the potential expense or workability of the sites. Jay assured the community that each of the sites is workable, and while the price tags may look big or small, from a personal budget standpoint, none of the sites is cost prohibitive.
The below comments were provided by the four community members who spoke.
Site B, Boom City – Re: the size of the site
“That’s not a big challenge, you’ve got land above and across the road, below you have to worry about the fill.” Don ‘Penoke’ Hatch
Site A, Administration – Re: the cost of the sites
Does one cost more or take longer? No, about the same? The Admin Sit is the least costly site to build on relative to the other two.” Willa McLean
Site B, Boom City – Re: proximity to Tulalip Bay
“We’re water people. We don’t barely have any place to look at the water, we have a limited amount of space for tribal members to make use of, we should look at it as a tribe. I think we should be close to the water.” Virginia Carpenter
Site C, Autoshop – Re: parking
“If you utilize the parking, you eliminate activities at the gymnasiums.” Don ‘Penoke’ Hatch
Site C, Autoshop – Re: parking/current facilities
“I don’t think there’s a conflict if we add more than 428 stalls. This is the only site that would displace existing business. I personally think we need more than 428 stalls.” Margie Santibanez
Site C, Autoshop – Re: previous intentions for the site
“Ginny, you probably remember when your dad was on there. Part of that was dedicated to recreation. They already got that on recreation land That’s dedicated by our ancestors to take care of recreation. Years ago, by our ancestors, that was dedicated, that land. I don’t know how far it went, but it’s there.” Don ‘Penoke’ Hatch
Site C, Autoshop – Re: current uses
“If we have that in mind for multiple events, why hasn’t the Board thought about centralizing Auto Maintenance and make that a true youth campus or get rid of Auto Maintenance and uproot it and put it somewhere else.” Willa McLean
All sites – Re: costs
“I know you said don’t be motivated by costs, but do you have a cost figure?” Margie Santibanez
Response: the lease expensive site is the Administration site, next is the Authoshop site, the most expensive is the old Boom City site.
Site A, Administration – Re: proximity to Tulalip Bay
“You can’t see the water from here, that’s out, we need to be on the water.” Willa McLean
Site C, Autoshop – Re: shared use
“I think we should be looking at the building separate from recreation because now, when we have a funeral, we are looking for parking. It should be totally separate from the ballfield. Too much congestion.” Virginia Carpenter
Site B, Boom City – Re: emergency uses
“The Early Learning Center, the Boys and Girls Club, our kids could just run to that building.” Virginia Carpenter
Site B, Boom City – Re: site work
“Boom City, move the road up, eliminate the road, and bring the two roads down and you can make it happen. Cut to the chase, we can go over and over, just move the road up and move the building up. I realize it’s wet grounds, I worked at the Boys and Girls Club and helped put it in, I think we aught to just cut to the chase. Look at all the congestion we have now. I don’t want people trying to do their job there, or at the Y-site, you have people playing basketball, soccer and people praying across the road.” Don ‘Penoke’ Hatch
All sites – Re: building uses
“Do we have a marketing plan for the Gathering Hall? Not just used for funerals…as a tribal member, if I make a decision, I want to look at the whole. Are we using it for General Council? I’m looking at how it’s going to impact elders, etc.” Margie Santibanez
All sites – Re: extravagant building
“We as Tulalip people want to have a Rolls Royce every time we build a building, I don’t think we need to spend the money every time. We just need a Ford or Chevy, we don’t need one where we have everything in the building. I think we’re looking at it. Look at some of the buildings we built, but that Early Learning Center was so expensive and almost run us broke. We need to make sure we have a Ford or Chevy not a Rolls Royce, so we can have it and get it built. We don’t have to have something seems like we’re outshining Puyallup and Muckleshoot. It’s a gathering hall, we’re going to sit comfortable, we always want to have something better than someone else.” Don ‘Penoke’ Hatch
Site B, Boom City – Re: wetlands/emergency management
“William was talking about what they did with building the Clinic, they had to run the runoff to the lower pond. Might have to do likewise and run the runoff to the lower pond, so the fish would go to the lower pond and not the runoff of where the clinic is. I appreciate what Virgnia was talking about, the safety factor, look at where the children are at the Boys and Girls Club, they could walk right to that building, if you look for the biggest part for the safety of our children.” Don ‘Penoke’ Hatch
All Sites – Re: Cost
“With the ELA because it cost nearly twice as much as it should, should consider hiring a superintendent. I’m living in the construction world right now, I’m learning about , it’s all right to have people working on the interim, but we need people to work on that problem, we have over and over and over.” Willa McLean
“The biggest thing is have a good architect so that what is requested is put in there, because if we want to change it’s on the tribe. But the district, on the school board, we made sure we had that architect that knew what he or she was doing, if we allow that to happen, that’s what happen on this early learning center, there were so change orders.” Don ‘Penoke’ Hatch
Site B, Boom City – Re: including existing departments
“I agree with the Boom City site, but bring in your departments, we know we need to replace the utilities in that area, get it all together so that everything that is going to impact is up front. That’s the problem, we break ground then oh, we need this person in there.” Margie Santibanez
If you would like to provide your input, there is still time. Please email Jay Napeahi at Jnapeahi@tulaliptribes-nsn.gov.
Misty Napeahi, Tulalip Tribes General Manager and Mel Sheldon, Tulalip Tribes Chairman, signing the government-to-government child welfare agreement between the Tulalip Tribes and the State of Washington. Photo/Micheal Rios
by Micheal Rios, Tulalip News
Few events are more traumatic for children than being removed from their families and entered into the foster care system. The trauma is even worse for Native children because usually when a government agency removes a child, they take them from not only their family but their culture and reservation as well. Such displacement can often lead children down a path to a deeply troubled life.
Here in Tulalip, like countless reservations across the United States, we’ve been forced to bear witness to tribal parents losing their tribal children to the State, of families being torn apart because of a government agency who knows very little about the Native way of life.
There are a lot of Native citizens who don’t understand how this continues to happen, since Congress passed the Indian Child Welfare Act in 1978 in an effort to stop Native families from having their children removed by the State and local officials for invalid and misconstrued reasons. Yet 38 years later, Native children are still much more likely to be removed from their families and placed in foster care than non-Native children.
The Tulalip Tribes leadership, along with the Office of the Reservation Attorney, and beda?chelh, have long fought for a solution that accurately reflects Tulalip values while being anchored by our inherent sovereignty. Back in 2011, the Tribe entered their first formal child welfare agreement with the State, but that was a general boiler plate model that laid the groundwork for a specifically Tulalip tailored agreement to follow. After years of steadfast dedication and due diligence, the solution may have finally arrived in the form of an updated government-to-government child welfare agreement between the Tulalip Tribes and the State of Washington. The agreement is reflective of Tulalip’s cultural values, aims to keep families together, and, as much as possible, minimize disruption to tribal children. The official agreement was signed into effect on January 13, 2016 by Chairman Mel Sheldon, General Manager Misty Napeahi, and officials from the Washington State Department of Social and Health Services and the Children’s Administration.
The signed agreement formalizes the government-to-government relationship between the Tribe and the State with child welfare cases. It’s based on the fundamental principles of the government-to-government relationship acknowledged in the 1989 Centennial Accord and recognizes the sovereignty of the Tribes and the State of Washington and each respective sovereign’s interests. What does this mean? It means the State of Washington now officially recognizes Tulalip has jurisdiction over Tulalip children wherever found and that Tulalip desires to assert its jurisdiction and authority to protect Tulalip children and keep families together whenever possible.
“I would like to thank everybody for coming out today and pay a special tribute to Michelle Demmert, our reservation attorney, for all the hard work she has done and for understanding my vision to protect our children and families,” said Misty Napeahi, General Manager of the Tulalip Tribes, during the document signing. “With this agreement we are doing what’s in the best interest of Tulalip children. That’s who we are here for. This is a road map that will help guide us and allows us to work in the best interest of our children.”
The overarching purpose of this agreement is the safety and well-being of Tulalip Tribal children. To this end, the specific purpose of this agreement between the tribe and the state is to clarify the handling of Child Protective Services and Child Welfare Services cases involving Tulalip children and their families.
Pursuant to the Indian Child Welfare Act and our sovereignty, the Tulalip Tribes have jurisdiction to handle all child abuse and neglect cases for our children. Some may be wondering, haven’t we always had that jurisdiction? The simple answer is no. In certain situations state agencies were able to, and would, circumvent the tribe altogether in cases involving allegations of child neglect or abuse. Now, with this agreement in place, the tribe can no longer be circumvented. Going forward, any time a state agency comes to investigate an allegation of child neglect or abuse, a beda?chelh case manager will be on the scene.
For instance, if there’s a child abuse referral made by a teacher who sees something that isn’t good for a child. Say at school a child is coming in late all the time and one day comes in and has bruising on his face or arms. That teacher or school would call the CPS hotline and provide those details. That would trigger a series of events. If the child was Tulalip, then the State would notify beda?chelh and they would tag the case an emergency or not (24 hour vs. 72 hour contact by beda?chelh and State representatives). If it’s an emergency, then this new agreement lays out the State is required to contact beda?chelh and a beda?chelh case manager would need to be involved in the process from the get go.
This agreement ensures Tulalip staff and representatives are always actively involved in any and all cases involving our children, and that we are taking the lead when the opportunity is there. The bottom line is we want our primary goal to be child safety, and to make sure any services or treatment families are receiving is defined by the tribe. That’s why this agreement also lends itself to the creation of a Tulalip Family Intervention Team (FIT), which will contact families of low-risk assessment and provide skill based services to parent their children, so that no court intervention is necessary.
FIT aims to keep families together and act as a proactive solution offering culture based services to families, while getting parents actively involved. It’s a way to handle things more traditionally between the Tribe and the families.
It may be an agreement of this nature is long overdue, but it took many days and long hours from individuals across several different tribal and state agencies to carefully craft and fine tune in order to get it right, not just for Tulalip children and families, but for all Native children and families. With Tulalip leading the way, there are sure to be multiple tribes who model their own government-to-government child welfare agreements after this one.
“I would like to thank the Tulalip leadership that allows us to do our job and work in the best interest of this community and the children,” said reservation attorney Michelle Demmert. “So many voices do not have someone who is championing their cause. Being an attorney for 24 years people think I should be doing something else rather than focusing on issues involving children or domestic violence, but these are the issues where people do not have a voice in the community. They need someone who can speak for them and understand their situation. Being a Tlingit woman, I have that perspective and can bring out their voice. This agreement does that and so much more. It benefits not only the Tulalip families and community, but other tribes who will follow suit.”
Representatives from the Tulalip Tribes, the Washington State Department of Social and Health Services and the Children’s Administration signed the official agreement on January 13, 2016. Photo/Micheal Rios
On Monday, January 11, Tulalip elders came together to cast their votes and enjoy a catered lunch in the Orca Ballroom of the Tulalip Resort Casino. Votes were cast to determine who the three open spots on the Elders Committee would go to.
Current committee members Dawn Simpson and Gary Baker were joined by newly elected members Valda Gobin, Lily Ann “Cookie” Robinson, and Delmar Jones.
Following the election, there was a hand-vote to determine who would be Chairman, Vice-Chair, and Secretary. It was decided that Valda Gobin is the new Chairman, Gary Baker is Vice-Chair, and Dawn Simpson is the new Secretary.
After a disappointing 1-5 start, the Tulalip Heritage Hawks have turned their season around with a 3-game win streak. Their latest win came at home on Monday, January 5, when they hosted the Lobos of Lopez Island.
Defensively, the Hawks opened the game with active hands and constant movement. They contested every Lobos shot and forced several turnovers that they were able to turn into easy transition points. The Hawks rode the hot hand of Josh Iukes, 13 points in the first half, and their suffocating team defense to the tune of a 30-9 halftime lead.
The game would tighten up in the 2nd half. However, seniors Robert Miles, Jr. and Willy Enick put the offense on their backs and combined to score 21 points down the stretch to secure the victory. The 59-33 win moved the Hawks record to 4-5 on the season and only 1 game below .500.
GOLD BAR — A 1.25-mile stretch of forested land along the Wallace River will now be protected forever as salmon habitat.
The land, covering 121 acres on five parcels, was purchased by the environmental nonprofit Forterra in July for $490,000. Forterra, formerly known as the Cascade Land Conservancy, transferred the property to the Tulalip Tribes in November for future management.
A conservation easement ensures the property will never be developed.
“There’s a stewardship plan that we’ll be working on with the Tulalips” to maintain the tract’s value to the watershed, said Michelle Connor, Forterra’s executive vice president of strategic enterprises.
The property on the north bank of the Wallace River consists of five parcels that are a mix of wetlands and mature second-growth forests. It was last logged several decades ago.
“The trees have grown back nicely and the land is actually in pretty good shape,” said Daryl Williams, the Tulalip Tribes’ natural resources liaison.
The tract is located just west of Gold Bar and close to the Mt. Baker-Snoqualmie National Forest, the Wild Sky Wilderness and other protected lands managed by the state Department of Natural Resources.
The land lies across the Wallace River from a state salmon hatchery, and provides habitat for bull trout as well as four types of salmon: chinook, coho, pink and chum. The land is also home to black bear, elk, deer and beaver.
Williams said the land is likely to remain in its present state, as it already provides ideal habitat for fish in the water as well as for land mammals.
“Right now we don’t have any money to do anything with the property,” Williams said. “Perhaps we’ll thin some of the trees to allow some of the others to grow faster.”
The deal came together when Forterra learned the owner of the parcels, a property investment firm called Robinett Holdings, soon would put them up for sale, Connor said.
“When we first learned the property was coming on the market, we contacted the Tulalip Tribes to see if (the land) would be conservationally significant,” Connor said.
That turned out to be the case, she said.
“The property itself has historical oxbows and natural features that in and of themselves are very, very important,” she said.
It also fit in with the Tulalips’ efforts to restore the watersheds associated with the Snohomish, Skykomish and Snoqualmie rivers.
“We’ve been spending a lot of time and effort trying to restore areas on the watershed,” Williams said.
“With new development and redevelopment, we’re losing habitat faster than we’re replacing it,” he said. “We need to do a better job with what we have.”
The deal marks the second large habitat protection project the Tulalips have undertaken. Last year the tribes breached the levees and restored tidal influence to the Qwuloolt Estuary in Marysville. The 315-acre tract took 20 years to convert from farmland to a salt marsh and cost nearly $20 million.
The transfer of the Wallace River tract is also consistent with Forterra’s goals in working with local Native American tribes on preservation, Connor said.
“We see that repatriation of indigenous lands is an important part of our conservation mission,” Connor said.
Snohomish County was the primary provider of funds for the land purchase and transfer, providing $280,000 in Conservation Futures funds toward the purchase, and toward other costs associated with obtaining the conservation easements and transferring the property to the tribes.
County Parks Director Tom Teigen said the Conservation Futures Advisory Board often tries to strike a balance between acquiring land for active recreation, agriculture and habitat preservation, but this particular exchange stood out for its potential benefits to salmon.
“At the end of the day, preserving that property and getting that much acreage as well as the riverfront is significant,” Teigen said.
Forterra also received $250,000 from the state Recreation and Conservation Office toward the property purchase.
It has been 100 years since water flowed in this now former farmland along Ebey Slough. The place is unrecognizable from what it was just four months ago.
“A lot of things are going to change really fast in here,” said Todd Zackey, as he and a team of researchers from the Tulalip Tribes navigated the waters Monday.
In August, the Tulalip, along NOAA and Snohomish County breached a levee along the slough, flooding the land and returning its natural state.
Now, researchers are casting nets into the water to see what fish are showing up. The goal is to create a salmon spawning habitat to help in increase their numbers around Puget Sound.
Researchers are casting nets into the Ebey Slough to see what fish are showing up. (Photo: Eric Wilkinson / KING)
Right now, though, there are far more questions than answers.
“Can we punch a hole in the dike and have the salmon respond in a positive way?” asked researcher Matt Pouley. “Are we going to see a population response over a reasonable amount of time?”
So far only a few salmon have been spotted, but that’s to be expected for this time of the year. There are plenty of other fish, though, and that’s a good sign.
No one is in a hurry. This is a long term project. It will likely take a century for full restoration of these waters.
And this project is about more than strengthening the fish supply. It’s about a way of life that goes back thousands of years for the Tulalip, and preserving that tradition for generations to come.
“The tribe is, in essence, losing part of its culture,” said Zackey. “Restoring salmon is restoring the culture of the tribe.”
