Squaxin Island Tribe's Natural Resources

Larry Phillips, Department of Fish and Wildlife, on “Season movements and associated management implications for coastal cutthroat trout in South Puget Sound”: Presented observational data from multi-year, multi-agency study Coastal Cutthroat trout is an important sport fish species that historically supported a large harvest fishery, and overharvest resulted in declines (anecdotal). In 1997 the Natural Marine Fisheries [...]

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The invasive New Zealand mud snail was discovered by a birdwatcher/shell enthusiast  in Capitol Lake in October of 2009.  There has been an intensive effort to control the mudsnail since it’s discovery.   Mudsnails outcompete native gastropods by outfeeding them and they don’t serve as an alternative food source for fish.  They have been spreading west [...]

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Shellfish growers in Oregon and Washington are finding that their shellfish production is being negatively impacted by increasing ocean acidity caused by increased atmospheric carbon dioxide.  Betsy Peabody explained how the shellfish are not able to grow their shells when the ocean water acid levels are too high.   There is a study of natural shellfish populations [...]

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David Beauchamp, University of Washington, on “Pelagic Food Web Ecology in Puget Sound: Implications for Marine Growth & Survival of Chinook Salmon”: We need to consider the next life stage for chinook and the processes involved. Smolt to adult survival is highly correlated with body weight in July, suggesting this weight represents ‘critical size’.  Offshore growth [...]

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A climate change analysis conducted by the University of Washington that used the results of 20 different climate models projected that by 2080 there would be a 75 percent loss of snowpack in the upper Nisqually watershed.   Alan Hamlet from the University of Washington explained that by the 2040′s the models also predicted a 20 [...]

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Wendy Brown, Invasive Species Council, RCO, on “Invasive mudsnails in Capitol Lake”: New Zealand mud snail found in October 2009: ”perfect invader”, tiny, parthenogenic, fast reproducing, dense, tolerant of moderate salinty levels Impacts: consumes large quantities of primary production; out-competes natives; not a good source of food for fish, as they pass through undigested, restricted recreational opportunities, [...]

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Betsy Peabody, Puget Sound Restoration Fund, on “Ocean acidification monitoring in Totten Inlet” Partners: NOAA PMEL, UW, Pacific Shellfish Institute, PS Restoration Fund, Pacific Coast Sehllfish Growers Association; Taylor Shellfish, Baywater, Inc.; Department of Ecology; funded by Puget Sound Partnership Warning signs were repeated larval mortalities in WA and OR shellfish hatcheries and shellfish failures in Willapa Bay/Grays [...]

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Stormwater in a pilot low impact development (LID) project in Pierce County near Hylebos Creek is successfully being infiltrated and filtered of contaminants despite some problems with construction of the LID elements and poor soils at the site. Curtis Hinman from the Washington State University Puyallup Research and Extension Center explained how an 8 acre [...]

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Alan Hamlet, member of Climate Impacts Group at University of Washington, on “Flow regime change forecast for Nisqually/Deschutes Rivers & Chambers Creek” Showed graphs with historic climate change and projected change. Two different scenarios based on different reductions in greenhouse gas emissions show vastly different results, but only after a couple of decades.  Columbia Basin Climate [...]

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The Budd Inlet Treatment Plant in Olympia operated by LOTT discharges the equivalent of 17 Olympic size swimming pools of water a day into Puget Sound, according to Laurie Pierce of the LOTT Clean Water Alliance.  It’s nitrogen contribution to the Sound is equal to that of the Deschutes river watershed.   In 1992 an upgrade [...]

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