Members keep the grassroots core of restoration work alive! Membership supports key aspects of the work that the Salmon Coalition engages in such as coordinating volunteer events, running our education programs, and implementing project monitoring. The list goes on, which means your membership goes a long way!
Summer is membership renewal season. Your contribution is important and greatly appreciated, and it offers you the opportunity to dive deeper into all that we do.
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NOSC Vice Chair Jim surveying for Chum on Chimacum Creek. |
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Updates from Kilisut Harbor: Seining in the New Channel |
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In April, the U.S. Geological Survey Marrowstone Marine Field Station and partners conducted their annual beach seining at Kilisut Harbor from the shores of Indian Island. While data has been collected over the past five years, this is the first beach seine to occur since the re-opening of the channel. |
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Using a large net, researchers and volunteers collect specimens and record data such as species and measurements. This survey offers valuable insight about the fish that use the channel. Despite the short time that the Kilisut Harbor Restoration project has been completed, this year’s beach seine showed some big changes!
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Over the course of the last five years, a total of just six juvenile salmonids were spotted in these surveys.
We're excited to announce that approximately
160 juvenile salmonids
were counted this year!
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Six squid also made an appearance in the nets, and hadn't been spotted during any previous seining events. Thanks to all who supported this great effort, we can't wait to see what the future will bring to Kilisut Harbor! |
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U.S. Navy photos by Mass Communication Specialist 3rd Class Emilia C. Hilliard |
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Member Tours are Back: Kilisut Harbor Recap |
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Above: Project Manager Kevin Long speaking about the project site. Below: Members tide pooling below the bridge at low tide. |
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The Salmon Coalition is so happy to announce that Member Tours are back! Earlier this month, we held two Member Tours at the Kilisut Harbor Restoration Site. We constructed a bridge between Indian and Marrowstone Island and re-opened the historic channel between Oak Bay and Kilisut Harbor for the first time in 75+ years. Members enjoyed stories from our wonderful Project Manager Kevin Long, gorgeous PNW sunshine, and exploring the tide pools under the bridge at low tide. |
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Thanks to Kevin for leading the tours and for all that he’s put into this project! We hope to see you at the next member tour! |
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Upcoming Farmer's Market Appearances |
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NOSC will have a booth at local farmers markets - stop by for a free sticker and to chat about membership and volunteering!
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NOSC's Booth at the Port Angeles Farmers Market in June 2021. |
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Voluntourism with Global Family Travels |
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NOSC is partnering with Global Family Travels and First Nature Tours as a part of their “Olympic Peninsula Adventure” tour! This family friendly adventure is centered on tribal culture and salmon recovery through a unique blend of education, service, recreation, and cultural immersion. Participants get the chance to engage with the Salmon Coalition, the Jamestown S’Klallam Tribe, and the Lower Elwha Klallam Tribe. Click here to learn more!
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NOSC volunteers planting trees at a Jamestown S'Klallam Tribe conservation property along the Dungeness River. |
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Volunteer Spotlight: Cheryl Lowe |
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Cheryl enjoying the sunshine at Indian Island County Park. |
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The Salmon Coalition is grateful to work with and learn from so many inspiring and dedicated people. To celebrate the contributions of this community, NOSC selects someone each month to highlight and give thanks.
This month we are highlighting Cheryl Lowe. Cheryl is a retired native plant horticulturist and restoration professional, as well as a dedicated NOSC volunteer! Read on to learn more about Cheryl!
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Tell us a little bit about yourself. |
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As a kid, I spent a lot of time playing and exploring in the forests of northeastern Ohio, although it was probably our family’s annual camping trips all over the country that really inspired my interest in nature and being outside. I studied plant ecology and horticulture in college, and worked for a wide range of organizations including native plant botanic gardens, public agencies and land trusts in Washington, Oregon and Massachusetts. We were living on Whidbey Island when I began working for Jefferson County WSU Extension in 2013 coordinating the Beach Watchers & Stream Stewards courses and the Jefferson County Marine Resources Committee. It was so much fun learning with the students about fresh-water and marine habitats, how landscapes evolve, how we’ve changed things and what local groups are doing to protect or restore important habitats.
I recently retired and now spend my time hiking, gardening and volunteering in the community.
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What drew you to become a restoration professional? |
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My interest in restoration was really a natural extension of working with native plants and being drawn to natural areas. I want future generations to be able to experience and appreciate these special places and the species that depend on them, so conserving and restoring natural areas and ecological processes for the long term is important. I made the transition from native plant horticulture to restoration work in the Pacific Northwest with an AmeriCorps/Student Conservation Association (SCA) Internship in North Cascades National Park in 2006. It was so much fun! That led to work with the Whidbey Camano Land Trust which included land stewardship responsibilities and implementing prairie, woodland and shoreline restoration projects. |
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How did you become involved with NOSC? What do you do with NOSC now? |
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As the Beach Watchers coordinator (now Beach Naturalist/Stream Stewards) I wanted to learn as much as I could about land-based environmental organizations on the Olympic Peninsula. My first opportunity to volunteer for NOSC was assisting with a salt marsh salmon smolt fyke net monitoring project in lower Discovery Bay (a fyke net is a long, bag-shaped fishing net held open by hoops). I was hooked, volunteering when I could and making sure my students learned about NOSC’s work in all my classes.
More recently, I’ve also been volunteering with the NOSC outreach staff (Libby, Nate and Lexi), helping edit Walking Tour brochures, offering advice and assisting with other outreach activities such as the Farmer’s Market booth. I also led a field trip for the 2021 WSU Stream Stewards class to introduce them to how NOSC has been restoring lower Discovery Bay near the Discovery Trail.
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What inspires you to volunteer with NOSC? |
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The NOSC staff is amazing. Habitat restoration, especially when done with insight, collaboration and community engagement, is really hard and takes a long time to do well. I am inspired by watching NOSC take on large, complex, landscape-scale restoration projects with community collaboration, thoughtful planning, determination and patience. I love the fact that they also work at a grassroots level, engaging community members and students in smaller, hands-on, one-property-at-a time projects that also improve habitat and restore ecological processes. It’s a fabulous organization and it’s an honor to be an active part of it. |
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Thank you Cheryl, we appreciate you! |
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Base funding for the RFEG program comes from a grant from the U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service's Partners for Fish and Wildlife Program, a portion of state commercial and recreational fishing license fees, and excess egg and carcass sales administered by the Washington Department of Fish & Wildlife.
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Give Us Your Feedback
Questions or Comments? Let us know what you think!
outreach@nosc.org
360.379.8051
www.nosc.org
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