Boosting Salmon Recovery: Grants Fuel Local Efforts

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Four local governments and one tribe will receive $1.2 million for salmon recovery efforts, the Washington Department of Commerce reported on Tuesday.

Commerce officials say the money will pay for growth management and land use planning funded by the state’s Climate Commitment Act and U.S. Environmental Protection Agency.

“The protection of our natural resources, particularly salmon habitat, is vital not only for our environment but for the long-term sustainability of our communities,” said Commerce Director Mike Fong. “This funding empowers local governments and tribes to create and implement comprehensive plans that will ensure the health of our ecosystems while meeting the needs of our growing population.”

Today, 14 population groups of steelhead trout and Chinook, coho, chum, and sockeye salmon in Washington state are listed as threatened or endangered under the Endangered Species Act. Salmon recovery is a major component of the Climate Commitment Act, with $153 million appropriated for salmon recovery projects in the state’s 2023-2025 budgets.

Grant recipients will develop comprehensive land management regulations and strategies to support salmon habitat by developing new approaches to water resource management, advancing environmentally-friendly stormwater infrastructure, developing a wetland mitigation bank, and creating an urban tree canopy preservation program, Commerce reports further.

Grant awardees include the cities of Everett ($250,000), Ilwaco ($212,500), Lake Stevens ($247,339), the Snoqualmie Indian Tribe ($230,011), and Thurston County. ($250,000), according to the department.

Commerce will hold a second round of grant applications later this fall, department officials say.