OCTOBER 10, 2019

PACIFIC NORTHWEST TRIBES & FIRST NATIONS DECLARE SALMON EMERGENCY

Tribal representatives from Southeast Alaska, British Columbia, and Washington state sounded the alarm over threats posed to wild salmon across state and national borders.  The Pacific tribes held a 3-day summit organized by the Southeast Alaska Indigenous Transboundary Commission (a consortium of 15 tribes in Southeast Alaska) and hosted by the Lummi Nation near Ferndale, Washington.  The summit concluded with: (1) A declaration of a state of emergency regarding polluted waters and declining wild salmon stocks; (2) a commitment to understanding one another’s concerns; and (3) establishment of a committee in which individuals from Tribes & First Nations can act on these shared concerns.  The tribes’ statement pointed to resource extraction industries, namely Canadian mines on transboundary watersheds that they say threaten fisheries that are primary food sources and the livelihoods of indigenous peoples. 

Source:  Jacob Resneck, CoastAlaska - Juneau, “Pacific tribes across borders declare ‘salmon emergency’,” Alaska Public Media, 10/11/2019.  Retrieved 12/20/2020, https://www.alaskapublic.org/2019/10/11/pacific-tribes-across-borders-declare-salmon-emergency/
Photo:  Oregon Department of Forestry, 7/12/2014.  Homestead Coho Salmon.  Permissive Use.