Action Plan 12: To partner with North Olympic Salmon Coalition and Save Our Wild Salmon Coalition

which includes members of the Jamestown S‘Klallam and Lower Elwha Klallam tribes, to restore salmon and salmon habitat to the Dungeness and Elwha, two important salmon-spawning rivers.

1) Our Goal/Intended Impacts:

 To support these tribes by participating in stream-side restoration and other projects to restore salmon to these rivers is climate justice work at its core. Native tribes historically have been marginalized and salmon, a key food source and culturally significant to the tribes, have been brought to the edge of extinction in these rivers by stream-side habitat destruction, dam building, river channel degradation, water pollution, proliferation of invasive plant species, and more. Native people can no longer depend upon salmon as a major food source to feed themselves. As the impacts of climate change intensify so will pressure on Native Tribes to find adequate food sources to sustain themselves.

2) Steps/How to Get There:

 To work with North Olympic Salmon Coalition and the Save Our Wild Salmon Coalition by fund-raising, participating in stream-side habitat restoration projects, participating in public demonstrations to bring attention to the need for immediate action and other to be decided projects.

3) Opportunity Assessment Response:

 Our Opportunity Assessment Report revealed that as individuals some of us have been supporting these two non-profit organizations financially but have not taken steps to become more involved in the work they are doing in the field and in the public domain.

We are now committing, as a congregation, to participate in the hands-on work that must be done to address these issues.

4) How Impacts Will Be Measured/Assessed:

A. We will keep track of the amount of money raised through our benefit concerts, donations, and other to-be-determined fund-raising projects and at the end of year one, we will make this money available to the NOSC and SOWS organizations.

B. We will keep track of the number of volunteers and hours worked in the field to remove invasive species, replant with native species, and make other habitat   degradation repairs along riparian corridors.