Programs
Wild Salmon Center Staff take the Salmon Stronghold Message to Washington DCNews & Program Updates
February, 2007
WSC staff (Vice President of Conservation Greg Block, North America Program Director Paula Burgess and Legislative Counsel Chris Soderstrom) traveled to Washington, D.C., to discuss salmon issues with key lawmakers and conservation partners. The briefings included special emphasis on the WSC Stronghold Partnership, and our continued effort to generate congressional awareness of and support for protecting wild Pacific salmon.
The group met with Congressman Norm Dicks, long regarded as a leader and champion of wild salmon ecosystems. He provided critical assistance to Western Rivers Conservancy and the Wild Salmon Center when the groups were working to acquire land for salmon protection in the Hoh River corridor, and his support for the Stronghold Partnership could be key to its success.
The WSC group also met with staff to Senator Marcia Cantwell, a member of the Commerce, Science, and Transportation Committee, who recently was named Chair of the Subcommittee on Oceans, Atmosphere, Fisheries, and the Coast Guard. Among her many duties, she oversees NOAA Fisheries Service, the agency responsible for anadromous salmon and steelhead listed under the Endangered Species Act. She has been highly supportive of the Shared Strategy, the massive recovery effort for listed salmon and steelhead in Puget Sound.
Wild Salmon Center staff also briefed staff to Sens. Barbara Boxer of California and Gordon Smith of Oregon, and Congressman Ron Wyden of Oregon.
Finally, Paula Burgess met with Greg Schildwachter of the White House Council on Environmental Quality (CEQ). Mr. Schildwachter oversees salmon and power issues in the Columbia River basin. Paula briefed CEQ on the Stronghold Partnership, and discussed opportunities to work together to protect the remaining salmon strongholds in the Columbia River basin, including the John Day River basin and Middle Fork Salmon River.