Washington State’s Regional Fishery Enhancement Groups: Making a Real Difference for Salmon (and Orcas)

Presentation by Jeanette Dorner
When: Thursday March 30, 7:00 – 8:30 pm.
Where: C&P Coffee Company, 5612 California Ave SW
Cost: $5 suggested donation; kids free!

Presented by The Whale Trail

Salmon, the primary food for our endangered orcas (J, K and L pods), are in trouble. Almost 20 years ago the state of Washington created a network of 14 non-profits to work with local communities on salmon habitat restoration projects in different watersheds.

These Regional Fishery Enhancement Groups have worked since then with private landowners and community partners to identify and implement valuable projects that can help increase the number of salmon returning to Washington state.

The latest report on the state of Washingtons salmon shows that overall the recovery of endangered salmon is mixed and salmon populations in Puget Sound are still declining. It is even more important to support and invest in these efforts to restore habitat.

Jeanette will share what the Regional Fishery Enhancement Groups across the state are doing to make a difference and also about the group in Seattles backyard: the Mid Sound Fishery Enhancement Group and how you can help.

Buy tickets now to reserve your seat. And hurry! This will likely sell out.

About the Speaker

Jeanette Dorner has a long history working to recover salmon in Puget Sound. She worked for 11 years as the Salmon Recovery Program Manager with the Nisqually Tribe, coordinating the protection and restoration of salmon habitat in the Nisqually watershed. She played a lead role in helping facilitate with partners major salmon restoration projects including the 900 acre restoration of the Nisqually Estuary. She then worked as the Director of Ecosystem and Salmon Recovery at the Puget Sound Partnership, supporting the work of hundreds of partners around Puget Sound to protect, restore and clean up their rivers, streams and Puget Sound shorelines.

In January of this year Jeanette became the Executive Director of the Mid Sound Fishery Enhancement Group. In her new role she is focused on working to grow the organization to achieve a broader impact on restoring salmon habitat in the Mid Sound area which includes the Green – Duwamish watershed, the Cedar/Sammamish/Lake Washington watershed, the watersheds of Eastern Kitsap County which drain into Central Puget Sound, and all the Puget Sound shorelines in the Central Puget Sound area in King County and Kitsap County.

Jeanette is also the mother to two wonderful kids – a thirteen year old boy and a seven year old girl. Part of her passion to recover salmon habitat and to preserve and protect this beautiful place we call home is to try to pass on to her children a home where they can continue to enjoy the natural wonders of this place with their families – going to watch orcas swimming through Puget Sound, visiting salmon spawning in our local streams, and hiking in the majestic forests of the Pacific Northwest.

About The Whale Trail

The Whale Trail (www.thewhaletrail.org) is a series of sites around the region where the public may view orcas and other marine mammals from shore. Our mission is to inspire appreciation and stewardship of whales and our marine environment. Our overarching goal is to ensure the southern resident orcas recover from the threat of extinction.

Through our current sites and signs, including two on every Washington State ferry, we reach more than 50 million people each year. The Whale Trail is currently adding new sites along the west coast, from California to British Columbia, throughout the southern resident orcas’ range and beyond.

The Whale Trail is led by a core team of partners including NOAA Fisheries, Washington Department of Fish and Wildlife, the Seattle Aquarium, the Olympic Coast National Marine Sanctuary, and the Whale Museum. Our BC team is led by the the BC Cetacean Sighting Network. Many members of the Whale Trail teams met when they worked together to return Springer, the orphaned orca, to her pod.

The Whale Trail is a 501(c)3 nonprofit organization, headquartered in West Seattle. Join us!