Gov. Gregoire Announces Grants to Protect and Restore Salmon Populations

For Immediate Release: January 11, 2006

More than $26 million awarded to local efforts across the state

OLYMPIA - Governor Chris Gregoire today awarded $26.6 million to local communities across the state to restore salmon populations.

�Protecting the environment is central to our quality of life and essential to the strength of our economy. We need to ensure our watersheds and waterways are healthy,� Governor Gregoire said.

The grants from the Salmon Recovery Funding Board vary from $15,000 to more than $1 million. They were awarded to organizations in 28 counties for 104 individual projects, ranging from habitat improvements, restoring estuaries, to creating sanctuaries for salmon from predators.

�Washington�s approach to salmon recovery is a national model,� said William Ruckelshaus, chairman of the Salmon Recovery Funding Board. �We were the first in the history of the federal Endangered Species Act to have local communities statewide write recovery plans and set priorities for saving salmon.�

The grant awards were given to organizations within the following counties:
Asotin $230,000
Chelan $869,664
Clallam $935,264
Clark $190,220
Columbia $528,500
Cowlitz $355,425
Grays Harbor $1 million
Island $698,696
Jefferson $858,137
King $3.3 million
Kitsap $683,050
Kittitas $1.3 million
Klickitat $843,125
Lewis $158,000
Mason $1.8 million
Okanogan $531,272
Pacific $496,000
Pend Oreille $774,603
Pierce $2.6 million
San Juan $319,875
Skagit $1.9 million
Skamania $228,789
Snohomish $1.8 million
Thurston $1 million
Wahkiakum $14,463
Walla Walla $650,972
Whatcom $1.2 million
Yakima $572,444

The Salmon Recovery Funding Board was established in July 1999 by the state Legislature to help oversee the investment of state and federal funds for salmon recovery. Since 2000, the board has awarded more than $241 million in grants for 695 projects. Citizen members appointed by the governor are: William Ruckelshaus, Seattle; Frank L. �Larry� Cassidy, Vancouver; Brenda McMurray, Yakima; James Peters, Olympia; and Steve Tharinger, Clallam County. Five state agency directors also serve as members; Mark Clark, Executive Director of the Washington Conservation Commission; Jay Manning, Director of the Department of Ecology; Jeff Koenings, Director of the Department of Fish and Wildlife; Doug Sutherland, Commissioner of Public Lands; and Douglas MacDonald, Secretary of Transportation.

For descriptions of the projects in each county, visit www.iac.wa.gov.

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