Currently, there are two confirmed wolf packs in the state,  the North Cascades pack and one in the Selkirk Mountains of northeast Washington (this pack is part of the northern Rockies population), but many more breeding pairs are needed in order to ensure their long-term survival in the state.  

Wolf recovery in Washington has been tenuous with many wolves being either victims of poachers or car collisions.  Last year, the pelt of one of Washington’s endangered wolves was found in a shipping container.  Currently the investigation is still underway and no arrests have been made for this case.  The most recent reports from the Washington Department of Fish and Wildlife indicate that the North Cascades pack’s breeding female is missing and they fear she may have also been killed.  Radio signal from the wolf’s collar was lost May 12^th and has not been received since.  Scott Fitkin, of the Department of Fish and Wildlife, believes there are two possible explanations for the loss or detectable signal.  Either the collar malfunctioned, or the wolf was killed and the collar was destroyed. 

But the recent ruling is good news for Washington’s few wolves because it means that there is a greater chance for recovery in our state (which is dependent on healthy populations in Idaho) and it will ensure that adequate state plans are in place before delisting can occur in the future. 

In 2006, Washington State Fish and Wildlife began to develop a plan for their wolf conservation and management. After many meetings and a long public process, the plan was put under scientific peer review.  Multiple revisions have been made to the draft and a final plan will be presented to the Washington Fish and Wildlife Commission in late 2010.   Conservation Northwest will keep you posted on the latest developments and opportunties to get involved.

The lands in the northeast corner of Washington state still exemplify the mystique of the western frontier: local, family-owned mills still thrive, many family ranches still make their living off the land, and wild mountains and forests still provide habitat for a wide range of species, from caribou to grizzly bears and Canada lynx, found few other places in the U.S. Scientists have also identified the Columbia Highlands region of Northeastern Washington with its intact wild areas and open space as an important region for wildlife to travel between the Cascades and Rocky Mountains as development continues to encroach on the remaining intact wildlife habitat.

 “The pressures and changes of the modern world require us to take a new, collaborative approach to conserving our wildlife, natural areas, and traditional rural lifestyles,” said Tim Coleman, director of the Columbia Highlands Initiative. “We can’t do it without working together on the big picture: maintaining wildlife pathways and healthy forests, also means that we need to maintain our timber jobs and the large habitat-rich ranches.”

The key elements of the group’s proposal includes: 1) the designation of new national conservation, national recreation and wilderness areas in the Colville National Forest, 2) support for ongoing national forest stewardship projects, and 3) collaborative work with ranchers, including raising private funds for easements, to keep several key ranches in operation for cattle production and that provide essential habitat for wildlife.

Ultimately, formal designation of Wilderness, National Conservation Areas, and National Recreation Areas will require an act of Congress.  Additionally some funding may needed as well.

We’re deeply appreciative that members of our state’s congressional delegation, particularly Senator Cantwell and Rep. McMorris Rodgers, have been closely following our outreach efforts,” said Coleman.    “They have consistently voiced their support for our consensus-building approach.  We look forward to working with them on our ultimate goal of moving legislation through Congress.

“My grandfather started our family milling business and my dad followed in his footsteps and now I follow in his,” said Russ Vaagen, manager of Vaagen Bros. Lumber who attended the press conference in Spokane . “Community collaboration has worked for our business, and in these tough economic times, that has helped keep our workforce on the job. There’s an acceptable balance in both sustaining jobs in the woods and protecting some special places,” Vaagen said.

Some local ranchers have gotten involved in the effort because they recognize that changes to the land threaten their cattle business and the open spaces that enhance their lifestyle. They are collaborating with conservation groups to permanently commit key ranches to agriculture, open space and wildlife habitat, preventing real estate and mining developments that break up operations and harm the natural and agricultural heritage. “When the property around us starts growing houses instead of grass and trees, that hurts us and the wildlife,” said Ferry County rancher Bryan Gotham. “This partnership is helping us keep the land the way it was in my grandfather’s time, with a quiet backcountry that we can access by horse and a means to keep our ranch economically viable so I can pass it on to my children when the time comes.”

The Columbia Highlands Initiative also aims to increase recreation access and tourism in the region by convincing Congress to pass legislation that would establish National Recreation Areas, National Conservation Areas, and new trails for mountain bikes and off-road vehicles. New wilderness areas proposed in the package would also be an added tourism draw to the region.

Wilderness is seen by many traditional backcountry enthusiasts who enjoy the slower, quite pace of hiking or horseback riding as a way to keep a little piece of northeast Washington the way its always been. Many hunters also see wilderness as a way to maintain opportunities for pursuing deer, elk, bear and other game away from roads and crowds where hunting success can be greater and the size of some game bigger. “Wilderness areas ensure that those of us who prefer putting in the effort for a traditional hunt on foot or horseback will still have places like the Kettle Crest or Salmo Priest area to share with our children and grandchildren even with ever expanding development pressures,” said Joe Mirasole, a resident of Elk, WA, and chair of the WA chapter of Backcountry Hunters and Anglers.

“We want a balance where wildlife and wildlands can contribute economically,” says John Eminger, owner of 49 Degrees North Ski Area and a partner in the effort. “Wildlife and wilderness is an important part of the overall reason why people enjoy coming to recreate here. We want it to stay that way.”

[Columbia Highlands Initiative info]

In the Columbia Highlands, working ranches, small timber operations, and farms are not only the lifeblood of the community, they are vital to wildlife. Conservation Northwest is working with the Gothams and other stewards who have cared for family lands for generations to help ensure that these special place are safe from development.

Forest Legacy is a federal grant program to protect forestlands from conversion to non-forest uses. In Washington, the program is guided by the USDA Forest Service and carried out through the state Department of Natural Resources (DNR).

The Gothams live near Colville and own 2,200 acres in Ferry County, on the north side of Highway 20 between Republic and the Colville National Forest. The core of the property has been in the family for half a century. The Gothams manage it for timber and cattle production, wildlife and water stewardship, and public access for hunting and other non-motorized recreation. The Gothams also graze their cattle on part of the Colville National Forest between the Colville Indian Reservation and Highway 20, a 70,000 acre tract known as the Quartz Grazing Allotment that adjoins their ranch.

“When the property around us starts growing houses instead of grass and trees, that hurts our ranch, other local ranchers, and the wildlife,” said Ferry County ranchers Bryan and Deb Gotham. “This partnership is helping us keep the land the way it was in our grandfather’s time, with a quiet backcountry that we can access by horse and a means to keep our ranch economically viable so we can pass it on intact to our kids when the time comes.”

The application is endorsed by American Farmland Trust; Okanogan Valley Land Council; Colville Confederated Tribes; WA Dept of Fish and Wildlife; Ferry County Conservation District; Ferry County Commissioners; Northeastern WA Forestry Coalition; Matt Hobbs, president of the Northeastern Chapter of Washington Farm Forestry Association; Spokane Mountaineers; Inland Empire Chapter of Mule Deer Foundation; Backcountry Hunters and Anglers; Spokane Trout Unlimited, Inland Northwest Wildlife Council;  WA State Representative Shelly Short; Colville National Forest Supervisor; US Senator Patty Murray; State Senator Bob Morton; US Senator Maria Cantwell; US Representative Cathy McMorris Rodgers.

The Land and Water Conservation Fund was established over 40 years ago as a powerful tool to bring recreation access for millions of Americans by using a portion of fees collected from oil/gas operations. This tool helps states to acquire open space or conservation easements, to build recreation areas, and to protect ecosystems by underwriting projects that bring a broad range of people to the outdoors.

“The LWCF was intended to mitigate in part the potential damages from offshore oil and gas production by protecting some of America’s most precious land resources and providing close-to-home recreational opportunities for Americans in every state in the nation,” said Will Rogers, President of the Trust for Public Land. “Given the tragic situation in the Gulf, the vision behind the Land and Water Conservation Fund is even more relevant than ever and we applaud Chairman Rahall’s leadership for including dedicated funding in the CLEAR Act.”

[Interactive map of Washington's LWCF funded projects]

[More about LWCF on Scat! Conservation Northwest's blog]

Conservation Northwest is working with volunteers, Mount Baker Snoqualmie Forest, and KPLU to put up bird boxes in areas where snags aren't available to provide nesting sites. Donors to KPLU during the drive will also be helping plant trees in the Wenatchee National Forest in conjunction with the National Forest Foundation.

Learn more: How Is a Dead Tree Good? 

Volunteer to make bird boxes: Contact Jen Watkins

In reversing the lower court's ruling, the appeals court noted that the environmental impacts of the DNR plan needed to be considered along with the "existing use" of Blanchard as trust land.

In May 2009, the Washington State Board of Natural Resources voted to buy and protect from development 80 acres of private land on the south slope of Blanchard. It was the first purchase fleshing out the landmark Blanchard Mountain Agreement, that protects the heart of Blanchard Mountain while promising funding to protect forests from pavement and subdivision at the foot of the mountain.

Learn more in a history of protecting Blanchard Mountain

While Conservation Northwest supports and encourages outdoor recreation at Stevens Pass, including mountain biking, hiking, and skiing, any recreation must be compatible with protecting habitat and wildlife that rely on these high forests and meadows. The development plans at Stevens Pass, so far, do not address effects to wildlife reliant on the area, such as wolverine.

Of all the high peaks and high country along US Highway 2, Stevens Pass is unique in that it provides a critical habitat path for wolverines between the North Cascades and the central and southern Cascades. Wolverines travel long distances and move through high elevation areas, like Stevens Pass, that get snow earlier and hold it later in the year.

As climate changes, the habitat at Stevens Pass will only become increasingly crucial to wolverine survival and recovery. 

Stevens Pass Ski Area Resort, which operates on a special-use permit from the Forest Service, announced plans in 2007 to expand significantly beyond its current footprint in nearly every direction and directly into the wolverine’s travel routes. Over the next 10 to 15 years, the resort hopes to build new ski runs into the Grace Lakes unroaded area and to construct facilities for nearly 20,000 people in the spring and summer months, times which in the past were quiet for wildlife.

Many wildlife are sensitive to human presence. Wolverines, especially, avoid areas where people are active.

Such high stake developments require careful and comprehensive review. Yet the Forest Service’s analysis only looked at the first of many developments planned by the resort, examining only a single plum instead of the whole pie. The resort’s complete development plans have the potential to break apart wolverine populations and increase the rare native carnivore's risk of extinction. Because of this, all plans should be looked at in totality.

The Forest Service could and should follow the example of The Summit at Snoqualmie (and indeed, every other ski resort in Washington’s Cascades), which successfully completed a review of The Summit’s Master Development plans, identifying and avoiding wildlife impacts. The Summit's plans ultimately received broad community support, including from Conservation Northwest and other wildlife groups.

For further information, please contact Conservation Associate Jen Watkins.

Materials

3-D image of the current Stevens Pass Ski Resort

3-D image of proposed development at Stevens Pass Ski Resort as found in their 10-15 year Master Development Plan

The resolution "encourages the people of the United States to become educated about and aware of threats to species, success stories in species recovery and the opportunity to promote species conservation worldwide and to observe the day with appropriate ceremonies and activities."

Said Sen. Susan Collins, a Maine Republican and resolution co-sponsor, "The federal government plays a critical role in protecting threatened and endangered species....I encourage all Mainers to take advantage of the opportunities that day to learn more about what each of us can do to protect threatened and endangered species."

Washington state's endangered species include (like Maine) Canada lynx, as well as grizzly bears, marbled murrelets, northern spotted owls, and wolverines.

Washington's Sen. Maria Cantwell was one of the ten original cosponsors of the bill.

The Act comes on the heels of an April 16th Presidential Memorandum that defines a 21st century strategy for preserving America’s Great Outdoors and which also recognizes the importance of wildlife corridors and connectivity.

"To maintain and conserve wildlife and fish in Washington State today and into the future, one of the most important things we can do is to provide the ability for them to safely move from one habitat to another," says Jen Watkins, conservation associate of Conservation Northwest. "The Wildlife Corridors Conservation Act addresses the priority of connectivity at a national level, which is an exciting step."

Support for the Wildlife Corridors Conservation Act includes Association of Fish and Wildlife Agencies, National Wildlife Federation, Freedom to Roam, National Parks Conservation Association, Defenders of Wildlife, Conservation Northwest, and many others.

Full press release

NRCA designation is also consistent with the agreement reached by the Blanchard Strategies Group. This process, which Conservation Northwest participated in, brought diverse interests together in 2006 to find solutions to protect the core recreational and ecological values of Blanchard Forest and combat conversion of forests to sprawl, in ways consistent with the interests of fiduciary trusts and the local community.

National resource conservation area designation of Blanchard Mountain would build on the negotiated agreement reached by the Strategies Group by providing stronger, enduring protections for 1600 acres of roadless forest on the upper slopes of Blanchard.

In order to both protect Blanchard while keeping the trusts whole, the Blanchard Strategies Group agreed to seek $12.5 million in state funding that would be used to purchase additional public timberland to replace the 1600 acres protected from logging. State purchase of additional timber lands (at risk of development) will help maintain a viable timber industry and reduce sprawl.

Conservation Northwest and other members of the Strategies Group worked with local legislators to successfully raise $5.5 million, which have already been used to buy lands. We will continue to seek funds to fulfill the agreement and complete the resource area designation.

Most of the freed fishers have survived the ardors of the last three years since the releases began. Several have gone on to give birth to kits, seemingly on the way to an established a reproducing population in these old-growth forests.

"This final release culminates a decade of cooperative effort to restore fishers to Washington State," said Dave Werntz, conservation director at Conservation Northwest, "and gives me a sense of what Shaun White felt after landing his spiraling Double McTwist 1260."

Many helped make the dream reality, together with Conservation Northwest: the Washington Department of Fish and Wildlife, Olympic National Park, Olympic National Forest, the British Columbia Ministry of Environment, British Columbia Trappers Association, Doris Duke Foundation, Lower Elwha Klallam tribe, U.S. Geological Survey, U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, Washington Department of Natural Resources, Washington's National Park Fund and Wildlife Conservation Society.

The next step might well be to reintroduce Olympic fishers to the Washington Cascades, an even bigger step toward fisher recovery in the Pacific Northwest

These small, native forest mammals have been previously long missing from Washington. Their recovery is the result of innovative collaboration between citizens and government.

Another 15 fishers are scheduled to be released in mid-February to conclude the reintroduction portion of the project. Each of the fishers wears a small radio transmitter allowing biologists to track and monitor the animals. The ultimate goal is to reestablish a self-sustaining population of fishers on the Olympic Peninsula.

Conservation Northwest has been actively involved with the entire fisher reintroduction process and has been a key partner along with several other non-profits and government agencies.

Read the Washington Department of Fish and Wildlife story about the fisher release.

"We're motivated to engage because there are significant hidden costs with the PUD's plans," said Dave Werntz, science and conservation director with Conservation Northwest. Building the new powerline would fragment the largest remaining block of shrub-steppe habitat in the Methow valley and harm mule deer winter habitat.

A recent report from Washington Department of Natural Resources scientists suggests that the PUD dramatically underestimated impacts to public lands. Installing the new lines will probably require many more miles of new road for heavy equipment and significant mountain top blasting. More roads means more sediment will end up choking the Methow's salmon and trout. New roads would also increase erosion, risk of fire, and spread of noxious weeds.

Watch fisher #57 launch out of her transport box and into Olympics forest!

Reintroduction of fishers, a smaller relative to the wolverine, comes thanks to a strong team of government and non-government partners including Conservation Northwest, the Doris Duke Foundation, and the Wildlife Conservation Society.

The small mammals are trapped in winter in British Columbia where their numbers are strong and transported south to Washington. As in previous years, each released animal wears a small radio transmitter, allowing biologists to track and monitor its movements. Biologists continue to monitor two dozen fishers that were released during the past two winters. Three females last summer gave birth to at least seven kits. The animals seem to be thriving.

"With this release, the park’s new fisher population grows increasingly secure," said Dave Werntz, science and conservation director at Conservation Northwest. "It shows the amazing things we can accomplish when we work in common cause with state and federal partners."

Press release

Today's ruling effectively strikes down the last surviving piece of the Bush administration's strategy to boost logging in old-growth forests by undermining the Northwest Forest Plan, a compromise to the "spotted owl wars" negotiated by the Clinton administration.

Judge John C. Coughenour of a federal district court in Seattle has yet to issue relief for the decision, wanting to hear more from the government agencies and conservation groups before issuing an order.

Coughenour wrote a thoughtful opinion that among other things stresses the importance saving all the parts of an ecosystem - even those that are less charismatic. Quoting renowned scientist E.O. Wilson, he notes that unobtrusive species in forests like fungi and bryophytes are indeed "the little things that run the world."