Editorial written by The Seattle Times Editorial Board.
The Trump administration has abruptly eliminated $1.3 million in federal funding for Washington’s Regional Fisheries Enhancement Groups, jeopardizing salmon restoration across the state. The administration should reverse course.
The 14 community-based RFEGs have been a linchpin in the fight to save salmon for three decades. Bringing together volunteers, Native American tribes and experts, they have removed barriers to fish passage, reopened more than 1,500 miles of stream, restored habitat and released hatchery salmon into state waterways. Their efforts have led to healthier and more abundant salmon, but work remains.
The $1.3 million had come from the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service. The enhancement groups leveraged that support to raise up to eight times as much from donors. Without it, dozens of habitat restoration and education projects across the state are at risk of cancellation.
Cuts are already underway. Mid Sound Fisheries Enhancement Group, which serves King and eastern Kitsap counties, has run a Youth Opportunity Program since 2020, engaging young people in Auburn. It’s ending.
“The bad news is that this will be our last year of youth crew,” Mid Sound’s Co-Executive Director Tracy Banaszynski said. “We lost the federal funding. We also lost funding from the state that had come through (the Office of the Superintendent of Public Instruction). We had to cut something.”
That’s a terrible loss for the community. Many of the participants came from communities of color, immigrant households and lower-income families. They learned about environmental stewardship and the importance of salmon recovery while clearing invasive species and bolstering riparian areas along the Green River. Over the years, they have cleared more than 108,000 square feet of habitat and put in more than 10,000 hours of work.
Restoring salmon populations is more than an ecological and moral imperative. The United States has treaty obligations with Native American tribes related to salmon management. Salmon are also an important economic driver for the state. Washington’s fishing industry employs more than 23,000 people and generates more than $1.5 billion in commercial and recreational economic activity.
The Democratic members of Washington’s congressional delegation, led by Sen. Patty Murray and Rep. Rick Larsen, have called on Interior Secretary Doug Burgum, who oversees the Fish and Wildlife Service, to restore the funding. He should heed their request. Every month of delay means lost habitat restoration and weakened partnerships that took decades to build.
