What is the 21st Century Salmon and Steelhead Project?

The 21st Century Salmon and Steelhead Project is a unique partnership between the Washington Department of Fish and Wildlife (WDFW) and Long Live the Kings (LLTK). Since 2005, LLTK has worked with the WDFW senior Planning Team appointed by Director Jeff Koenings to create a new "All-H" framework for integrated decision-making about salmonids.

This new framework, complete in December 2007, integrates decisions about hatcheries, harvest, and habitat, with the twin goals of helping to recover naturally-spawning salmon and steelhead populations and supporting sustainable fisheries. The framework sets out what is necessary, across multiple disciplines, to meet the twin goals; it assesses where WDFW is today in relation to those goals; and it identifies benchmarks against which to measure progress.

The WDFW Planning Team is led by Deputy Director Phil Anderson, and represents expertise in habitat, harvest, hatcheries, science, as well as legislative and public affairs. Long Live the Kings has provided strategic planning, facilitation, coordination, and communications for the Project, and will continue to assist with these activities in 2008.

What is upcoming in 2008?

Director Koenings has stated his commitment to making the internal changes necessary to institutionalize the new “All-H” approach to salmonid management. In part, this will involve making systemic the core principles of the Hatchery Reform Project: that salmon recovery and sustainable fisheries stem from: 1) clear goals, 2) scientifically defensible programs, and 3) informed decision-making that is transparent and accountable.

Next steps for the 21st Century Salmon and Steelhead Project include:

• Sharing the Planning Team's work more broadly-- both internally and externally.
• Creating the process by which the new decision-making framework will be used.
• Developing an effective internal and external communications plan to maintain transparent decision-making.
• Improving methods of information-sharing internally (between the different divisions in charge of hatcheries, habitat, and harvest), as well as the infrastructure for working effectively with tribal co-managers, reporting to the Director, Governor, and the Fish and Wildlife Commission.
• Crafting messages and materials for communications to external audiences (including the Legislature and US Congress, Tribes, local governments, watershed groups, the Hatchery Scientific Review Group, the Hatchery Reform Coalition, citizen advisory groups, and constituency groups).