By Bill Arthur, Snake/Columbia River Salmon Campaign Chair
Thanks to your dedicated support across WA, protections for our state’s fish habitat and water quality took a big leap forward with the passage of suction dredge reform legislation (HB 1261). This was one of the priority bills for the Sierra Club this session and we are glad to see it passed due to strong coalition support and collaboration. We are grateful for the opportunity to have worked closely with Trout Unlimited and many of the tribes to see this important legislation passed.
This legislation was signed into law on March 18th, and will protect thousands of miles of critical habitat for salmon, steelhead, and bull trout from the harmful effects of suction dredge mining. By protecting habitat and salmon runs it helps our starving orca and important species such as lamprey and freshwater mussels as well. This is an incredible win for Washington’s watersheds, and it has been a long time coming.
This victory is thanks to YOU! Our broad coalition of support consistently and tirelessly focused our message on sound science, compliance with federal laws, safeguards for Washington’s enormous salmon and orca recovery investments, and the importance of clean water and intact aquatic habitat. This commonsense approach (plus a dash of tenacity and a pinch of perseverance) is what generated overwhelming support from legislators on both sides of the aisle in Olympia. Please take a moment to reach out to your legislators that voted for this legislation (see voting roll call) and thank them for their support.
Our salmon, steelhead and orca thank you!