species protection

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Read our June Highwater Marks E-Newsletter

June 11, 2021

Check out the June issue of our e-newsletter – Highwater Marks! You’ll learn about: where our waste goes in San Juan County from two Spring Street International School students, engaging in important actions for Southern Resident killer whales, how to get involved with the County’s Comprehensive Plan update – and lots more! Read it here.

Dammed to Extinction

June 9, 2021

Where the river meets with a concrete wall, the fish have nowhere to go. Towering one hundred feet in the air and spanning over half a mile, the Lower Granite Dam in southeast Washington is one of four federal hydroelectric dams situated on the Lower Snake River. The Snake River stretches from Wyoming to Washington, ... read more
tags:
dams, salmon

Skyla, Kasatka, Tahlequah

May 12, 2021

Poem and photos by Faith Jayaram, junior at Spring Street International School I traveled far to save you,High on childish naïveté.I suppose at the timeI believed myself a heroine; Reality, though, is cruel,And real life is deathBy the dozens,Starved, poisoned, struck. I no longer believe in fate,Or rather I do not believeIn my capacityTo save. ... read more
tags:
orca

You know that students hold the power to create change – they are counting on us.

April 30, 2021

You know that students hold the power to create change — they are an electrified force. At Friends, Katie Fleming, our Community Engagement Director, embraces that energy. Katie is in her essence, electric! She lights up the classroom talking with students. She illuminates student potential on field trips to Olympia, as a conductor between local legislators ... read more

Help document spawning herring this Spring!

April 26, 2021

It’s springtime in the islands and that means tulips, hummingbirds, and eggs – HERRING EGGS! It’s the time of year when herring come to our shorelines to spawn. Herring spawn in eelgrass beds in Eastsound and West Sound on Orcas Island, Shoal, Hunter and Mud Bay on Lopez Island and Blind Bay on Shaw Island. ... read more

Read our April Highwater Marks E-Newsletter

April 11, 2021

Check out the April issue of our e-newsletter – Highwater Marks! You’ll hear about our recent victory in court that will help protect the Southern Resident Killer Whales, learn how to report herring spawning in the San Juans this spring, discover more about how to address the growing plastic pollution problem – and more! Read it here. ... read more

Friends of the San Juans and Southern Resident Killer Whales Achieve Victory in Court

April 8, 2021

This week, Whatcom County Superior Court Judge David Freeman delivered a court victory both to Friends of the San Juans and to the endangered Southern Resident Killer Whales. “We’re very excited about this ruling,” said Brent Lyles, Friends’ Executive Director, “and it’s been a long time coming!” The issue started in early 2019, when the ... read more

Action Alert: Support Southern Resident orcas!

November 12, 2020

We want to remind you about this opportunity to take action in support of Southern Resident orcas! The Washington Department of Fish and Wildlife (WDFW) needs to hear from YOU on its draft regulations for the Commercial Whale Watch Licensing Program. WDFW is required to use best available science to adopt rules that reduce the daily and cumulative impacts on Southern Resident orca whales, ... read more
tags:
orcas

More Good News for Salmon Recovery! Conservation Easement Program a Success!

November 12, 2020

We are excited to report good news about an innovative partnership between Friends of the San Juans and the San Juan Preservation Trust (Preservation Trust) that has been quietly gaining momentum over the past few years. Working with interested private waterfront landowners, the collaborative project brings much-needed attention and resources to the permanent protection of ... read more

Salmon Habitat Restored on Sucia Island

October 6, 2020

Almost seven years ago, Friends of the San Juans began working with Washington State Parks on a salmon recovery project on Sucia Island. After a lot of research, surveys, designs, engineering, and permitting, the on-the-ground work to restore habitat has come to fruition. Located along a major migratory pathway for juvenile Chinook salmon, Sucia’s marine ... read more

From its very beginning, Friends has been one of our best allies in helping preserve the health and beauty of these special islands.

Winnie Adams and Bob Gamble

members, Orcas and Waldron Islands