Recreation and Conservation Office
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Recreation and Conservation Office
@rcowashington.bsky.social
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Official Washington State Recreation and Conservation Office account. Agency manages grants to protect and improve Washington’s natural and outdoor recreation resources. www.rco.wa.gov
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Be part of the solution! Check your vehicle for any leaking fluids, ensure your tires are in good condition and properly inflated, and learn more about how you can help protect Southern Resident orcas: orca.wa.gov/get-involved
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Get Involved | Southern Resident Orca Recovery
Learn about things you can do in your community, neighborhood, and home to help save orcas.
orca.wa.gov
These contaminants can cause health problems in orcas and their food, such as altering their hormone levels, making it harder to have babies, increasing miscarriages, and reducing their ability to fight diseases.
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Tires are also a major problem, they contain 6PPD to make them last longer. As tires degrade, particles and dust fall to roadways and when 6PPD reacts with ozone, it creates a chemical that’s lethal to salmon and other small organisms that gets into waterways via stormwater runoff.
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When it rains, vehicle fluids, as well as fertilizers, pesticides, & animal waste, are carried away by stormwater & into the lakes, rivers, & streams salmon use for spawning. The toxins are then eaten/absorbed by the smallest animals, which are eaten by salmon, & ultimately eaten by orcas.
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It’s Orca-tober and a great time to remind you that by taking care of your car can help Southern Resident orcas!

Southern Residents are some of the most polluted whales in the world. Much of that pollution comes from contaminants entering the Salish Sea and other waterways from stormwater.
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Advisors ensure the state is protecting the best farmland by reviewing & providing feedback on grant applications, scoring them, & offering policy input. The work is done from your home & usually takes place over a few days in the summer or fall.

Learn more/apply: rco.wa.gov/get-involved...
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Advisory Committees - Recreation and Conservation Office
Learn more about how to volunteer with the Recreation and Conservation Office and make a difference for Washington's great outdoors.
rco.wa.gov
Washington’s agriculture sector is worth $49 billion and employs 164,000 people. It’s essential to the state’s economy and part of the its identity. That’s why it’s so important farmland remains farmland. You can help with that by becoming an advisor on the Farmland Preservation committee.
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All carcasses were collected and taken upstream to provide nutrient enhancement back into the river.

Thanks again to the Puyallup Tribe of Indians for letting us take part in this important process.
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The bulls had their reproductive materials removed and stored in coolers as well. The harvested materials will be used to breed salmon in controlled conditions at the hatchery, which improves their chances of survival.
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At the 2nd station, people received the fish, quickly stunned them, & took them to the final station to be sorted into hens (females) and bulls (males).

Hens were placed on the tables so Tribal members could carefully remove the eggs, store them, and count them.
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Staff worked at 3 different stations: holding pond, receiving and stunning the fish, & collecting material from females and males.

In the holding pond, Chinook were checked to confirm which ones were ready for processing, & the ones that were ready, were carried to the second station.
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Some of our Salmon Section staff had the honor of helping the Puyallup Tribe of Indians with processing returning Chinook and Pink Salmon as they returned to Clark’s Creek and into the Puyallup Tribe Hatchery.
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Advisors review and provide feedback on grant applications, score them, and offer policy input. The work is done from your home and usually takes place over a few days in the summer or fall.

Learn more: rco.wa.gov/get-involved...

📷 © Matthieu
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#recreation #conservation
Advisory Committees - Recreation and Conservation Office
Learn more about how to volunteer with the Recreation and Conservation Office and make a difference for Washington's great outdoors.
rco.wa.gov
You can help ensure the state is investing in the most essential outdoor recreation and conservation projects by becoming an advisor on one of our advisory committees.
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Additionally, grant recipients have contributed more than $1.8 billion in matching resources, making the total investment in Washington’s great outdoors nearly $6 billion.
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Since 1964, RCO has awarded nearly $4 billion in grants to more than 12,500 projects that protect and improve the best of Washington’s natural and outdoor recreation resources.
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The Brian Abbott Fish Barrier Removal Board is now accepting applications for grants to help identify and remove barriers that prevent salmon and steelhead trout from accessing spawning or rearing habitat.
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Salmon is a keystone species. It's estimated 138 species of wildlife, from whales to flies, depend on salmon for food.

Salmon fishing is important to Washington’s economy. Commercial and recreational fishing in Washington is estimated to support 16k jobs and $540 million in personal income.
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The grants fund a range of projects, from planting trees on riverbanks to shade and keep the water cool for salmon to digging channels off fast-flowing rivers to create slower moving water where fish can rest.
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State Awards Grants for Projects to Recover Salmon Habitat - RCO
The State awards more than $61 million in grants to 155 projects across the state aimed at restoring salmon habitat.
rco.wa.gov
The Washington State Salmon Recovery Funding Board and Puget Sound Partnership have awarded more than $61 million in grants to 155 projects across the state aimed at restoring salmon habitat.
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We’re hosting an interactive webinar on October 7 to discuss cultural resource requirements for projects funded with our grants. This is a great opportunity to get your questions answered!

Sign up to attend the webinar: us06web.zoom.us/meeting/regi...

📷: Chris Popek
The Brian Abbott Fish Barrier Removal board was established to provide grants to help identify and remove these barriers and will be accepting grant applications starting tomorrow.
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