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About The Siuslaw news. (Florence, Lane County, Or.) 1960-current | View Entire Issue (April 6, 2019)
SIUSLAW NEWS | SATURDAY, APRIL 6, 2019 | 9A WATERSHED from page 1A We’ve got you COVERED Serving Florence since 1990 business • homeowners • auto • life • health • medicare plans A SK US ABOUT M ULTIPLE P OLICY D ISCOUNTS ! Contact Angela, Jodi or Paul to discuss your policy needs. 875 Hwy 101 • Florence, OR • (541) 997-3466 www.AbelInsuranceAgency.com Buying or Selling? I can help. Amy Johnson Broker, CSA 541 999-7875 Shoreline Dr #40 – .46-acre Siuslaw Riverfront lot in Shelter Cove gated community. Located on a quiet cul-de-sac, this lot offers incredible river, ocean and sunset views. Utilities at the lot line, this land is waiting for your new home! $140,000. #2843-18611838 1749 Highway 101 • 541-997-1200 See Jim for your auto sales needs! 2150 Hwy. 101 • Florence (541) 997-3475 • 1-800-348-3475 Ana Hernandez, fisheries bi- ologist with the Siuslaw Na- tional Forest; and Graham Trask, owner of Trask Design and Construction, an aquatic contracting business — were released weekly through the event at City Lights, culmi- nating in the unveiling of the eighth video. “We’re hoping that this is the video that is the most in- spiring and that we can use to really get the word out there about the Siuslaw,” Tome said. Each film showed people and wildlife interacting with the landscape and waters of the region, complete with jumping salmon, wriggling amphibians and the humans who are working to restore the complex ecosystem of the region. “The order is not insignifi- cant on how we want to show these films to you,” Tome add- ed. “This is how we want to set the tone for this project: by looking to the past to in- form how we are restoring the watershed. The word ‘resto- ration’ inherently means that, that we’re looking backwards at ecological processes that used to exist and we’re trying to mimic those today and set up our watershed to be more resilient in the face of change.” Each speaker represented the many partners that Siu- slaw Watershed Council works with — though Tome empha- sized that there are many more partners that were not high- lighted but are equally import- ant to restoration efforts. “This is a chance to look at the different lenses of how people look at restoration. It’s a really compelling story,” he said. All the videos are now avail- able on the watershed council’s new website, www.siuslaw.org, and linked through the orga- nization’s social media. In between introducing the films during the event, Tome offered insight into the coun- Shervin’s Annual Spring Tire Sale! Receive Up to15% off CHANTELLE MEYER/SIUSLAW NEWS Siuslaw Watershed Council Executive Director Eli Tome worked with the watershed’s part- ners to produce a series of eight short films explaining restoration efforts throughout the Siuslaw and coastal lakes watershed. The films are available at siuslaw.org. cil, its partners and its goals of restoration. “What we’re doing is look- ing to the future and setting up our streams and our wa- tershed to be healthy in the face of change. Restoration is a loaded word because it means we’re trying to restore it to some previous condition — but we’re really just trying to mimic those functions and set up our watershed to be re- silient in the future,” he said. Beers and Sundstrom both talked about the region’s histo- ry during their films. During a question and answer period at the close of the evening, they and a gathering of other repre- sentatives talked with the au- dience about future solutions, progress and getting people involved. “You want a forest, you’ve got to have the fish,” Sund- strom said. “You’ve got a cri- sis with the fish, you’ve got a crisis with the forest, you’ve got a crisis with the economy, you’ve got a crisis with the students — and you also have pessimism.” While salmon numbers ar- en’t anywhere near their his- toric high — 400,000 used to return to the Siuslaw basin each year — or lows — a mere 500 in the 1990s — there has been some progress. Sundstrom continued, “It isn’t something that happens quickly, or can be determined right away. These species are coming back here in 3 to 4 years. … What we do know is we are working and putting the landscape on a trajectory for passive restoration to bring back the functions of a work- ing watershed, and that may take a long time. But it’s not really getting worse.” “We know that it once was a huge stronghold for coho and we know that it can be that again,” Tome added. While much of the wa- tershed council’s focus is on salmon populations, they are just one part of the big picture. “One reason we are focus- ing on coho is that it is what we call a keystone species,” Tome explained. “They are the most sensitive one in the environment, so if we see them trending in a good di- rection, that means we are do- ing something good for many species. They are the most sensitive one, but lots of other species rely on them. If we set up a landscape to be resilient for coho, we’re setting it up for many other species, too.” During his film, Mead spoke of the importance of salmon for the future of the entire region. “Seth spoke a lot in his film about connections to fu- ture generations,” Tome said. “That’s what we’re really want- ing to do — to set up our wa- tershed to be strong for future generations.” The council and its educa- tional partners are working to bring back ecology education, a topic that has been cut from area schools thanks to a lack of state funding. Additional edu- cational resources are available through the council’s website. “There’s no way to measure the education of a child who then grows up to become a fish biologist and saves the world,” Sundstrom said. 2019 Rhododendron Festival Court a set of four tires of any brand! GET A FREE ALIGNMENT with your purchase of a new set of tires. SALE RUNS THROUGH APRIL 30TH, 2019 Introducing N oah Williams Shervin’s, your one stop auto care center. locally owned, community minded! 4515 Highway 101, North Florence 541-997-5049 • Open Mon-Fri 8 - 5 Financing available through CFNA credit cards. We now off er a road hazard warranty on tires! Sponsored d by: b Jack & Bettina Hannigan Coronation: Wednesday, May 15th, 6:30 pm FlorenceEvents Center 541-997-1994 Tickets $13 Adults, $9 Students eventcenter.org Besides learning for them- selves, people can also join the watershed, donate to import- ant projects or get involved with the many outdoor resto- ration activities in the area. “I would say people should get out to the sites and see what’s happening on the ground,” said Kelley. “There’s nothing better than visual representations of what you can see out there. And have conversations with these guys. They’re the ones doing the work every day and they know so much about the watershed. They have a lot of different voices to share, different per- spectives, and by opening yourself to learning their sto- ries, you can learn a lot about what’s going on here.” People who own land in the watershed can also take part in the Siuslaw Watershed Coun- cil’s annual Native Plant Give- away. In February, the council gave out more than 10,000 na- tive plants to homeowners. A second giveaway is scheduled for next week, though people need to indicate interest by Sunday, April 7. People should also get in- volved with the council’s many partners who are working to preserve and protect the entire coastal region. “Up here in the Siuslaw, we have some great partner- ships,” Beers said. “We’re the Confederated Tribes of the Coos, Lower Umpqua and Siuslaw — so we’re not just focused on the Siuslaw wa- tershed, we’re focused on the Lower Umpqua, Coos Bay and the Ring of Fire Water- shed, the big ocean. We’re on the West Coast Ocean Plan- ning Committee and different partnerships in every area. In Coos Bay, we’re working on something called the TCP, the Traditional Cultural Property designation that hopefully will designate the entire Coos Bay as a National Historic Preser- vation Area. That’s because of the hundreds of village sites, gathering sites and all the dif- ferent sites on the bay. It would assist the federal government in communications with local county, state and tribal enti- ties, especially when they are pushing federal projects. “We have great partnerships up here and we look forward to the ability to work with any partners we can to protect our land and waters.” From large-scale projects at Tenmile Creek and Tah- kenitch Lake, to revegetation and habitat reestablishment, the mission of the Siuslaw Watershed Council is stretch- ing beyond the Siuslaw with a message of restoration. “A lot of folks, especially in the region and state, don’t necessarily know the Siuslaw, they haven’t heard of us, and we really wanted this to be our chance to introduce our- selves and to showcase what an amazing place this is to work in salmon restoration, and how we can once again be a stronghold for coho,” Tome said. The Siuslaw Watershed Council is a nonprofit mem- bership organization. For more information on its his- tory, projects, plans or to get involved, visit siuslaw.org.
