Metropolitan King County Councilmembers Larry Phillips and David Irons hailed the Council’s endorsement today of the Proposed Lake Washington/Cedar/Sammamish Watershed Chinook Salmon Conservation Plan as a significant milestone on the long road to salmon recovery. Both members co-chair the Cedar River Council and serve on the Water Resource Inventory Area 8 Forum, known as WRIA 8.

“It’s a plan that will help both people and fish,” said Council Chair Phillips, who also serves on the WRIA 8 Steering Committee. “The citizens of King County will benefit from implementation of the plan through improved water quality, flood hazard reduction, open space preservation and conservation of our region’s salmon legacy, as well as by the protection of the quality of life and economic vitality of the area.”

The WRIA 8 salmon recovery plan recommends a multi-pronged strategy that combines tools that can be applied basin-wide, and highlights some of the public and private partnerships that set the foundation for future community accomplishments. Its estimated costs for total 10-year regional implementation are $170 million.

“After many hours of work over years of meetings and workshops, this compromise has been crafted from the concerns of a broad spectrum of stakeholders, and has support from all corners, including environmental groups and cities,” said Councilmember Irons. “The Cedar River is our most challenged salmon watershed in the county. As co-chair of the Cedar River Council, I was excited to work on this landmark plan and find common ground for agreement among agencies and organizations. We can all be proud of the results. I applaud the Council for recognizing the value of this body of work and endorsing the plan so that implementation can now move forward.”

In 1994, King County, Seattle, Bellevue and the suburban cities began working together through the Regional Needs Assessment process to agree that fish habitat, water quality and floods must be managed at the watershed level to be effective. In 1996, the parties established inter-jurisdictional forums to manage planning and an action agenda. Since 1999, the 27 jurisdictions of the WRIA 8 have worked together providing leadership in preparation of a plan for the recovery of listed species in the Lake Washington/Cedar/Sammamish Watershed.

“Development and adoption of this plan to recover salmon demonstrates that we in this region can come together on areas of great local significance and transcend individual jurisdictional constraints,” said Phillips. “We have set an example of regional cooperation and achievement at its finest.”

Following ratification by the King County Council and participating jurisdictions, the plan will be submitted to the Shared Strategy Coalition for inclusion in the regional draft Puget Sound Recovery Plan.

Read more about this legislation on the King County Council’s LEGISEARCH system and type in 2005-0283.

Learn more about the Proposed WRIA 8
Chinook Salmon Conservation Plan