Native Fish Society River Steward Program: Dedicated Volunteers, Incredible Achievements
NFS River Steward Program: Homewaters Run Deeper from Native Fish Society on Vimeo.
The concept of river stewards is not new. The earliest stewards, or riverkeepers, served their communities as far back as the Middle Ages. They patrolled village streams and rivers to protect them for the benefit of all inhabitants.
Today, the growing population creates challenges that were inconceivable for the early river stewards. Development, water rights, land use, farming, roads, hydro projects, recreation, commercial and sport fishing, hatcheries, logging, and climate change, among many others create greater impacts on our river systems.
Thankfully, there are dedicated individuals who have taken on this daunting task on many rivers throughout the Pacific Northwest rivers. The Native Fish Society advances the best-available science into public policy and on-the-ground conservation efforts so that native, wild fish can thrive once again.
Key to the success of the organization’s mission is the River Steward Program. NFS volunteer Stewards are real people connected to, and advocating for, the watersheds they cherish. Stewards understand the science and policy and work with their local communities to protect and restore native fish populations and their habitats.
The main and overarching focus of the program is to fix problems and stop threats before they happen. Stewards work with government agencies and numerous stakeholders to create policies and plans designed to achieve abundant wild populations, work to ensure those policies and plans are successfully implemented, create coalitions to stop habitat degradation and other threats to recovery before they occur, and educate the public on ways they can take action against the root causes of native salmonid decline. By focusing on the problems rather than the symptoms of those problems, the River Steward Program brings success to recovery efforts and hope for a future of wild abundance.
The NFS River Steward Program began in 2004 with the original purpose of compliance monitoring, making sure the federal and state agencies comply with native fish policy. The program has grown considerably since its conception, and while compliance remains a strong focus, NFS River Stewards go beyond compliance to conserve, protect and restore native fish populations in their watersheds through a variety of ways, including identifying threats to recovery and developing solutions, creating coalitions to stop threats to native fish, habitat restoration, nutrient enhancement, fish monitoring, public education and community outreach, among numerous others.
Many outstanding advocates have chosen the Native Fish Society for their volunteer conservation efforts, including former agency biologists, hydrologists, college professors, authors, fishing guides, students, and software engineers. They’ve chosen NFS because they know the River Steward Program informs and empowers citizens to be successful advocates for native fish protection and restoration.
Native Fish Society River Stewards are mentored through a program that includes scientific and geologic education, retreats, policy issues, and tools to encourage involvement of local citizens. With more than 50 years of dedicated wild fish advocacy and study, the NFS staff provides for the growth and effectiveness of the Stewards.
At the hub of the River Steward Program are volunteer Stewards. Each Steward adopts a watershed and fights for its native fish by:
Become a River Steward in your local watershed!
Despite the tens of billions of dollars spent to restore salmon and steelhead runs in the Pacific Northwest, many wild salmon and steelhead populations continue to decline, and many populations are either already extinct or listed as threatened or endangered under the Endangered Species Act. So far, government has been unsuccessful at removing any salmonid population from the ESA.
Despite this, there is cause for hope. There are still strong wild populations in the Northwest, and with policy guided by the best-available science, wild salmon and steelhead populations will recover. For this to happen, citizens most provide effective stewardship of their local watersheds and stand against the many self-serving interests that harm native fish. River Stewards do just that, but that can’t do it alone. We need your help to ensure a future of wild, native fish abundance.
The Native Fish Society is seeking dedicated and effective conservationists that are interested in native fish conservation and are eager to learn about their local rivers and streams. You could be the voice for wild fish when they need it most! We are currently seeking volunteer River Stewards for watersheds throughout the Pacific Northwest.
If you would like to become a Steward, contact River Steward Coordinator Mark Sherwood at 503-496-0807 or mark@nativefishsociety.org.