Building a Legacy for Future Generations
by Eli DeWitt,
NSEA Instream Project Manager
This year, Nooksack Salmon Enhancement Association (NSEA) is returning to restoration sites we first planted more than 20 years ago — thanks to dedicated funding that allows us to revisit our roots. These return visits are about more than maintenance; they help us assess long-term project success, reconnect with landowners, and ensure the land continues to thrive.
We start by removing leftover materials like blue tubes and protective cages, which can actually harm the very trees and shrubs they once protected. Then, in partnership with professors from Western Washington University, we’re developing a monitoring protocol to evaluate site health. This includes measuring riparian buffer width, species diversity and density, and streamside canopy cover. With support from WWU students, we’ll determine whether these plantings have matured into resilient, diverse forests that are cooling and shading salmon-bearing streams.
Reconnecting with landowners is also a key part of this work — checking in to see what additional support might be needed, from invasive plant removal to new plantings or even instream habitat improvements.
At Black Slough, for example, the once-sparse planting has transformed into a lush, tree-lined waterway over the past 15-plus years.
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Empowering All Students to Save Salmon
by Nathan Zabel,
NSEA Education Program Manager
This school year, NSEA took meaningful steps to ensure every fourth grader in Whatcom County has the opportunity to become a stream scientist through our Students for Salmon program. By collaborating with partners like Wild Whatcom, Vamos Outdoors, and the Nooksack Indian Tribe Education Department, we’ve expanded access and deepened our understanding of how to engage all youth — regardless of background.
From bilingual science journals (Spanish and English) to wheelchair-accessible field trips and the integration of Indigenous Knowledge into our curriculum, we’re committed to creating a program where every student feels included, capable, and inspired.
Thanks to the support of our community, we’re continuing to grow this work— showing students that the outdoors belongs to all of us, and that everyone has a role to play in the recovery of salmon.
