Inside Conservation Northwest
Mitch Friedman Executive director,
mitch@conservationnw.org
View from the Director
The long road home
I started college as a Montana State Bobcat more than 30 years ago. It meant
a lot to me to live in a state with an identity tied to charismatic mega-fauna like
grizzly bears and wolverines. I finished college as a University of Washington
Husky, moving to a place identified with salmon, giant trees, and spotted owls.
Lewis and Clark wouldn't have recognized that distinction. Their West included big carnivores throughout. The ensuing scarcity of large carnivores in Washington was a consequence not of nature, but of what we might generously consider
human error.
Thankfully, errors can be corrected. Fifteen years ago, Conservation Northwest
led a successful fight to save the wildlands of the Loomis State Forest, last bastion of
Canada lynx in the Pacific Northwest. Had the Loomis been logged, the predator
tide here may have continued its long ebb. Instead, it has reversed to flow back in.
Today we celebrate the homecoming of these creatures. In the last five years,
we've seen the return of wolves, wolverines, and fishers. Individuals of all three
species are now residing in our state for the first time in more three human generations.
Within five more years, we aim to add reintroduction of fishers into the Cascades, expanding beyond the forests of the Olympic Peninsula of today; restoration of lynx in the Kettle Range; and the beginning of grizzly bear recovery in the
greater North Cascades and work recovering southwest BC's threatened grizzly
bear populations, keeping the wildlife connections robust and strong.
As with many changes, there can be a period of adjustment. Learning to live
with wolves is a big deal, and Conservation Northwest has committed its resources to demonstrating peaceful coexistence. We now fund three range riders, successfully reducing conflict and keeping the peace, within the ranges of three of
eastern Washington's wolf packs.
That's what we mean as we celebrate a homecoming of our wildest animals. As
these once-native species return to the landscape, so too does an important aspect
of our history. The legacy we hand forward to the next generation is to leave this
landscape wilder and more biologically intact than we found it. Thank you for
doing your part.
Keeping the Northwest wild
Mitch Friedman. © Gary Ide
Today we celebrate the
homecoming of wildlife.
In the last five years,
we've seen the return of
wolves, wolverines, and
fishers. Within five more
years, we will add more.
Fall 2013 3
