Several years ago, WDFW teamed up with the Walla Walla Conservation District and others to create the Cooperative Compliance Program.

• The program was created in the Walla Walla River Basin in response to federal listings of steelhead and bull trout under the Endangered Species Act.
• It was designed to inform and assist, not regulate, landowners and irrigators and provide financial assistance to replace non-compliant irrigation pump and gravity- diversion screens with new, compliant screens.
• The intent was to avoid a situation like occurred in the Methow Valley when the National Marine Fisheries Service (now NOAA Fisheries) closed down several irrigation ditches because of screening and water concerns.

WDFW, the conservation district, and others shared responsibilities throughout all phases of implementing this program.

• Working together, grant funds were obtained through the Salmon Recovery Funding Board, the Bonneville Power Administration, and the Fisheries Restoration and Irrigation Mitigation Program of the USFWS.
• The conservation district contacted irrigators and handled administration of the grant funds.
• WDFW provided technical assistance, issued permits, and assisted irrigators with ensuring they remained in compliance with water-right regulations of the Department of Ecology.

The end result is that the Cooperative Compliance Program in Walla Walla County has been a great success.

• 420 participants have enrolled.
• 240 compliant fish screens have been installed with 150 more screens approved to receive funding
• The program is now a model being followed throughout our State and the Nation. Successes cooperative and collaboration not regulation.

In addition to the direct benefits achieved through this program, the stage has been set for more accomplishments to be achieved in the future.

• By collectively tackling the fish-screening issue, WDFW and conservation district staff found it was indeed possible to cooperate and work together.
• Trust, mutual respect, and friendships have developed from this experience and provide a foundation for future collaborative conservation efforts.
• We look forward to this positive relationship continuing and paying dividends in the future for commonly-held conservation goals.

Whatcom County provides another excellent example of WDFW and a conservation district working together

• Collaborative efforts include improving habitat along Drainage Improvement District waterways and other agricultural streams, implementation of Conservation Reserve Enhancement Program (CREP) and Regional Fisheries Enhancement Group projects.

Four years ago a cooperative program to establish small riparian buffers along watercourses managed by Whatcom County's 12 drainage improvement districts was initiated.

• This work was based on the premise that shade would reduce reed canary grass infestations that had been the cause of cyclic dredging of fish-bearing drainages
• Working together, WDFW and the conservation district secured two Centennial Clean water grants to finance design, material acquisition, and project implementation.
• Since the program's inception, approximately 15 miles of watercourses have been planted and maintained.

As in other areas of our State, WDFW and the local conservation districts have cooperated on CREP implementation

• Since 1999, ,132 CREP projects have been completed in Whatcom County, covering approximately 1,200 acres of riparian land along 73 miles of streams.
• As CREP projects are implemented by the Conservation District, WDFW provides technical assistance as needed, complementing CREP projects with other habitat enhancement efforts, such as instream channel improvements.

Also, as in other areas of our state, we have worked together to help implement projects undertaken by the local Regional Fisheries Enhancement Group (RFEG)

• The Nooksack Salmon Enhancement Association is an RFEG initiated by WDFW in 1991.
• NSEA and the Whatcom County Conservation District have cooperated on hundreds of salmon habitat restoration projects.
• This team effort truly is the cornerstone of on-the-ground salmon recovery work in Whatcom County.

Again, I could point to numerous other examples around our State where, by working together, conservation has benefited.

• But, as always, there is room for improvement.
• So I'm here today to tell you that the WDFW is committed to building upon the positive relationships we have with the conservation districts, their staff, and our other partners.
• Clearly, in the end, it is not only us that benefit, but our constituents and the fish and wildlife of Washington State.
• Finally, I would like to thank the Conservation Districts, their staff and partners for their efforts toward sustaining fish and wildlife here in Washington.