The Habitat Program focuses on the aquatic habitats necessary to sustain the Tribe’s fisheries resources. The goal of the program is to pursue opportunities to minimize development impacts on Tribal fishing opportunity within the Muckleshoot Usual and Accustomed Fishing Area (U & A), including the White-Puyallup, Green-Duwamish, and Lake Washington basins. When possible, this includes directing project proposals to improve habitat and create additional Tribal fishing opportunities. The Habitat Program includes two technical teams: the Watershed and Land Use Team and the Water Team. Key accomplishments for 2025 and the outlook for 2026 are summarized below.

Watershed and Land Use Team

Monitors pending land use project proposals and permits in watersheds across the Tribe’s U&A to assess and prevent potential harm to fish habitat. The Team works with a wide variety of local, state, and federal government agencies, which authorize or plan development activities. Team members identify measures to avoid or mitigate impacts and seek opportunities to improve and restore fish habitat and fish passage. A major consideration in shoreline development is retaining Tribal access to fishing sites.

Water Team

Collects data and participates in projects, permitting actions, and plans in coordination with other agencies concerning MIT fishing access, stream flows, water rights, water supply, and water quality. Efforts focus on curtailing the impacts of human activities that cause water pollution or reduce the amount of water available to fish. The team works with government agencies to ensure that water quality is not impaired by toxic spills, urban runoff and contaminated groundwater. Toxic contamination of sediments is being cleaned up through many processes, with Superfund cleanup being the most extensive. Natural Resource Damage Assessment (NRDA) compels the polluting industries to compensate for past resource injuries by creating new habitat sites, primarily in the Duwamish and Puyallup watersheds.

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