Tribal Relations
The Olympic National Forest recognizes that all lands in present day Washington, including National Forests, are the ancestral lands of Indigenous peoples. Indigenous peoples have lived and depended upon the Olympic Peninsula since time immemorial. Today, the Olympic National Forest recognizes the many Tribes and Indigenous communities on the Olympic Peninsula and their long-standing connection to, and knowledge of the landscapes now administered by the U.S. Forest Service. We aim to meaningfully engage and co-steward with the Tribes and communities to learn and care for the natural and cultural resources we all depend upon. We are grateful for the opportunity to engage meaningfully and work collaboratively on issues that impact Tribal Nations, Indigenous communities, and the American public.
The Olympic National Forest is committed to stewarding natural and cultural resources in a manner that seeks to protect the treaty, religious, subsistence, and cultural interests of federally recognized Indian Tribes and indigenous communities. In addition to strengthening government-to-government relations with federally recognized Indian Tribes, the Forest also encourages engagement with non-federally recognized Tribes, as well as American Indian, and other Indigenous individuals, communities, inter-Tribal organizations, enterprises, and educational institutions.
Enduring Connections to the Landscape
The landscapes we help steward lie within areas where Tribes have reserved the right to hunt, fish, and pray by ratified treaties and agreements with the United States. Under the Treaty of Point Elliot (1855), Treaty of Point No Point (1855), Treaty of Quinault River (1855), Treaty of Neah Bay (1855), and the Treaty of Medicine Creek (1854), we acknowledge the imperative for co-stewardship of landscapes between Tribes and the Forest Service.
The Olympic National Forest currently consults with 12 Tribes on and around the Olympic Peninsula, each with a unique relationship to the forest:
- Quinault Indian Nation
- Shoalwater Bay Indian Tribe
- Hoh Indian Tribe
- Jamestown S'klallam Tribe
- Lower Elwha Klallam Tribe
- Makah Nation
- Port Gamble S'klallam Tribe
- Quileute Nation
- Skokomish Tribal Nation
- Squaxin Island Tribe
- Confederated Tribes of the Chehalis Reservation
- Suquamish Tribe
Working Together
Increasing opportunities for and input from Tribes and Indigenous communities benefit Forest Service programs and the public. In support of Tribal Sovereignty, self-governance, and self-determination, the Forest is committed to advancing water and food security, restoring ecosystems for cultural and subsistence species, improving disaster and emergency management, addressing resource enforcement and recreational impact, and improving access for gathering.
Working with Tribal partners, the Olympic National Forest has had success in a number of watershed restoration and habitat management projects, including the following:
In 2015, after decades of human-caused disruption along the Skokomish River, the Olympic National Forest in partnership with the Skokomish Watershed Action Team (SWAT) completed a restoration milestone: restoring the area to a “properly functioning” watershed, after extensive large scale road treatments and restoration work.
To improve salmon rearing habitat in the upper Dungeness Watershed, the Olympic National Forest partnered with the Jamestown S’Klallam Tribe and others to complete the Large Woody Debris Project in October 2016. The Dungeness River Management Team (DRMT) still works collaboratively to preserve and enhance the Dungeness River Watershed Planning Area to this day.
If you have questions about the Tribal Relations program on the Olympic National Forest, please feel free to contact:
Tania Ellersick, Supervisory Tribal Relations Specialist – tania.ellersick@usda.gov
Drew Slaney, Tribal Relations Specialist – drew.slaney@usda.gov
Resources:
- Learn more about the Washington Office Tribal Relations.
- Visit the Pacific Northwest Region Office of Tribal Relations.
- Visit the U.S. Forest Service Tribal Connections Viewer is designed to illustrate the relationship between lands administered by the Forest Service, Indian lands and lands ceded to the United States. The interactive map that shows the connection between national forests and grasslands, tribal trust lands and tribal lands ceded as part of a treaty.
- Download the US Forest Service Tribal Relations App.
- Learn more about Treaties.
- Discover Northwest Treaty Tribes.
- View the Northwest Indian Fisheries Commission (NIFC) State of our Watersheds interactive map, which highlights the usual & accustomed lands of Tribes on the Peninsula.