16th Annual Coho Confab

The 16th Annual Coho Confab was held in the Mattole River Valley from August 9-11, 2013. Salmonid Restoration Federation and Trees Foundation co-hosted this educational event and were excited to partner with the Mattole River and Range Partnership that includes Sanctuary Forest, Mattole Restoration Council, and the Mattole Salmon Group.

The Confab kicked off on Friday evening with a delicious meal sourced from local organic ingredients. The evening continued with orientation presentations including a presentation about the History of Mattole Restoration and Partnerships with Sungnome Madrone, Executive Director of the Mattole Salmon Group, and Richard Gienger, Founder of the Coho Confab. Tasha McKee, Executive Director, Sanctuary Forest, discussed Land and Water Stewardship, Past, and Present, and Hezekiah Allen, Executive Director of the Mattole Restoration Council, gave a presentation entitled, Cannabis and Stewardship: Are Family Farms and Rural Homesteads Compatible with Watershed Recovery?

On Saturday there were several concurrent field tours in the morning including a tour of riparian restoration projects, estuary restoration projects, and a macro-invertebrate sampling workshop. In the afternoon there was a plenary session focused on Creating a Road Map and Action Plan for Coho Salmon Recovery in the Mattole and Beyond. The Plenary session included presentations from Carlos Garza of NOAA Fisheries regarding coho salmon genetics and recovery actions that would benefit this endangered species, a coho salmon rescue and rehabilitation discussion with a representative of the California Department of Fish and Wildlife, NOAA Fisheries, and staff from the Mattole Salmon Group, and a panel discussion about Innovative Restoration Strategies to Address Key Constraints to Recovery with Tasha McKee of Sanctuary Forest and Sungnome Madrone of the Mattole Salmon Group.

Sunday concluded with a half-day of concurrent tours including a tour in the Mattole estuary exploring innovative approaches in Baker Creek, a tour focused on Human Communities and Working Lands: Roads, Fuels Reduction, Forestry, and Water Conservation with Hezekiah Allen and Nathan Queener, Mattole Restoration Council, and a tour highlighting erosion control and habitat improvement projects in South Fork Eel River tributaries with the Eel River Salmon Restoration Program.

Saturday evening culminated with a BBQ dinner and cabaret.