DARRINGTON — The Sauk-Suiattle Tribe plans to crack down on illegal hunting and fishing, thanks to a $1.1 million federal grant.
Earlier this month, the tribe was awarded a community-oriented policing service grant from the U.S. Department of Justice.
The tribe will use the money to hire three full-time natural resource officers, a part-time officer and purchase three new boats.
"Enforcement is one important piece in the responsible fisheries and game management puzzle," said the tribe’s chairman, Jason Joseph. "In our area, we have a lot of territory to cover, and the new officers will make a big difference."
Currently, the tribe doesn’t have any natural resource officers to monitor illegal hunting and fishing, spokeswoman Kay Brooks said.
"Because of cuts at the state level, we very rarely see a game warden out here," she said. "We don’t really have any resources to take care of out-of-season hunting and fishing."
The 250- to 300-member tribe is located about six miles east of Darrington. The reservation is less than 100 acres, but enforcement officers also will work outside its boundaries.
The officers will monitor the Sauk and Suiattle rivers, along with the Stillaguamish River and Puget Sound waters.
"This won’t just be a benefit for the tribe. It will help the entire area," Brooks said.
The tribe will purchase a 27-foot boat similar to what the U.S. Coast Guard uses, and two 16-foot riverboats.
It isn’t clear how widespread poaching is in the area, Brooks said.
"There’s nobody looking to see what kind of problems there really are," she said. "This is a huge undertaking."
The officers have not been hired. They will join the tribe’s four-officer police department. A couple of those officers are being cross-commissioned so they can have more authority in Snohomish County.
Reporter Diana Hefley: 425-339-3463 or hefley@heraldnet.com.
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