Today is Feb. 2, and we are celebrating World Wetlands Day to help raise global awareness about the importance of wetlands to people and the planet.

This year, World Wetlands Day is focused on celebrating the connections wetlands have with traditional knowledge and heritage. In Washington, there is a deep connection between wetlands and Tribal cultural identity.

While wetlands provide important significant benefits, managing them effectively requires strong coordination among Tribes, local governments, state agencies and other entities. We work in partnership with Tribes to protect these shared natural resources. Learn more about how this government-to-government relationship is protecting and managing wetlands and other shared natural resources in Washington.

Tribes in Washington have interacted with wetlands since time immemorial. Wetlands are culturally important for a wide variety of reasons including their archaeological, ceremonial, historic and spiritual significance.

A wide variety of valuable and important plants live in and around Washington wetlands such as western redcedar, camas, wapato, spatterdock, bulrush, cattail, skunk cabbage, lady fern and willow. Historically for Tribes, wetlands provide food, fiber, medicine and tools.

Managing and protecting wetlands is a complicated process involving multiple groups and partners. There are 29 federally recognized Tribes in Washington and three out-of-state Tribes with rights within state borders with whom Ecology consistently partners.

Each Tribe also manages the natural resources on their sovereign lands as well as nearby federal trust lands and land within their traditional territories. Tribes are deeply interested in wetlands located outside their reservations because these water bodies are important culturally tied resources. They provide refuge for salmon, trout, beaver, waterfowl and other important species.

Tribal governments actively assess, conserve, manage and regulate these important natural resources. Tribal treaty rights and the cultural resource values associated with wetlands are important considerations for many land managers throughout the state.

Returning Tribal land to its historical use

Since this year's World Wetlands Day focuses on traditional knowledge and celebrating cultural heritage, we are taking this opportunity to highlight a project from one of our Tribal partners.

We recently had the opportunity to talk with Emily Washines, a member of the Confederated Tribes and Bands of the Yakama Nation, to learn more about an invaluable and successful wetlands restoration project that began in 2007.

The Yakama Nation's Wildlife, Wetlands and Riparian Restoration Project used a "grounded theory" model to restore Tribal land areas to historic use, using nature to guide restoration planning.

For more than 80 years, 400 acres of land was used for growing wheat and other crops with water diverted from Toppenish Creek. This intense level of agriculture left the land in an unnatural state, causing the native vegetation to disappear.

The restoration project involved installing a structure to copy a beaver dam to allow the water to return. Not only did this project bring water back to the area but it also spurred the return of wapato after lying dormant for 70 years. This wetland plant is known for its edible potato-like tubers.

You can learn more about the project and the grounded theory model by reading the case study link below and clicking on the Yakama Nation Fisheries webpage. Learn how the Yakama Nation is restoring Tribal lands back to historical use to ultimately protect the resources for generations yet to be born:

• Case study: The Return of the Wapato (potato): Balancing Healthy Lifestyles, Natural Restoration and Cultural Knowledge
• Project web page: Xapnish Property (by Yakama Nation Wildlife) | Yakama Nation Fisheries (including project videos at the bottom of the page)