By Heather Cole, Puget Sound Community Relations Manager at The Nature Conservancy

Puget Sound is home to 17 major river systems. These rivers and floodplains are our region’s lifeblood. They are home to our salmon, our tribal partners, our cities and our farmers.  Developing an integrated approach that supports these multiple interests builds thriving communities and resilient floodplain systems.

Snohomish County has adopted this multi-benefit approach through the Sustainable Lands Strategy (SLS). SLS is an innovative approach to achieve net gains for fish, farms and flood-risk reduction. As part of SLS, the Snohomish Conservation District is leading an agriculture resiliency planning effort. The agriculture resiliency plan fills a key gap in better understanding the needs of the farming community and to help farmers plan for future changes and climate change impacts.

Read the full story and view all photos from the project here.

Did you know: The Habitat Strategic Initiative has several Implementation Strategies that promote collaborative approaches for developing multi-benefit solutions in key habitats like Floodplains and Estuaries. Photovoice continues to have an impact in advocating for change at the county.