Improving the Health
of our Watershed
We bring together watershed residents, landowners, and experts to improve the health of the Coos watershed. Rooted in science and driven by the balance between economic and environmental interests, our local, non-governmental network fosters effective communication and practical solutions for land management and restoration.
Who We Are
What We Do
What You Can Do
Announcements
2024 was a great year for CoosWA, and we are excited to tell you all about it!!
Check out our annual report, which includes photos and stories from some of our most exciting projects in 2024. This is a great place to learn about the types of work we do (restoration, monitoring, plants, invasive species, outreach, education, art, celebration...), how we are funded, how we use those funds, and who we need on our team to make this work happen.
All of our funds go to on-the-ground needs that tie directly to our mission. A large portion goes straight to local contractors, whether they are building bridges, putting logs into streams, producing videos, or painting murals. Look for the bold text throughout the report to see all of our amazing local contractors, without whom this work would simply not be possible.
Thank you for your support and partnership! We hope to see you around the watershed!
The Mayfly Festival is a free, all-ages, hands-on celebration of watershed ecology and interconnectedness through activities, games, live music, science, and art! It was created by the Coos Watershed Association and other local groups to shed light on the connections between community, the environment, and water.
What makes it special? You can dance to good music, eat some really good local food, make a costume, dip a net into the Mingus Pond to see what lives there, and learn about fish, insects, plants, compost, marine debris, gardening, the connections between human health and environmental health, and so much more!If you are a fan of music, nature, art, good food, and science, this is an event you will not want to miss! If you are interested in volunteering for the festival, click here. For updates, visit https://cooswatershed.org/mayfly-festival/ and follow the Coos Watershed Association on social media.
Are you interested in the diversity of fish in our waterways? Become a CoosWA intern! We work year-round to monitor fish populations, tagging fish with microchips and noting species, size, and weight. This information is important in monitoring the populations of the federally threatened Coho salmon, along with many others. Depending on the season, interns may help with seining (walking through the water with a big net), spawning surveys (counting adult spawning salmon), or with the operations of a rotary screw trap that collects juvenile fish for us to examine and tag.
Stipend and academic credit available. |
Internship dates: early March - late May (exact dates TBD) |
Deadline to apply is February 6 by 5:00 pm. |
We are excited to share our new Strategic Plan that will guide our organization over the next five years!
Here are our overarching goals.
Goal 1. A community of people is empowered to care about the watershed and actively work to improve watershed health.
Goal 2. Habitat in the Coos watershed is improved to support robust salmon populations and thriving communities.
Goal 3. CoosWA's design protocols and monitoring methods are improved to more effectively implement projects that support long-term ecological function, stability, and resilience for all species in the watershed with an emphasis on salmonids.
Goal 4. CoosWA is resilient and has sustainable human, physical, operational, and financial resources needed to achieve its mission.
