NEWS

Tuesday, November 28, 2006

Shoppers in Washington Now Have More Ways to Help Salmon

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Now the latest local twist on the eco-labeling trend allows consumers to go a step further and buy vegetables, fruit, herbs and wine certified not to harm salmon.

“The regulations only go so far,” Nussbaum said. “In order to really improve the environment and recover the species, you need to engage private landowners and provide them with incentives.”

In helping some farms get the salmon-safe label, Stewardship Partners provides hands-on help, such as planting native vegetation along streams. The plants shade the stream, helping keep the water cool enough for salmon. The shrubs also provide a home for bugs that salmon eat, and offer other environmental benefits.

More Washington wines will get the salmon-safe label next month, and in the spring the program will probably expand to other grocery stores, said Larry Nussbaum, who manages the salmon-safe program for Stewardship Partners.

Read the full article from the Seattle Post-Intelligencer.