Volunteer
Volunteering is a great way to learn skills, network, discover what you like to do, and help the community.
North Olympic Volunteer Center
The North Olympic Volunteer Center, formed in December 2007, is a one-stop volunteer clearinghouse linking people of all ages who want to contribute their talent and time to directly assist agencies in meeting community needs on the North Olympic Peninsula.
http://www.1-800-volunteer.org/1800Vol/clallam-county
http://www.1-800-volunteer.org/1800Vol/clallam-county
Washington Department of Fish and Wildlife
The following projects are available through WA Dept. of Fish and Wildlife. Please contact Anita McMillan ([email protected], 360-457-4601).
A student can earn credit for any of the projects on this list through North Olympic Peninsula Skills Center Natural Resources (contact Dan Lieberman, 360-565-1892, [email protected]).
Waterfowl banding
July through mid September WDFW plans on banding as many ducks as possible in the Dungeness Basin. The more assistants we have working on this project the more ducks we will be able to band. We need assistants who are good at problem solving with building and utilizing duck traps. If you are lazy and don’t want to get up at 3am to set the duck trap, then we need someone to design a trap door that can be set with a timer of sorts to open up per dawn so the early bird ducks can be lured into the traps. Handling of captured ducks involves properly identifying the duck species, sex and age; then taking samples for Avian Influenza testing and banding each duck with an individualized numbered band; keeping records during all of this and sending in the reports accordingly.
Searching for Elk sign on DNR, Forest Service and Olympic National Park Ownerships
DNR, Forest Service and Olympic National Park provide a land base in the Dungeness Watershed that has been utilized by elk decades ago. If the elk population increases and breaks up into several core herds we would expect the elk to reestablish some movement patterns into these ownerships. Historically there were herds that included alpine habitats in their summer range. The current elk use pattern in the Dungeness Watershed is almost entirely in the very low elevations, with little to no documentation of use in the alpine zones of the Dungeness watershed. Managers will benefit from observations and knowledge gained by citizens backcountry experiences. This is an opportunity where a student is encouraged to contribute.
Elk Viewing Location Website
Set up trial Elk Viewing Location Website where the public could find out where the current elk viewing opportunities are and how to get there; Establish specifics regarding when and where elk viewing opportunities will be reported to assure traffic safety and to not compromise management tools (e.g. only display viewing opportunties where there are not risks of traffic accidents or traffic jams; do not activate viewing opportunties during the hunting season to avoid conflicts with harvest goals).
Safe Elk Viewing Practices Education
Produce notices that specify safe elk viewing practices-available as brochures and signage. The Sequim Elk Habitat Committee has already produced a brochure that could be used as a starting point for this project.
Elk Viewing Tour Development
Develop a network of persons -volunteers or tour business entrepreneurs- that could be called on for mini tours including educational component; Identify areas where parking pullouts are needed for elk viewing and traffic safety. This project could be expanded to include other species including eagle nesting.
Recreational Vehicle Trails and Sequim Elk
Student would develop a draft strategy to manage recreational vehicle trails on the DNR ownership to insure that elk habitat values of the area are not compromised by the recreational vehicle use. Strategy would include a flexible footprint of open and closed trails/roads using best science collected by GPS radioed elk.
Identifying Parking Areas for Elk Viewing
With next to “real time” locations of the Sequim elk being identified through the GPS collaring work, there could be vehicle traffic hazards, as we have often already seen. This project would be to assess and report on where potential parking areas for elk viewing could be situated.
Butterfly Count
Work with other interested volunteers to start conducting butterfly counts in the Sequim area.
A student can earn credit for any of the projects on this list through North Olympic Peninsula Skills Center Natural Resources (contact Dan Lieberman, 360-565-1892, [email protected]).
Waterfowl banding
July through mid September WDFW plans on banding as many ducks as possible in the Dungeness Basin. The more assistants we have working on this project the more ducks we will be able to band. We need assistants who are good at problem solving with building and utilizing duck traps. If you are lazy and don’t want to get up at 3am to set the duck trap, then we need someone to design a trap door that can be set with a timer of sorts to open up per dawn so the early bird ducks can be lured into the traps. Handling of captured ducks involves properly identifying the duck species, sex and age; then taking samples for Avian Influenza testing and banding each duck with an individualized numbered band; keeping records during all of this and sending in the reports accordingly.
Searching for Elk sign on DNR, Forest Service and Olympic National Park Ownerships
DNR, Forest Service and Olympic National Park provide a land base in the Dungeness Watershed that has been utilized by elk decades ago. If the elk population increases and breaks up into several core herds we would expect the elk to reestablish some movement patterns into these ownerships. Historically there were herds that included alpine habitats in their summer range. The current elk use pattern in the Dungeness Watershed is almost entirely in the very low elevations, with little to no documentation of use in the alpine zones of the Dungeness watershed. Managers will benefit from observations and knowledge gained by citizens backcountry experiences. This is an opportunity where a student is encouraged to contribute.
Elk Viewing Location Website
Set up trial Elk Viewing Location Website where the public could find out where the current elk viewing opportunities are and how to get there; Establish specifics regarding when and where elk viewing opportunities will be reported to assure traffic safety and to not compromise management tools (e.g. only display viewing opportunties where there are not risks of traffic accidents or traffic jams; do not activate viewing opportunties during the hunting season to avoid conflicts with harvest goals).
Safe Elk Viewing Practices Education
Produce notices that specify safe elk viewing practices-available as brochures and signage. The Sequim Elk Habitat Committee has already produced a brochure that could be used as a starting point for this project.
Elk Viewing Tour Development
Develop a network of persons -volunteers or tour business entrepreneurs- that could be called on for mini tours including educational component; Identify areas where parking pullouts are needed for elk viewing and traffic safety. This project could be expanded to include other species including eagle nesting.
Recreational Vehicle Trails and Sequim Elk
Student would develop a draft strategy to manage recreational vehicle trails on the DNR ownership to insure that elk habitat values of the area are not compromised by the recreational vehicle use. Strategy would include a flexible footprint of open and closed trails/roads using best science collected by GPS radioed elk.
Identifying Parking Areas for Elk Viewing
With next to “real time” locations of the Sequim elk being identified through the GPS collaring work, there could be vehicle traffic hazards, as we have often already seen. This project would be to assess and report on where potential parking areas for elk viewing could be situated.
Butterfly Count
Work with other interested volunteers to start conducting butterfly counts in the Sequim area.
Streamkeepers
Streamkeepers, a citizen-based watershed monitoring program of Clallam County's Department of Community Development, provides volunteer opportunities and project assistance in the effort to protect and restore salmon habitat.
Sample Volunteer Projects:
1. INVASIVES-SPREADING PREVENTION: There’s concern that stream monitors can spread invasive plants and animals from site to site. We need someone to read an introductory article on this topic, conduct further research, and report findings to us.
2. SCRAPBOOKER: We’ve got an inch-thick folder with 11 years of Streamkeepers clippings. Would anyone like to put together a physical and/or electronic scrapbook that we could put out on the table at fairs?
3. CHEMICAL SAFEGUARDS TABLE: We’ve collected MSDS’s for all of the chemicals we use, and we try to follow the precautions recommended by the MSDS’s, but it would be valuable to create a table in which all the various MSDS provisions are collated into one place for easy reference.
www.clallam.net/streamkeepers
Sample Volunteer Projects:
1. INVASIVES-SPREADING PREVENTION: There’s concern that stream monitors can spread invasive plants and animals from site to site. We need someone to read an introductory article on this topic, conduct further research, and report findings to us.
2. SCRAPBOOKER: We’ve got an inch-thick folder with 11 years of Streamkeepers clippings. Would anyone like to put together a physical and/or electronic scrapbook that we could put out on the table at fairs?
3. CHEMICAL SAFEGUARDS TABLE: We’ve collected MSDS’s for all of the chemicals we use, and we try to follow the precautions recommended by the MSDS’s, but it would be valuable to create a table in which all the various MSDS provisions are collated into one place for easy reference.
www.clallam.net/streamkeepers
North Olympic Salmon Coalition
The North Olympic Salmon Coalition is a non-profit, community based, salmon recovery organization which provides funding, guidance, technical assistance and ongoing support for salmon habitat restoration and enhancement on the North Olympic Peninsula.
www.nosc.org
www.nosc.org
COASST
The Coastal Observation and Seabird Survey Team (COASST) monitors local marine resources and ecosystem health through the establishment of a network of citizen scientists, each collecting rigorous and vital data.
www.depts.washington.edu/coasst
www.depts.washington.edu/coasst
Olympic National Park
You can use the National Parks website to find volunteer opportunities at Olympic National Park or any of the nearly 400 other National Parks. www.nps.gov/olym/supportyourpark/volunteer.htm or www.nps.gov/getinvolved/volunteer
North Olympic Land Trust
North Olympic Land Trust provides opportunities for you to become more invested in land conservation efforts in Clallam County.
Sample Projects:
SCOTCH BROOM ERADICATION:
NOLT is looking for volunteers interested in scotch broom eradication on a NOLT-owned property between Sequim and Port Angeles. Dates that assistance is needed are: April 23, 26, and 30. 2-3 people are needed each afternoon, and each eradication session will be 2-3 hours.
MONITORING TRAINING:
NOLT is looking for volunteers to assist with annual monitoring and inspection visits to properties protected by conservation easements as well as properties owned by NOLT. Volunteers should be able to hike in areas without trails, and be able to spend multiple hours outdoors in a variety of weather. Monitoring training will take place on May 10 at 6pm.
WORK AT NOLT-OWNED PROPERTY
NOLT is looking for volunteers interested in helping with projects on a NOLT-owned property between Sequim and Port Angeles. Work will include construction of a small fence, sign installation, trail brushing, and scotch broom eradication. The work party will take place on Saturday, May 1, from 10-noon.
If you are interested in any of these volunteer opportunities please contact Lorrie Campbell, Stewardship Manager at 417-1815 or [email protected]
Sample Projects:
SCOTCH BROOM ERADICATION:
NOLT is looking for volunteers interested in scotch broom eradication on a NOLT-owned property between Sequim and Port Angeles. Dates that assistance is needed are: April 23, 26, and 30. 2-3 people are needed each afternoon, and each eradication session will be 2-3 hours.
MONITORING TRAINING:
NOLT is looking for volunteers to assist with annual monitoring and inspection visits to properties protected by conservation easements as well as properties owned by NOLT. Volunteers should be able to hike in areas without trails, and be able to spend multiple hours outdoors in a variety of weather. Monitoring training will take place on May 10 at 6pm.
WORK AT NOLT-OWNED PROPERTY
NOLT is looking for volunteers interested in helping with projects on a NOLT-owned property between Sequim and Port Angeles. Work will include construction of a small fence, sign installation, trail brushing, and scotch broom eradication. The work party will take place on Saturday, May 1, from 10-noon.
If you are interested in any of these volunteer opportunities please contact Lorrie Campbell, Stewardship Manager at 417-1815 or [email protected]
