The Squaxin Island Tribe is negotiating purchase of 365 acres of riparian habitat from the McDonald Land Company in the Skookum Creek Watershed to protect and enhance fish & wildlife populations. This watershed is not highly developed and therefore, has high restoration potential. It supports healthy stocks of chum salmon, a declining stock of coho, and ESA listed chinook potentially pass through an intact estuary (partially owned by DNR). Also, a local elk population overwinters on the property. The landowner is committed to selling this and other property and has engaged the services of a real estate company in California. He offered to try to negotiate a sale to the Squaxin Island Tribe before allowing the real estate company to move forward on the Skookum riparian property. This proposal is for the WWRP program to fund fee simple acquisition of stream channel and riparian lands on each side of Skookum Creek--approximately 15,854 linear feet of channel and a riparain buffer totaling 365 acres. The acquired land constitutes an ancient lakebed and floodplain for Skookum Creek--it does not include extensive uplands.