Overview, New Project Scopes, and Results in Phase 5 The Pulling Together in Restoration (PTIR) project's fifth phase (July 2023 through November 2024) continued to build this coast-wide invasives prevention, control, outreach, and jobs program in the Quillayute, Hoh, Goodman, Queets, upper Quinault, upper Humptulips, and coastal Grays Harbor project areas. The funding enabled 10KYI to provide much-needed support to federal, state, county, city, non-profit, and private entities and restoration projects, resulting in enhanced restoration and resiliency goals and outcomes, and provided many local jobs and training, and economic inputs to local communities in rent, services, gear and fuel purchases. In this fifth phase, partnerships were expanded, and additional projects were developed to meet expanding needs as new species arrive and existing species continue to spread or regrow from long-lived seedbanks. Close to 30,000 hours were invested in the three counties, preventing new introductions, maintaining previously treated sites and reaches, and working on invasives at restoration project sites and priority habitats. 10KYI’s local year-round workforce numbered between 16 and 37 – including restoration technicians (16 to 22), crew leads (4), project coordinator (1), GIS specialist (1), data management staff (1+). The two crews were hired and deployed out of Forks (north crew) and Aberdeen/Elma (south crew). WCC crews out of Port Angeles and Elma added additional capacity over 11 weeks in 2022 and 5 weeks in 2023. Interns from Peninsula College’s Natural Resources program in Forks, Grays Harbor College in Aberdeen, and The Evergreen State College in Olympia also contributed to fieldwork, data management, and remote sensing and GIS tasks, while receiving training as part of their studies. In the fall of 2024, we reduced staff in response to slowdowns from cultural resources concurrence requirements and increased spending on additional species and sites that expended the project funding six months early. The work is expanding, while workforce capacity due to available funding and affordable workforce housing needed to retain staff positions at the level of crew leads and coordinators from out of area remains lower than needed. Invasive plant surveys were conducted across WRIAs 20, 21, and 22 at a multitude of project sites, many shown on the Sites and Partners map (in Attachments) and discussed in the Presentations and Partner Reports (in Attachments). Project sites in the three WRIAs were located on federal, state, county, city, private, and tribal lands – and included surveys along the pathways (e.g. trails, roads, and rivers) and at sources on roads, along rivers and the riparian floodplains, wetlands, pastures, forestland, coastal dunes, and at residential, industrial, and municipal properties (see Results Maps in Attachments). Most work filled gaps in staffing capacity in federal, state, local, non-profit and tribal programs. The restoration crews surveyed over 22,000 acres and treated invasive plants on 5,964 acres. As always, all sites and most species required multiple surveys each year to catch new introductions or germination and regrowth from seedbanks. Treatment sites, species, and acres are displayed on the Results Maps (in Attachments), described in the Example Reports and a sample shown in the Photo Album (in Attachments). Work conducted in Phase 5 included: - Bogachiel Knotweed (Quileute Tribe/Clallam County NWB) - Bockman Creek Invasives Control (Wild Salmon Center, Olympic National Forest – turned into a contract in 2023) - Quileute Historic Oxbow Reed Canarygrass (Quileute Tribe, DNR, Olympic National Park ) - Dickey River Spotted Jewelweed (Quileute Tribe, Clallam County NWB, Olympic National Park) - Calawah Watershed Future-Proofing (Wild Salmon Center, ONF, DNR, Ecotrust Forest Management) - Clallam and Jefferson County Roads Invasives Control (Clallam and Jefferson County NWB) - City of Forks Scotch broom and Class A Invasives – Two airports, the city Industrial Park, roads and parks (City of Forks, Clallam County NWB) - Lindner Complex Blackberry, Knotweed, Scotch Broom Control (Jefferson County, NSD) - Owl Creek Invasives Survey and Control (Trout Unlimited – turned into a contract in 2024)) - Queets Estuary Tansy Ragwort, Knotweed, and Reed Canarygrass (Quinault Indian Nation) - State Lands/Olympic Experimental State Forest Scotch Broom (WA DNR) - Upper Quinault (North Fork, East Fork) Invasives Prevention and Control (ONP) - Quinault Marina Scotch Broom (City of Ocean Shores and QIN) - State Parks (Griffiths Priday, Ocean City, and Westport Light) Scotch Broom (WA State Parks, Grays Harbor County NWB) Trainings in identification and control methods were provided to Washington State Parks, Olympic National Park, Washington Department of Fish and Wildlife, and Washington Conservation Corps staff. Nine presentations on project development, planning, and implementation were provided to the Olympic Weed Working Group, Olympic Experimental State Forest Science Symposium, USFWS Wild Spotter Invasives Conference, Peninsula College Studium Event on Jobs in Natural Resources, NWIFC TFW Habitat Quarterly Meeting, Jefferson WSU Extension Stream Stewards, and the Washington Invasive Species Council. We led seven field tours for college classes, landowners, and project reviewers. Programmatic Integration with State and Federal Agencies advanced as the PTIR program made progress intersecting with regional forestry programs including a connection with the State DNR Forest Resilience Program and the Good Neighbor Authority Program that works between Olympic National Forest and Olympic Region State DNR. An MOU was developed with Washington State Parks for coastal Grays Harbor. We have committed to working in 2025 with private landowners on cost-share agreements and pilot biomass conversion into biochar in the forest resilience program too. In all, PTIR funding enabled new projects and significant work and service; stopped googles of seeds and propagules from spreading, and supported local jobs for healthier watersheds protecting climate resiliency. Onward into Phase 6!