Quinault Division of Natural Resources

The Quinault Division of Natural Resources is responsible for the care, protection and sustainability of the 208,000-acre Quinault Indian Nation located on the southwestern corner of Washington’s Olympic Peninsula, cradled between the snow-capped Olympic Mountains and the mighty northern Pacific Ocean.

The Quinault Division of Natural Resources manages and watches over the natural resources on the Quinault Indian Nation lands and within the tribe’s Usual and Accustomed Area. Timber harvesting and fishing are managed for sustainable production and balanced with the needs of fish, wildlife and other living beings to leave a long-term legacy for future generations. Cultural resources such as “the canoe stand”, an area of exceptionally large cedar trees that is maintained for future canoe-builders, are respected.

The Quinault Division of Natural Resources manages natural resources on the lands of the Quinault Indian Nation’s Usual and Accustomed area including the ocean. The natural environment and its resources are deeply intertwined with the culture and economy of the Quinault. The traditional tribal worldview is that the people are a part of nature, not apart from nature. “Place-based” people have developed an intimate relationship with their specific natural environment through history. Their physical, mental, social and spiritual health is directly and uniquely related to the health of the ecosystems of the lands and waters they inhabit.

QDNR comprises the departments and programs that manage and watch over the resources on the Quinault Indian Nation and within the Quinault Usual and Accustomed areas. With a team of  almost 90 professional scientists, field technicians, program managers, administrators and support personnel, QDNR oversees timber stewardship and harvest, freshwater and ocean fisheries, wildlife, cultural resource protection, sand and gravel production, and air and water quality. The Division also maintains tribal enrollment and provides review to other agencies related to cultural resources. The Geographic Information System (GIS) is housed within QDNR and provides data management, mapping and remote-sensing services to the Division and other Quinault programs.

Click for: A Primer On Timber Sale Process and Forest Growth Management

Contact List for QDNR (click)