New ‘salmon-safe’ wine certification is now available for WA vineyards. How it works

Karlee Van De Venter
·2 min read

In an effort to showcase the commitment to positive environmental practices across Washington’s wine industry, new dual certifications have been launched for winegrowers to determine their vineyard as salmon-safe.

Developed in a partnership between two groups over 18 months, the certification is meant to “enhance water quality protection, wildlife habitat conservation and climate resiliency,” according to the press release.

Dual certification for WA vineyards

The two certifying groups are Sustainable WA and Salmon-Safe. Sustainable WA is the first statewide certified sustainability program specifically for winegrapes, made in partnership with multiple other groups, including the Washington Winegrowers Association, the Washington State Wine Commission and multiple others, with industry and technical oversight.

Salmon-Safe is a regional eco-label focused on healthy watersheds for native salmon. When it comes to viticulture, Salmon-Safe’s priorities are reducing vineyard runoff, protecting the water quality and enhancing the native biodiversity on vineyard sites, according to the press release.

The two groups combined their resources, knowledge and goals to find dual certification options in Washington that align with both groups.

“We know that Sustainable WA winegrowers have a commitment to environmental stewardship,” stated Dan Kent, executive director of Salmon-Safe, in the press release. “Offering joint certification is a way for us to bring a strengthened and science-based focus on watershed impact to Sustainable WA as certified vineyard operations lead the way to healthier Columbia Basin waterways.”

How is a vineyard certified?

Dual certification can be achieved through a commitment to multiple sustainable practices, verified through a third-party audit.

“The certification partnership between Sustainable WA and Salmon-Safe adds a layer of credibility to Washington’s program by ensuring that vineyards are using verified environmental practices that protect our local watersheds,” stated Sadie Drury, a vineyard manager and Sustainable WA winegrower.

Some of the practices required for certification include:

  • Regular testing and workplace policies

  • Irrigation schedules that take the land and wildlife into account

  • Sediment runoff prevention when applicable

  • No materials deemed “high hazard” by Salmon-Safe

  • Provisions for wildlife protection such as fish screens

The full certification outline is available online.

Following the certification process, wineries with 75% certified wine grapes can feature the Sustainable WA logo on their bottles, and those with 95% certified wine grapes can also feature the Salmon-Safe logo, according to the press release.

Latest Stories

  • Massive grizzly bear known as 'The Boss' spotted in Canmore area

    Massive grizzly bear "The Boss" seemed to have lost his bearings earlier this week.He was spotted by a local nature photographer in the Canmore area, much farther east than he's normally known to frequent.The Boss, officially known as Bear No. 122, was seen Sunday where photographer and biologist Jason Leo Bantle lives in Harvie Heights, a hamlet just northwest of Canmore.Parks Canada said The Boss is in his mid-20s, and the last time he was captured he weighed roughly 450 pounds (about 200 kilo

  • Scientists Consider Drastic Action as Doomsday Glacier Threatens to Flood Entire Islands and Coasts

    Thwaiting Period The Thwaites Glacier in Antarctica is called the "Doomsday Glacier" for a reason. Larger than the state of Florida, the icy mass contains so much water that scientists predict that its melting could single-handedly raise global sea levels by over two feet — and possibly over five times more that, if it triggers […]

  • Wild turkeys filmed terrorizing Ottawa neighbourhood: 'We have only ourselves to blame,' expert cautions

    Wild turkeys are usually deemed docile birds and may seem more elusive than other popular urban wildlife like coyotes or Canada geese.

  • If you meet a lizard the size of a dog in the wild in SC, here’s what you can do, DNR says

    Here’s what you should do if you encounter an invasive dog-sized lizards in South Carolina, Department of Natural Resources says.

  • Trump has vowed to kill offshore wind in the US. Will he succeed?

    Opponents of offshore wind energy projects expect President-elect Donald Trump to kill an industry he has vowed to end on the first day he returns to the White House. Many of the largest offshore wind companies put a brave face on the election results, pledging to work with Trump and Congress to build power projects and ignoring the incoming president's oft-stated hostility to them. In campaign appearances, Trump railed against offshore wind and promised to sign an executive order to block such projects.

  • Tropical Storm Rafael moves slowly in Gulf of Mexico

    Rafael has weakened into a tropical storm as slowly moved in the Gulf of Mexico on Saturday.

  • Grizzly Bear Catches Snowflakes on Tongue in Adorable Video

    One of the Cheyenne Mountain Zoo’s resident grizzly bears was the picture of winter joy as he reclined cozily in the snow and caught snowflakes on his tongue on Wednesday, November 6.This adorable video captures Emmet, a 19-year-old grizzly bear, catching snowflakes on his tongue at the zoo in downtown Colorado Springs on Wednesday.“We love snow days at the zoo, and we’re open every day of the year,” the Cheyenne Mountain Zoo said in a press release.According to the zoo, Emmet and his “longtime roommate,” Digger, both came to the zoo in 2007 as young bears. They are not biologically related and were both labeled as “nuisance bears after several negative interactions with humans prior to being removed from the wild,” the zoo said.The Cheyenne Mountain Zoo said nuisance bears often “aren’t as lucky as these two,” and end up euthanized or relocated.Grizzlies are native to the Rocky Mountain region and do not hibernate, instead gaining enough weight “to carry them through the cooler season” along with their fluffy coats, the zoo said.Grizzlies go into torpor, a “hormonal physiological and behavioral change triggered by the changing seasons” that sees the bears slow down, sleep more, and “want to eat, eat, eat,” according to the zoo. Credit: Cheyenne Mountain Zoo via Storyful

  • Bomb cyclone grazes Atlantic Canada with howling winds

    A system buffeting parts of Atlantic Canada with some of the region’s strongest wind gusts in months could be classified as a bomb cyclone

  • Hurricane Rafael swirls over Gulf of Mexico after ripping through Cuba

    HAVANA (AP) — Hurricane Rafael swirled Friday through the Gulf of Mexico where it was expected to break apart after plowing through Cuba, knocking out the country's power grid and collapsing hundreds of houses.

  • Newfoundland snow and Quebec blizzard warning

    A wintery system will pass through Newfoundland Friday night into Saturday brining snow, rain, and wind. Highest snowfall totals will be in the northern peninsula where 10-20cm are possible. Details with Meteorologist Dylan Kikuta.

  • Spain's flood disaster was its worst in recent history. Here's what went wrong

    The water was already knee-high on the ground floor of the hotel where Aitana Puchal had taken refuge when she received a text alert from the regional government of Valencia at 8 pm on Oct. 29 warning people to shelter in place from severe flash floods. "We could have done with (the warning) about six hours earlier," said the 23-year-old, who had fled with other local residents and guests to the first floor of the hotel near the town of Paiporta. Carlos Martinez, another Paiporta resident, told local television the flood alert came when he was stranded in a tree "seeing bodies floating past."

  • Destruction from Mountain fire shown in before-and-after satellite photos

    Satellite images show Camarillo neighborhoods wiped out by the Mountain fire. See the before-after pictures of the damage.

  • Trump Plans to Dismantle Biden’s Climate Law. It Won’t Be Easy

    (Bloomberg) -- President-Elect Donald Trump will be empowered by Republican gains on Capitol Hill to pull back portions of the Democrats’ signature climate law he calls “the green new scam,” which devoted hundreds of billions of dollars to subsidizing emission-free energy.Most Read from BloombergThe Leaf Blowers Will Not Go QuietlyKey Ballot Initiatives and Local Races Highlight Views on Abortion, ImmigrationParis Restricts Through Traffic in City CenterFrom Housing to Immigration, Key Ballot In

  • Helene killed more than 600,000 trout at an NC fish farm. How long will recovery take?

    The Armstrong State Fish Hatchery grows 20% to 30% of the trout stocked in Western NC. Now, a state official said, ‘We lost the facility.’

  • Ancient ‘terror birds’ were giant apex predators. Suspected new species is among the largest ever known

    Analyzing a leg bone from a fossil site in Colombia, scientists have identified a massive “terror bird” that lived about 12 million years ago.

  • Vancouver high school students create intelligent garbage cans to help sort waste

    A pair of Vancouver high school students hope their innovation using odour sensors and artificial intelligence will help their peers divert more waste from the landfill.Amy Bach and Sunny Huynh created Bin Genius because of what they saw around them at their schools."A lot of students, when they have lunch, they just throw all of their plates and then their food [waste] into the garbage bin, which will be sent to landfills," said Bach, a Grade 12 student at Gladstone Secondary School."So we want

  • ‘We barely made it out’: Californians desperately flee their homes amid raging wildfires

    Terrie Morin, 60, and her husband Dave were at the barber shop when they heard about a raging wildfire making headway toward their Camarillo home on Wednesday morning.

  • A "Bomb Cyclone" brings damaging winds to Newfoundlands coast

    Extreme winds prompting wind warnings will begin impacting Atlantic Canada Saturday evening. The strongest winds will be on the East Coast of Newfoundland with potential 110km/h gusts and 9m wave heights. Meteorologist Laura Power has the details.

  • Tropical Storm Rafael: Sunday, Nov 10 status update from the National Hurricane Center

    Here’s the latest on Tropical Storm Rafael

  • Calgary wants to borrow $1B for water projects to meet demands of growing population

    City of Calgary administration outlined a number of major water projects on Tuesday as part of its proposed budget adjustments for 2025.The city is eyeing the construction of $1.5 billion in projects. To make it happen, the city wants to borrow more than $1 billion. The debt would be repaid through monthly payments on resident utility bills and the collection of off-site levies.The plan comes after a summer that saw a major water feeder main fail, and amid rapid continuing population growth in t