What is Spartina?
Spartina is a non-native species of cordgrass that grows on nearshore coastal tidelands, mudflats, and other areas of saltwater influence. These near-shore coastal tidelands are significantly threatened by the presence and spread of the invasive weed, Spartina. Acres of Spartina has turned the backwaters of Turners Bay into a Spartina mono-culture. Spartina is the blue-green grass in the background. Controlling Spartina The Swinomish Reservation includes 7,300 upland acres and 2,900 acres of Tribally owned tidelands. Thirty-five miles of marine waterfront form 95% of the exterior boundary of the Reservation. Tidelands and marine areas make up most of the Reservation surface waters, all suseptible to Spartina’s invasion. Successful containment and eradication of Spartina are dependent on completing consecutive and successful years of physical control measures. The Tribe, since identifying the presence of Spartina on the Reservation in the winter of 1995, has successfully funded on-Reser
