FISHERIES -- Samantha Mace of Spokane has been appointed by Gov. Jay Inslee to the Salmon Recovery Funding Board, the state Recreation and Conservation Office has announced.

The board  administers grants for projects that help return salmon from the brink of extinction.

Mace has extensive professional and volunteer experience in conservation policy and natural resource issues. She is the Inland Northwest director for the Save our Wild Salmon Coalition, where she is responsible for policy, media and outreach for Inland Northwest salmon issues for a coalition of sport fishing groups and businesses, commercial fishing associations, conservation groups and other organizations working to restore wild salmon and steelhead to the Columbia and Snake Rivers.

Before joining the coalition, Mace held a long list of other jobs in the conservation world, including working for Trout Unlimited, the Washington Wildlife Federation, the Idaho Wildlife Federation and the ForestWater Alliance in Washington, D.C. She also has been a volunteer on many conservation efforts.

“We are excited to welcome Samantha to the Salmon Recovery Funding Board,” said Kaleen Cottingham, director of the Recreation and Conservation Office, which administers the funding board’s grants. “Her understanding of the issues surrounding the plight of salmon and the many businesses and families that rely on healthy salmon populations will be a great asset to the board. Her knowledge of eastern Washington also will bring a valuable perspective to our work.”

The Washington State Legislature created the Salmon Recovery Funding Board in 1999. Composed of five citizens appointed by the Governor, and five state agency directors, the board brings together the experiences and viewpoints of citizens and the major state natural resource agencies. The board provides grants to protect or restore salmon habitat and assist related activities. Since its start, the board has awarded $564 million for more than 2,280 projects statewide.