About the Forum
The Washington Forum on Monitoring Salmon Recovery and Watershed Health was created by the Legislature to coordinate policy and technical issues related to monitoring salmon recovery and watershed health. Its main objectives are to
- Provide for more efficient and effective use of monitoring resources among agencies.
- To recommend and standardize a set of measures to report progress towards salmon recovery and watershed health improvement.
- To better guide (and improve accountability for) investments in salmon recovery and watershed health improvement.
The forum was disbanded in June 2011.
The 26-member forum was tasked with the following responsibilities (from Revised Code of Washington 77.85.250):
- Providing a multi-agency venue for coordinating technical and policy actions related to monitoring salmon recovery and watershed health.
- Recommending a set of high-level indicators for use in the consolidated report on salmon recovery and watershed health.
- Inviting participation of federal, tribal, regional, and local organizations that monitor, and working toward coordination and standardization of measures.
- Recommending to the governor and the legislature how to improve state agency monitoring programs.
- Reviewing pilot programs including those that integrate (a) data collection, management, and access; and (b) information about habitat projects and project management.
- Making recommendations to the Office of Financial Management and the Legislature about agency budget requests for monitoring. These recommendations are due September 15th every year.
- Adopting high-level indicators for salmon recovery and watershed health by Dec 1, 2009. By July 1, 2010, the forum shall also adopt the protocols for monitoring those high-level indicators that will enable state monitoring efforts to be capable of reporting results that will ensure reporting consistency and agency compliance under the consolidated reporting requirements.
