Monitoring Basics

The Need for Monitoring

It is often said that you can’t manage what you don’t measure. A well-designed and efficient monitoring program will answer fundamental questions, such as:

1. Are salmon numbers increasing or declining?
2. Is water quality and habitat improving or getting worse?
3. Where and what are the most important problems?
4. What are the most effective actions to address those problems?
5. Is the money invested in salmon recovery well spent?

Monitoring data must be reliable, pertinent, and scientifically valid. And because monitoring is often difficult and costly, monitoring agencies work together at all levels, sharing data, avoiding duplication, and maximizing everyone’s financial investments.

Monitoring is considered so important to success that the federal government requires it of all salmon recovery plans submitted under the Endangered Species Act.

What is Washington Doing?

Washington State agencies are following The Washington Comprehensive Monitoring Strategy and Action Plan for Watershed Health and Salmon Recovery. This strategy provides the foundation for coordinating, prioritizing, and standardizing the myriad of monitoring programs and needs across the state.