Hood Canal
Salmon Recovery
Region
Area
The Hood Canal area is in the Puget Sound Salmon Recovery Region for Chinook and steelhead, but is a separate salmon recovery
region for summer chum.
- Human Population: 71,391
- Counties: Parts of Jefferson, Mason, Clallam, and Kitsap
- Water Resource Inventory Areas: All or parts of Kitsap (15), Skokomish-Dosewallips (16), Quilcene-Snow (17), and Elwha-Dungeness (18)
- Federally Recognized Tribes: Skokomish Tribe, Port Gamble S’Klallam Tribe, Jamestown S’Klallam Tribe, Elwha Klallam Tribe, Suquamish Tribe
Regional Recovery Organization
Hood Canal Coordinating Council
Origins and Organization
The Hood Canal Coordinating Council is a Watershed-Based Council of Governments. It was established in 1985 in response to community concerns about water quality problems and related natural resource issues in the watersheds. Members include a county commissioner from Kitsap, Jefferson, and Mason Counties; representatives of the Port Gamble S’Klallam and Skokomish Tribes; and ex-officio state and federal agency members. The council operates under a variety of authorities in Hood Canal: it is a public benefit corporation, a non-profit corporation, the management board for aquatic rehabilitation, the lead entity and regional recovery organization for salmon recovery, and the inter-WRIA coordinator for watershed planning.
Species Listed
Salmon Recovery Plan
The National Marine Fisheries Service adopted the recovery plan in May 2007. The plan builds on work done by the council as lead entity and inter-WRIA coordinator for watershed planning. It also relies on the summer chum salmon conservation initiative, an on-going program of the Department of Fish and Wildlife and the Point-No-Point Treaty Tribes.
Recovery Plan
- Plan timeframe: 10-30 years
- Estimated cost: $95 million
- Actions to implement plan: 296
- Status: Final plan adopted by National Marine Fisheries Service May 2007.
Governor Gregoire Receives Plan for
Hood Canal Salmon Recovery
OLYMPIA - Governor Chris Gregoire accepted the summer chum salmon recovery plan from the Hood Canal Coordinating Council during a small celebration on April 7, 2006.
Wild salmon play a critical role in Washington's economy and way of life and serve as an indication of the overall health of our watersheds. The Hood Canal plan emphasizes a commitment to ensuring that Washington's actions benefit salmon as well as the communities that depend upon them. Recreational and commercial fishing, for example, are a combined billion dollar a year industry in Washington and support rural jobs and small businesses across the state.
"Our approach integrates economic and environmental concerns in a way that engenders a new kind of prosperity for our state, one that enriches today without impoverishing tomorrow," said Governor Gregoire.
"Salmon are icons of our Northwest culture and the foundation for the health of our watersheds. If the salmon are not doing well, our watersheds are not doing well — and neither are we," said Governor Gregoire. "Up until now, the focus has been on getting these plans done. Now we need to move forward and emphasize getting these plans implemented on the ground.”
Fifteen salmon species, covering 75 percent of Washington, are listed under the federal Endangered Species Act (ESA). The Hood Canal Summer Chum Draft Recovery Plan is part of a larger statewide strategy to support locally developed recovery plans in response to the ESA listings. Local organizations from five other areas in Washington have developed similar draft recovery plans - lower Columbia, mid-Columbia, Snake River, upper Columbia and Puget Sound.
