Regional salmon recovery organizations and their partners may apply for monitoring funding through the Washington State Salmon Recovery Funding Board (SRFB) monitoring grant program. This program biennially solicits projects and awards grants to projects that generate information about salmonids and their habitats and is used to direct restoration investments, provide accountability, and build understanding.
More information about the SRFB Salmon Monitoring Grant Program can be found in Manual 18m. The next grant round will occur in 2027.
The Intensively Monitored Watersheds program asks the question: Is restoration working to increase salmon numbers? Intensively Monitored Watersheds (or IMW) monitoring compares the number of salmon from streams where habitat restoration was done to similar streams nearby without such actions. This shows if changes in fish survival and productivity are due to restoration efforts or to other factors not related to stream restoration. This SRFB-funded program has led to scientific findings about salmon life strategies and habitat needs and helps improve designs of restoration projects.
Watch this 2-minute video clip for an overview about intensively monitored watershed efforts funded by the Salmon Recovery Funding Board
Project-level effectiveness monitoring funded by the SRFB addresses whether habitat restoration projects are effectively achieving their goals. By measuring environmental conditions, habitat characteristics, and biological indicators, scientists can begin to answer questions such as: did planted trees provide shade for the stream? Did the logs that were added to streams increase pool depths? In addition to a state-led project effectiveness program that evaluated several monitoring categories (listed in more detail below) the SRFB funds project effectiveness through their regional grant program. The SRFB uses this information to guide its restoration project investments.
Watch this 2-minute video clip for an overview of effectiveness monitoring funded by the Salmon Recovery Funding Board
This short video provides an overview of salmon recovery monitoring funded by the Salmon Recovery Funding Board.