Forum Roles & Activities

View the Snohomish Basin Salmon Recovery Forum Guidelines (PDF)

Roles

The Snohomish Basin Salmon Recovery Forum was formed in 1998, building on the success of the Snohomish Basin Work Group. Its initial focus was on salmon recovery planning. With the completion of the Snohomish Basin Salmon Conservation Plan (Conservation Plan), the roles of the Forum are now to:

  • Promote implementation of the Conservation Plan by participation agencies, organizations, and interests.
  • Monitor implementation and adaptively manage the Conservation Plan over time.
  • Advocate for continued funding and identify new sources of funding to implement the Conservation Plan.
  • Provide a forum for local governments and organizations to coordinate and communicate about watershed issues. This includes discussing differing viewpoints and identifying common ground about watershed topics, as well as providing policy guidance and basin-level context and strategies.
  • Respond to Endangered Species Act listings at the local level.
  • Serve as the Snohomish basin lead entity citizens committee.
  • Actively engage with the Puget Sound Partnership and Snohomish-Stillaguamish Local Integrating Organization to implement the Action Agenda for Puget Sound.

Activities

In fulfilling these roles, the Forum's current activities include:

  • Working with regional partners, including the Puget Sound Partnership and Puget Sound Salmon Recovery Council, to integrate local interests with broader regional salmon recovery activities. This includes outreach to and improving coordination with a wide range of interests and land users.
  • Tracking implementation of the Conservation Plan, tracking effectiveness of the actions, and adjusting the plan over time as new information becomes available.
  • Leveraging resources to help implement the Conservation Plan. This includes advocating for funding from local, state, regional, and federal levels.
  • Recommending allocation of project funding. This includes prioritizing projects for the Salmon Recovery Funding Board, Puget Sound Acquisition and Restoration funds, and other funding sources.
  • Supporting education that promotes stewardship. This includes providing information to the general public, as well as providing technical assistance to landowners and to individuals who work directly on lands of concern.
  • Updating the Snohomish Basin Salmon Conservation Plan as needed or required.
  • Working and coordination with the Snoqualmie Watershed Forum.