Development of the comprehensive adaptive management and monitoring program will be difficult. There are few examples where adaptive management systems have been successfully implemented and sustained. As stated above, there is much we do not yet understand about how to best help salmon recover. There are many differences between salmon species and stocks, and between regional and watershed conditions. Monitoring and evaluation technologies themselves may often be limited and information from them can be of poor quality.
Costs are always a concern.
Through the development of the comprehensive monitoring program, needs and priorities will be clarified, and a phased approach will be developed to direct available funding and cooperative partnerships. The 1999 legislature passed, and the Governor signed, 2E2SSB 5595 which recognized the need for development of a coordinated and integrated monitoring process to track and assess the effectiveness of salmon habitat projects and recovery activities. That legislation identified a role for the Independent Science Panel to provide recommendations related to various aspects of monitoring and data quality, and to summarize their findings in a report to the legislature and the Governor by the end of the year 2000. This will include ocean conditions, estuaries and nearshore marine areas, large freshwater rivers and smaller streams in urban, rural and upland areas. A science-based foundation has been drafted that will provide the necessary context for design and implementation of effective monitoring plans.