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. This foundation will support identification and assessment of factors affecting salmon productivity, capacity and diversity at the watershed and regional levels. Trends in escapement and overall abundance of salmon stocks must be tracked over time.
Information is obtained from both new and ongoing juvenile and adult fish monitoring activities.
These efforts will continue to provide a foundation of information for stock status assessments. Strong strategy effectiveness and validation monitoring plans require clarification about the scope and objectives of the strategies. As specific target conditions or benchmarks are identified, scientifically sound monitoring approaches can be developed and implemented. All three types of monitoring are needed for adaptive management to be effective. Strategy effectiveness monitoring is the most technically complicated but it is essential.