The health of salmon populations reflects the overall health of Puget Sound. At the Puget Sound Partnership, we play an important role in salmon recovery by investing in related projects and helping to coordinate and track the work of local, Tribal, and regional partners. Working closely with Tribal nations and partners is vital to achieving our collective goal of protecting and restoring critical salmon habitat to support their recovery. We lead these efforts in the following ways (select each one for more information):

• Science - Share information, connect science to action, adapt recovery efforts as we learn more
• Barriers - Identify and remove policy and funding barriers to salmon recovery
• Funding - Help secure funding for restoration, land acquisition, research, and assessment work
• Policy - Promote policy changes that better protect and restore critical salmon habitat and ecosystem function
• Planning - Coordinate, develop, and support the implementation of recovery plans
• Partnerships - Bring people together and support salmon recovery partners 
• Environmental Justice - Keep environmental justice at the center of salmon recovery efforts.

Our Goals

In 1999, Chinook salmon were listed as threatened under the federal Endangered Species Act (ESA).  Steelhead trout were added to the list in 2007. These listings were a call to action with challenges, solutions, and goals outlined in the 2007 Puget Sound Salmon Recovery Plan and2019 ESA Recovery Plan for Puget Sound Steelhead. Since then, communities, Tribes, partners, and local, state and federal governments have come together to meet the following goals:

• Puget Sound Salmon Recovery Goal
  Recover self-sustaining, harvestable salmon runs that contribute to the overall health of Puget Sound and its watersheds and allows us to enjoy and use these precious resources alongside a strong regional economy.

• Puget Sound Chinook Salmon
  By 2050, all Chinook salmon populations increase, and at least 50 percent of the populations reach their recovery goals. Read more about this Vital Sign Indicator.

• Puget Sound Steelhead Recovery Goal
  Ensure that steelhead populations are self-sustaining in the wild and no longer need the protection of the Endangered Species Act (ESA). A self-sustaining viable population has a low risk of extinction and should be resilient and able to survive over the long term without depending on hatcheries.

• Puget Sound Steelhead
  We are working with partners to measure and track the number of steelhead trout on spawning grounds. This helps us monitor progress and will inform a new Vital Sign target for steelhead recovery. Read more about this Vital Sign Indicator.

Last updated: 11/05/25