Washington Program Challenges

Lack of funding

The majority of Washington's state incentive programs are under-funded. Because of this, they are unable to target conservation priority areas or meet program conservation goals, if the program has such goals. Lack of funding also limits program participation in Washington. Most programs are filled to their capacity with waiting lists of potential participants. Several key incentive programs in the state, such as the Forest Riparian Easement Program and the Salmon Recovery Funding Board grants, are constantly filled to capacity and must turn away applicants due to an inability to fund more projects.

Lack of Habitat Focus

Overall, the state programs lack a comprehensive focus on habitat. Often they focus on one aspect of conservation (single species, water quality) but lack the holistic approach that is crucial to habitat conservation and promoting biodiversity. Also, many programs in the state focus primarily on water quality issues rather than habitat conservation and biodiversity. Due to salmon Endangered Species Act listings and water quality problems, there is a tendency to emphasize aquatic resources, leaving upland habitats with little attention and insufficient funding. For example, the Family Forest Fish Passage Program described below is very successful in removing stream obstructions for migrating fish, however, its narrow focus limits its effectiveness for addressing broader habitat conservation goals.