Managing fish populations

A partial snapshot of how the Washington Department of Fish and Wildlife manages fish and shellfish in the state.

Hatchery employee holding Chinook salmon

  • Marine Protected Areas

    To protect and preserve a variety of marine fish, shellfish, and habitats, WDFW has established marine reserves at several sites in Puget Sound. 

  • Fish hatcheries

    For more than a century, WDFW hatcheries have produced fish for harvest.

  • North of Falcon

    Each year state, federal and tribal fishery managers gather to plan the Northwest's recreational and commercial salmon fisheries.

  • Columbia River fisheries and management

    The Columbia River is home to many fisheries across a wide swath of the state; learn more about how those fisheries are managed.

  • Puget Sound Chinook Resource Management Plan

    WDFW and tribal co-managers are developing a revised version of a plan to guide the next decade of Chinook salmon fishing in the Puget Sound region.

  • Salmon Conservation and Reporting Engine (SCoRE)

    Find up-to-date information and context for statewide efforts to protect and conserve salmon and steelhead.

  • SalmonScape

    This mapping tool delivers the science that helps recovery planners prioritize restoration activities offering the greatest benefit to fish.

  • Forage fish ecology in Washington State

    Despite good information on the distribution of spawning beaches, our understanding of the ecology and protection needs for these species is very limited.

  • Coded Wire Tag Program

    Coded wire tags are used to help assess abundance and catch rates on certain populations of salmon and steelhead.

  • Warmwater fish program

    This program enhances fishing opportunities for warmwater game fish in Washington while protecting native species.

  • Spawning Ground Survey Database

    The Spawning Ground Survey (SGS) database houses raw data collected during seasonal surveys of salmonid spawning habitat. These data are used to generate estimates of escapement and other metrics of salmonid abundance.

  • Dingell-Johnson Act

    Information about the Dingell-Johnson Sport Fish Restoration Act, which provides funding to state fish and wildlife agencies to support recreational fishing.

  • Steelhead fishery management

    Find out how WDFW is supporting steelhead recovery through robust steelhead management, guided by our Statewide Steelhead Management Plan.