The Skagit Watershed Council focuses on the Skagit River watershed and the impact on salmon. The Skagit watershed is the largest in Puget Sound. It has 4 part time employees and 45 members which are local organizations. They are funded by state and federal grants, local monies matches and the power companies upstream. There are 24 species of salmon, 6 of which are in the watershed. Four of those species are recovering, chum and chinook are in danger of becoming extinct. Richard focused the rest of the presentation on the chinook. Overharvesting for the most part has been brought under control. The next largest threat are seals and sea lions. The wildlife protection act initially caused their population numbers to spike but recently have leveled off (hungry transient whales) These predators actually eat 6x what we catch. The resident whales eat salmon and therefore are in danger. The other threat is global warming. As the waters warm, the bottom of the food chain is affected negatively which has impacts up the chain. What the council feels it can impact is habitat, especially calm water areas where the salmon can mature before heading out to sea. There are some projects completed, others in process and others in future plans.