Abundant salmon can enhance freshwater productivity in streams
As salmon died they added important nutrients to the ecosystem of the stream and emerging fry could then survive off these nutrients
It is estimated that at one time an average of 150 salmon could found ever 1 mile section of river
Today there are 9 steelhead

salmon runs across the PNW have been and are in decline for a variety of reasons
removal of beaver dams – decreased habitat complexity, reduced stream flow, deteriorated water quality
overgrazing livestock destroyed riparian vegetation
mining, logging have also impacted the streams and specifically the numbers of returning salmon

Consequently, many streams in PNW have low nutrient concentrations, likely due to low numbers of returning salmon

Current salmon runs have decreased by as much as 98% of historic numbers

Coho and Sockeye have been eliminated and Steelhead are listed as threatened on the Endangered Species Act

Swauk Creek is a tributary to the Yakima and therefore holds promise for future salmon restoration

Because Swauk Basin has been deprived of salmon for over half a century, the food web may be nutrient limited and incapable of supporting large numbers of returning fish

Knowing the nutrient limitation status of Swauk Creek will
provide important insight to inform future fisheries management decisions
establish baseline data for long term monitoring of nutrient limitation changes upon reintroduction of Coho salmon
useful for predicting stream response to a restored salmon run