Endangered Species Act home | What King County is doing for salmon What you can do for salmon | Resources & background information Salmon Information Center (external link) Home & garden tips Tips for streamsiders A lot depends on you! Clearing, landscaping or careless use of the streambanks and land close to streams or shorelines can harm water quality, killing fish and ruining the beauty of your stream. Keep your streambanks naturally vegetated. Trees, bushes and grasses on the banks will: 1) shade the water, keeping it cool for fish, 2) prevent streambank erosion, and 3) provide habitat for wildlife and food for fish. ... more information about streamside vegetation Talk to your children. Teach them to value and respect streams and stream life. Kids need to understand that they cause damage if they build dams, stir up bottom mud, trample streambanks, or harass fish. ... more information on the Natural Resources Kids Page Fence livestock away from streams and wetlands. Animal wastes degrade water quality and their hooves can cause streambanks to collapse, silting streams and disrupting fish habitat. Make sure animals have plenty of room to drop their wastes over grassy areas and away from streams. ... more information about livestock programs Curb pet waste. For smaller pets, make sure to scoop their waste and dispose of it properly. Keep litter out of the stream. This includes grass clippings and other yard waste as well as trash and inorganic waste. This sort of pollution not only looks and smells awful, but reduces the oxygen content of the water and kills fish and their eggs. Maintain your septic tank. Have it professionally checked every two or three years and serviced as needed. Don’t remove tree stumps and branches from the stream. This "large woody debris" provides valuable habitat and food sources for streamborne wildlife. Contact the Washington Department of Fish and Wildlife (WDFW) before you make any changes to the stream. Although well intentioned, any changes you make could destroy spawning beds and fish eggs (even way downstream) or block fish migration. State law requires approval from WDFW for any changes to a stream. Tips for waterfront residents Do you live on or own beachfront property on Puget Sound? Are you wondering how to protect your property while preserving its beauty and ecological value? The Puget Sound Shoreline Stewardship Guidebook answers questions about: Geology and erosion that can affect your property; taking advantage of natural shoreline protection; managing rain runoff; using native plants; controlling aggressive non-native plants; and maintaining septic systems. Updated: May 15, 2003 Endangered Species Act home What King County is doing for salmon What you can do for salmon | Resources & background information Salmon Information Center (external link) Home & garden tips King County | Executive | News | Services | Comments | Search Links to external sites do not constitute endorsements by King County. By visiting this and other King County web pages, you expressly agree to be bound by terms and conditions of the site. The details.