Final answer:
The Salish people needed versatile boat-making skills to create different types of canoes for fishing, transportation, and trade, crucial for their livelihood in the resource-rich Pacific Northwest.
Step-by-step explanation:
It was important that the Salish be versatile in their boat-making skills because their needs required many different kinds of canoes. The Pacific Northwest peoples, including the Salish, supported themselves through hunting, gathering, and fishing, with a heavy reliance on salmon fishing. This required the use of various types of canoes for different purposes such as transportation, hunting, and trading across various waterways.
The abundant marine life and natural resources in the region necessitated different boat designs to navigate diverse aquatic environments effectively. Salish and other Pacific Northwest tribes also engaged in complex networks of trade where items like canoes were highly valued among neighboring tribes.