Minutes
June
4, 2003
Members Present: Laura Arnold, Kelley Balcomb-Bartok, Mike Bertrand,
Peter Fromm,
Terrie Klinger, David Loyd, Mary Masters, Rich Osborne, Kevin
Ranker, Kit Rawson, Jim Slocomb, Dennis Willows
Absent:
Brian Calvert, Tim Carpenter, Tom McMillen
Guests:
Shannon Davis, Kari Koski, Skeeter Lowe, Mike Sato, Tina Whitman
Guest
Speaker: Bob Everett, Regional Director of the Washington Department
of Fish & Wildlife
Citizens'
comments: Kevin distributed copies of Surfrider Foundation's annual
update, "State of the Beach: 2003," a comprehensive
report on the health of the nation's beaches; Kevin noted that
Washington's beaches did not receive a good report. Copies are
available through Kevin.
Kevin
also reported that the PEW Oceans Commission is releasing its
final findings today on its three-year nationwide study. "America's
Living Oceans: Charting a Course for Sea Change" includes
recommendations for protecting and restoring U.S. coastlines and
ocean environments. See www.pewoceans.org.
Mike
Sato said that DNR will hold a meeting tonight on its Aquatics
Reserve Program at the Squalicum boathouse in Bellingham Harbor;
he noted that DNR's outreach has been an interesting process.
Minutes:
Minutes of the 5/7/03 meeting were approved with the following
corrections: on page 1, Tom McMillen was absent, not present;
and on page 3, under "NWSC," 2nd , the 1st sentence
was revised to read "Mary said the derelict gear removal
project may apply for NFWS funding in the amount of $175,000-$200,000."
Review
of the minutes of the 5/21/03 meeting on Lopez Island was tabled
until next meeting.
Guest
Speaker: Bob Everett, Regional Director of the Washington Department
of Fish and Wildlife (WDFW) addressed two issues: harvest and
the hydraulic permit process. Jim reported that at yesterday's
meeting with the BOCC on the San Juan County Marine Stewardship
Plan, Commissioner John Evans said that the proposal does not
do enough to address over-harvesting of resources. Commissioners
Nielsen and Miller directed the MRC to "go for it."
Jim distributed copies of his notes from the meeting as well as
the draft document, "Potential Zoning Scheme for San Juan
County Marine Stewardship Area," which includes a zoning
map and a second map marking eelgrass beds, smelt spawn sites,
seabird sites, public lands, etc.
Bob
discussed WDFW's resources and data management strategies, noting
that there are four main agency divisions: (1) fisheries management
(representing half of the agency's resources, about 75% of which
is for salmon management), including hatcheries and harvest; (2)
wildlife program, including terrestrial and non-fish aquatic species;
(3) enforcement, based out of the La Conner office;
(4) habitat program, which includes permitting, regulatory review,
impacts to wildlife, and mitigation. Field implementation is based
out of the Mill Creek office.
Harvest:
Jim said that there seems to be growing use of the concept of
"fishing down the food chain" and he asked if WDFW is
making any attempt at a holistic approach. Bob distributed copies
of NOAA's recent PowerPoint presentation, "Puget Sound Harvest:
Status of ESA and NEPA Review." He said both Hood Canal summer-run
chum and Puget Sound chinook were listed under the Endangered
Species Act (ESA) in 1999. Bob will pass on to Jim a map of harvest
management areas which is a way to demonstrate and record harvest
using "catch areas." San Juan County is catch area #7.
Bob
discussed the issue of whether there could be any harvest of the
ESA-listed salmon species and said that difficulties arise because
of mixed stocks and the fact that attempts to target one species
leads to incidental catch of other species. WDFW has, therefore,
developed harvest seasons to minimize or avoid impacts to chinook.
The ongoing NEPA process will look at impacts.
Bob
said that fisheries are restricted in time and space to reduce
impacts to chinook and, generally, management is science-based.
He noted that state allocation between commercial and sport fishing
harvest is up for debate and although it requires a judgment call,
the end result should not ignore the science.
Kit
reiterated that in terms of commercial vs somebody else's catch,
"a dead fish is a dead fish." Bob said WDFW's Biennial
Report (available both online and from the Olympia office) has
4-5 years of harvest information. The report puts a value on Washington's
commercial (non-tribal) fisheries, which were given $92 million
value for year 2000. Kit said the tribes are reluctant to put
a monetary value on fisheries since ceremonial subsistence and
commercial management are subject to slightly different rules
fisheries have non-quantifiable cultural, ceremonial, and susbsistence
value as well as commercial value and because some feel that putting
a value on a treaty right implies it could be sold, which it cannot.
Skeeter Lowe said that the WDFW data is skewed, since only harvest
from boats is measured and does not include restaurants, etc.;
he suggested that the values be multiplied by four.
Kevin
asked if the presence and abundance of forage fish have anything
to do with the salmon data. Kit emphasized that forage fish are
really important to the issue. Bob said that the technical details
were difficult.
Hydraulics
Project Approval (HPA): Bob said the "Gold & Fish"
permit, a sample of which he circulated for review, is an example
of a programmatic permit. He also pointed out that a significant
downsizing of the agency is expected due to reduced funding. In
terms of docks and bulkheads, he said that maintenance, but probably
not construction, requires a permit. Local governments and others,
Bob said, have direct access to WDFW databases (inventory, etc.);
also, remote sensing data is being shared and the Mill Creek office
will be generating maps. More information is available on the
webpage: www.wa.gov/wdfw.
Rich
asked whether seals and orcas, for example, were considered part
of the salmon equation. Bob said that modeling tries to account
for such natural mortality (including ocean conditions). Kit said
that there is no allocation for whales and seals but the number
of salmon returning to rivers can be assessed. Kevin asked if
nearshore habitat and eelgrass were considered and Kit said that
other state agencies have control. Bob added that no one agency
has control over habitat.
Kevin
said that the reconstruction of bulkheads might be a way for WDFW
to have influence. He noted that HPA's are almost always approved;
Bob said that WDFW works to minimize and mitigate project impacts
but does not deny work. Laura wondered how comprehensive risk
assessment analysis was inasmuch as agencies/processes overlap.
Bob said the only habitat tool is the HPA. He said the hydraulic
code has limitations and that even when a permit is denied, there
are appeal rights. Land use decisions are delegated to local level
jurisdiction.
Terrie
asked if there is any evidence that the HPA program is successful,
either in fish management
or shoreline management. Bob said that salmon numbers are record
high and with harvest reductions there is a lower carrying capacity
than 100+ years ago. Tina asked who could be campaigned to get
WDFW to get more involved and Bob suggested himself as the agency
local representative, as well
as the agency Director and the Chair of the Fish & Wildlife
Commission.
MPA
Program: Jim asked for ideas for a letter of intent for NWSC 2004
grant funding. Suggestions made after the Lopez meeting were:
(1) to use the Great Barrier Reef zonation model; (2) to overlay
existing resource protection with human impacts in the area to
determine protection need gaps (proposed by Kit); (3) to develop
a community-based process (suggested by Russel Barsh). After extensive
discussion, there was consensus that a zonal approach could be
applied to the whole county with community involvement. Jim will
draft a letter of intent for member email review and input.
New/Old
Business:
Motion: Rich moved, and Mary seconded, that the admin grant ($10,000)
be authorized as outlined by Laura. The motion was approved unanimously.
Dennis
accepted his continued appointment as the alternate representative
to NWSC.
Rich
asked that the MRC consider endorsement of the "Be Whale
Wise" guidelines; the issue was tabled to the next meeting.
Kari requested that the committee please spend time next meeting
on whale issues, pointing out that it is critical for the county
to take action.
The
next meeting on June 18th will be held in Friday Harbor (not on
Stuart as had been announced). Jim distributed copies of a new
MRC meeting schedule for 2003.
The
meeting was adjourned at 10:30 a.m.
Submitted
by Helen Venada
