Minutes
November
5, 2003
Members Present: Kelley Balcomb-Bartok, Peter Fromm, David Hoopes,
David Loyd, Kit Rawson,
Jim Slocomb, Dennis Willows
Absent:
Mike Bertrand, Brian Calvert, Tim Carpenter, Terrie Klinger, Mary
Masters, Rich Osborne,
Kevin Ranker
Guests:
Laura Arnold, Mark Billington, Susan Bucknell, Ryan Drum, Jody
Kennedy, Kari Koski,
Joseph McKenna-Smith, Mike Sato, Francine Shaw, Tina Whitman
Guest
speaker: Mike McHugh of the Tulalip Tribes
Acting
Chair, David Loyd, called the meeting to order at 8:35 a.m. in
the Community Room at Islanders' Bank, Friday Harbor. He welcomed
Joseph McKenna-Smith and Francine Shaw. Joseph introduced himself
as Director and Francine Shaw as the Deputy Director of the newly-organized
SJC Community Development and Planning Department. Joseph said
that one or both the other would be attending MRC meetings on
a regular basis. He added that he recognizes that hiring a contracted
MRC coordinator as soon as possible is critical for the committee's
work and hopes to get the job notice posted next week. The selection
process, he said, includes application review followed by interview
by a panel that could include MRC members. He also offered the
MRC the opportunity to review the selection criteria.
Joseph
invited MRC members to phone or drop in to talk to him or Francine
at any time. He said that the 2004 MRC budget is likely to be
at the same funding level as now.
Minutes:
Minutes of the 10/15/03 meeting were approved as read, with Jim
Slocomb, who was not in attendance, abstaining.
Guest
speaker:
David Loyd welcomed Mike McHugh, complimenting the Tulalip on
their intention to study a fishery before considering harvest.
Mike explained that the Tulalip have not historically had a presence
in the urchin fishery but there are now two divers who are interested.
There is concern that current stock assessment information is
limited, there has been no monitoring, and there is no history
of harvest management in the San Juans. Mike said the Tribes are
interested in a slow entry and in quality of product, more than
quantity; they expect to micro-manage a small section of the green
urchin fishery (mostly non-treaty). He said that rumor has it
that, historically, the fishery has crashed once or twice..
Stocks
are now being managed at a 15% reduction level as a conservation
measure. The Tulalip are looking to allow the contracted divers
to harvest 10-20,000 pounds which equals 5% of the regional quota
shared with 6 or 7 tribes. Tulalip is anti-trolling trawling and
want to look at small systems, coupling selective harvest with
a great product, possibly in a two-month entry for the first start-up
year, which would focus on the upper end of Admiralty Inlet and
areas around Lopez Island and begin around Thanksgiving. Mike
noted that harvest in the red urchin fishery is not financially
feasible.
Mike
said the harvesters will assist in data collection and mapping,
noting that there is a good ratio of harvesters to biologists.
He sees this effort as a way to educate people on the fishery
and is interested in working with any area groups in sharing stock
assessment data. Mike said that high on the list for Tulalip is
to close areas for recovery as needed. He said the biomass is
not indicative of product quality.
Dennis
noted that Pfeister and Bradbury's study of five years ago showed
that harvest had already taken the population down to 25% of historical
levels. Mike said that the Tulalips' overriding goal is to use
available funds to assure good management. The state will open
the non-treaty urchin fishery in the San Juans at a 50/50 share.
There was discussion about the abalone population here. Mike said
that divers report abalone are not there. Dennis said that a study
of abalone size and number, at 5-7 index sites over time, showed
that the count was down from substantial numbers to zero or nearly
zero. He pointed out that this is a system issue; disappearance
may be due to the harvesting of larger ones that provided a protective
canopy for small ones. Mike said that there is no data on geoducks
in the San Juans and that sea cucumbers are underutilized data
on the tribal side. Population surveys (including density, location,
habitat, associated microalgae) start next week for central Sound.
Mike pointed out that the tribes tag their crab gear for retrieval,
while sportfishermen typically do not.
New/Old
Business:.
Aquaculture
Policy:
David Hoopes discussed the options suggested in his draft amendments--one,
being to tighten existing regulations, and the other to prohibit
finfish net pens in the San Juan Islands. It was suggested that
more legal research is needed into Washington state laws and Whatcom
County's recent resolution to ban finfish net pens. David noted
that the federal government is now trying to foster aquaculture
throughout the entire EEZ (i.e. up to 200 miles offshore). A sub-committee
to do further research on this issue (Jim, Laura, Kit, and David
Hoopes) will report at the next meeting.
Marine
Stewardship Area proposal:
Jim suggested that this is the time to make any needed changes
to the draft resolution and position paper on the MSA proposal
before submitting them to the BOCC.
He
said that there's a need for more human use/ water use data (e.g.
boat traffic, boat moorage, sportfishing, etc.). Jim suggested
that a proposed work plan item related to the MSA proposal be
partnering to seek funding for a credible study in this area.
Kit agreed that understanding use goes along with understanding
the resource. David Loyd said an MRC goal should be to develop
an atlas of marine use in the San Juans. Kari suggested partnering
with Sea Doc and NOAA that are doing boat counts by satellite
and that state parks has collected boat use data.
Jim
said this work plan item should focus on existing documents and
how we steward the stewardship effort once it's been handed off.
He said he will email the current form of the two-phase proposal
and draft resolution, noting that members' personal outreach with
representatives of local jurisdictions and other stakeholder groups
could help provide education and facilitate the process.
A
summary of survey results will be prepared for the BOCC.
David
Loyd read a mission statement developed at the NWSC meeting to
define stewardship in the San Juans:
"Bring all users to an understanding of their role and responsibility
within the marine ecological system so that we will know our waters...the
science, tradition, and culture."
Peter
added that people on the Islands and on the mainland are also
"users" who can impact the marine ecosystem.
2004
Work Plan:
David outlined elements of the work plan including outreach, data
collection/mapping, water quality; he will provide hardcopies
on these issues for the next meeting. He said that at the recent
MRC conference Betsy Peabody re-introduced presented the idea
of an abalone recovery effort in the San Juans. [Betsy spoke on
a proposal by Puget Sound Restoration Fund for pinto abalone enhancement
at the 6/20/01 MRC meeting.] Dennis said that re-introduction
is not the same as recovery. David suggested that this be a future
work plan item.
Peter
suggested that, rather than presenting a statement to the BOCC
on a balloon ban, that it first be presented, along with an informational
packet, to the other MRC's and the NWSC so that it could become
a state-wide effort.
It was agreed that a goal for the next meeting is to finalize
the MSA proposal documents and the 2004 work plan proposal for
presentation to the BOCC.
David
Loyd said that the letter of concern on the Georgia Strait pipeline
crossing has been sent.
There
was discussion on the role of the contracted MRC coordinator vs
county/MRC liaison. Jim said that both are needed to address the
quantity of work that lies ahead. It was agreed that there was
value in the liaison being an MRC member, not just an observer.
David said that the NWSC will be evaluated for re-funding in January
and the content of MRC webpages will be taken into account; it
was agreed that updating and maintaining the website is a priority.
Kit
will incorporate MRC members' edits into his draft letter to WADFW
in support of the proposal to close directed fishing for rockfish
in Puget Sound and the Strait of Juan de Fuca. The letter will
then be sent to Jim for submission to the BOCC for signature and
trasmittal to WDFW.
Outreach:
Laura suggested that there be a sign up list at the beginning
of every meeting for those who are interested in receiving regular
meeting notices.
Kari
said that Soundwatch will be re-doing its brochure soon and there
is some grant money available for adding layers on maps of counties
in the region. Tina said that the ecological impact of regional
MRC work is missing in NWSC reports. David Loyd said there is
a national effort to bring herring back to the area. Jim said
there is a new round of applications to DFO to seine surf smelt,
sand lance, ulikan, eulachon, and herring for feed in fish farms;
he noted that the South American fisheries are fished out. David
Hoopes said that four pounds of forage fish are required to raise
one pound of farmed Atlantic salmon.
The
meeting was adjourned at 10:30 a.m.
Submitted
by Helen Venada
