To all:

This is a little long winded, but please read it all the way through. You may learn something new!

Salmo

Please don't take what I have to say personally on the issues about the Fishery Technical Committee below. We both have very strong and different opinions on this issue, and it does not affect on our personal friendship.

You say;
Can you point that number out, and where that figure is stated in the "Settlement Agreement"?

The past agreements with Tacoma, required them to produce 191,100 pounds of healthy juveniles to achieve a return goal of 38, 600 adults (sea run cutthroat and steelhead combined). These figures were to be verified by punch card and creel check data. Can you tell us where these numbers are stated in the settlement agreement? What documents support your assertion that the Cowlitz Trout Hatchery is producing enough smolts to equal 12,000 retuning adult steelhead?


Smalma, you say the WDFW released;

What site did you find that information on, and is it available through the internet for us to review?


Salmo

I find it strange that you claim that the settlment agreement makes Tacoma committed to provide us with 12,000 steelhead. Are you including summer run with this figure, or are you just counting on late winter run steelhead?

In 2001 the combined production of salmon and steelhead was 748,045 pounds of fish. The new agreement that both WDFW and NMFS have signed on to now reduces the maximum numbers of pounds to 650,000 pounds per year! The agreement specifically states; "The total production level within the remodeled hatchery complex will not exceed 650,000 pounds per year for all stocks…"

That's a reduction of fish production of 98,045 pounds of fish That's a lot of fish that won't be coming back!

Since you are the "expert" and you are on the "secret" Fishery Technical Committee (s- FTC) who holds the "secret meetings" that are "intentionally being kelp private and closed to the public", you should be able to explain to this board exactly what species, and brood timing you guys are deciding to cut out! It's been three years now since our state and federal agencies had signed the "agreement" and they have had more then enough time to let this information out so that the public can see what the hell they are doing!

I have seen the new "Public Information Management Plan" (PIMP) that you guys have just created, and it is a fricten joke! The plan was only made to cover your guys rear from being in violation of both the Washington pubic meeting act, and the Federal Avvisory Committee Act- FACA. And your new "cover your a$$" PIMP plan isn't going to hold up in the courts!

Fishery decisions, polices and recommendation are being made by this Committee behind these closed doors and the public has not been afforded any opportunity to be present when you guys (the s- FCT) are developing "your own recommendations" on what "you guys" think is best for the public and the Cowlitz. Those meetings are being held against, and are in violation of the rules of the Washington's "public meetings rules" and can clearly be seen as such a violation under the "Open Records & Open meetings rules".

If you, or anyone else has any doubt whatsoever, about these meeting being illegal, you can go to; http://www.atg.wa.gov/records/chapter1.shtml#1.1
and make up our own mind!

I would find it hard to believe that there is a single member on this board (except maybe you Salmo) that would believe that these secret FTC meeting are being held legally once they have read what the Attorney General has to say about these kinds of meetings.

Besides the state and Tacoma being in violation, both NMFS and USFWS (federal agencies) are also in violation of Federal Advisory Committee Act (FACA).

As you know Salmo, we have always stated that the "FTC" was an illegal acting committee that was made by the signees in the Settlement, and it legality is now pending and awaiting a decision from the 9th Circuit Court of Appeals.

The simple rules listed below tell us that these "private/secret" FTC meetings must remain open to the public! http://www.redlodgeclearinghouse.org/legislation/faca3.html

FACA: Implementation/Procedures;

Committee Management and Operations
Open Process

One of the main goals of FACA was to give the public the opportunity to participate actively in the federal government's decision-making process. Allowing open meetings and input from the public is very important in furthering this goal. While actual membership on committees is limited, any member of the public is allowed to either speak to the committee or file a written statement with the committee. Most advisory committee meetings, even those held by telephone or by other electronic means, must be open to the public and scheduled at a reasonably accessible location and a convenient time.

Notice of meetings
In order to allow the public the time to attend meetings, adequate notice must be given. Advisory committees must publish notice of all committee meetings in the Federal Register at least 15 calendar days before the meeting occurs. The notice must include the time, date, place, and purpose of the meeting, a summary of the agenda, and the name and phone number of the agency contact person.

Record keeping
FACA requires detailed and thorough record keeping in order to keep the public informed and to allow for review of every committee's work. FACA committees must keep detailed minutes of each committee meeting, including any closed meetings, and copies of any documents it uses or issues. The public must have immediate access to all committee records without having to file requests for the documents.

FACA Charters

Creating Committees
Congress also wanted to limit the potential number of official advisory committees, so FACA committees can only be created by an agency when they are essential to the agency's performance of a legal duty or responsibility. Before committees can be set up, high-level officials within the sponsoring agency must review and approve the request, and the agency must consult with the General Services Administration (GSA), which has oversight of FACA advisory committees. This procedural requirement helps account for the substantial delays that may arise when it is determined that an advisory group must comply with FACA. Once a committee is approved, the sponsoring agency prepares a charter outlining the committee's mission and specific duties and forwards it to the GSA for final review. The committee cannot begin operation until the agency publishes notice of the committee in the Federal Register and files the approved charter with Congress.

Renewing Committees
The requirements for renewing an advisory committee after its scheduled termination are very similar to the requirements for creating an advisory committee.

Terminating Committees
An advisory committee usually automatically terminates two years after it is established, unless a statute authorizing the committee specifically provides for a different duration. In addition, the president or agency head can terminate the advisory committee earlier if he or she determines that the committee has fulfilled its purpose, it is no longer carrying out its purpose, or that the cost of operation is too much relative to the benefits of the committee.

Subcommittees and Contractors
Advisory committees can create subcommittees to assist them. These subcommittees can include individuals that are not members of the main committee, but the subcommittees must be approved by the agency that created the parent committee. Generally, subcommittees that report to a parent advisory committee are not subject to FACA rules unless they provide advice or recommendations directly to the federal agency. Agencies can also hire contractors to give them advice, and these contractors are not generally subject to FACA rules. For example, the U.S. Forest Service hired the Pinchot Institute for Conservation to coordinate multi-party monitoring of stewardship contracting pilot projects. The federal, regional, and local monitoring groups used in this process advise the contractor and the contractor advises the Forest Service -- all outside the constraints of FACA.

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There is no reasonable reason in the world for WDFW, NMSF, WDOE, Tacoma, USFWS, Trout Unlimited and American Rivers to hold these private secret FTC fishery meetings where major decisions and recommendation will be given that will have major effects on our fishery management, and the production of fish in the Cowlitz River.

The public and sport fishermen will not be allowed to see, hear, or make any comments until you guys have made all your "deals" and have covered "all of your rear ends" so that the public won't try to hang the whole group!

This is how the "FTC" will be controling the future of our fisheries on the Cowlitz River:

FTC:
To assist in the implementation of the terms of this Agreement, the Parties agree to create the Fisheries Technical Committee (“FTC”).

The FTC shall include one representative from each of the following Parties to this Agreement: Tacoma, NMFS, USFWS, WDFW, WDOE and the Yakama Nation; and one representative from the Parties included in the Conservation Groups ( American Rivers/ Trout Unlimited). Agency representatives will be aquatic scientists. The representatives of the Yakama Nation and the Conservation Groups will be either aquatic scientists or persons with extensive knowledge of the Cowlitz River basin.

Draft plans, reports and recommendations developed by the FTC shall be provided to all Parties for review and comment. Parties will also be provided with final products of the FTC.

The FTC shall meet as deemed necessary by its members, but at least annually (it's really every month). Tacoma shall be responsible for convening the FTC, including providing adequate notice to all FTC members and funding basic administrative services in support of the FTC’s efforts.

(Read this very closely )

The FTC shall be responsible for making recommendations on actions to maximize the effectiveness of fisheries mitigation, protection, and enhancement measures. Such recommendations will include, but are not limited to: the plan for phasing in the remodeled hatchery complex described in Article 7, the hatchery and fish management plan described in Article 6, the disease management plan described in Article 8, assessment of the progress towards upstream passage triggers as described in Article 3, assessment of progress toward reaching downstream passage objectives and measures as may be necessary to achieve such objectives as described in Articles 1 and 2, review of instream flows as described in Article 15, study protocols and goals in support of such plans and assessments, and such adaptive management recommendations as may be indicated by monitoring and evaluation measures. Recommendations of the FTC shall be in writing.

The FTC shall develop its own operating rules and procedures, emphasizing the importance of developing a consensus among FTC representatives on fishery measures. When making recommendations, the FTC will operate by consensus when possible or by majority vote.

Where an Agency has prescriptive and mandatory conditioning authority over fisheries or instream flow issues, the FTC will coordinate and convey information to the appropriate decision-making Agency. Where no Agency has prescriptive or mandatory conditioning authority, the FTC will make recommendations to Tacoma, who will convey a subsequent plan to FERC and provide a copy of such plan to the FTC.

For recommendations made directly to Tacoma, Tacoma shall follow the recommendations of the FTC unless it can establish good cause for rejecting or modifying such recommendations. Should Tacoma reject or modify such recommendations, it must notify the FTC in writing within 30 days of receiving the recommendations and state the reasons for rejecting or modifying such recommendations. If the dispute is not resolved, the positions of both the licensee and the FTC shall be provided as documentation of consultation in all FERC filings.

This committee (the FTC) clearly violates both state and federal laws by not making their meeting open to the public!

The public must be present to voice their concerns before these guys start cutting off our fishing, and future opportunities to catch fish on the Cowlitz. So far, for three years now, that has not occurred.

It will be interesting to see what the courts rule on the alleged violation of FACA and the Fishery Technical Committee that you are now a part of.


Cowlitzfisherman