Originally Posted By: Geoduck


WDFW Commission Mission Statement: To preserve, protect and perpetuate fish, wildlife and ecosystems while providing sustainable fish and wildlife recreational and commercial opportunities. (see https://wdfw.wa.gov/about/mission_goals.html)

Doesn't seem like they're getting it done.

I thought the idea was to insulate management decisions from politics so that science based management can prevail. That's not what's happening.

Heck, they can't even seem to fire WDFW staff when they directly usurp commission responsibilities (see http://www.piscatorialpursuits.com/forum...Sound_Fish.html)

While its not clear exactly how bad NOF will be this year, the long term trajectory is pretty clear.

Am I missing something or is it time to find a different management model for WDFW?


1. The Commission has the authority to hire and fire the Director. It does however require a majority vote, and most probably a chain of administrative procedures like performance evaluations. Those things take time. While there are many who want to hold the Senior Staff at WDFW responsible for failure to supervise (the buck stops at the top), there are some who may want to pardon. The best way forward is to let all the Commissioners know where you stand on the issue.

2. There have already been bills submitted to reduce the Commission to an advisory board. Having the Commission dis-banded or worse yet, reduced to an advisory role would be a catastrophe! Remember, The Deputy Chair of the Commission publicly scolded Director Unsworth on his handling of the PSCSHP. It was not the Commission's fault that the Director intentionally removed them from any oversight of the plan. That responsibility rests solely on Director Unsworth and his Deputy for Fish Management.

3. The cancer in this plan was lack of transparency, and that cancer is spread from the North of Falcon. We MUST support and encourage the Commission to convert the NOF policy to a WAC (Washington Administrative Code) and put language in the WAC that gives stringent supervision over the department and mandates having full transparency in all negotiations conducted by the WDFW.
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"Forgiveness is between them and God. My job is to arrange the meeting."

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