Melanie and I spoke at the meeting this morning as we had scheduled the morning session for public comment before a separate public session was put in for Greys' Harbor in the afternoon.
I spoke on the lack of state concern for terminal stocks when repeatedly two fish limits are put into place in the ocean after low catch of Chinook towards quota every summer, and that is contrary to current terminal fishery problems.
I emphasized that this is wrong as it pits terminal fishery groups against each other fighting over scraps left over. I commented on lack of state backbone to stand up for an "honest' 50% for state residents.
I was asked by Brad Smith (a commercial stooge if I ever heard one!) if I was aware of record catches in the Columbia and if I attended n o f meetings, I explained that time constraints due to attending Greys Harbor meetings kept me from attending and that my impressions from research and other fishermen who had attended that N O F was seriously broken in that Alaska and Canada continually take out terminal stocks with no concern for actual run return numbers. He countered with we have more pressing problems then fishing mixed stocks in the ocean, didn't I know that Alaska and Canada want more of our Columbia River fish? More smoke and mirrors from a commercial flunky.SCREW THEM ALL!
Melanie spoke of the lack of timely shut down of all fishing in Greys Harbor until it was too late, and and that the 4/3 plan was working as we caught and released a significant number of kings and it looked like we would meet Chinook escapement this year.
Good luck to all that attend, a real stacked deck against us this time. Bob R

bob r/Melanie:

Thanks for your input in the morning. Afternoon had 9 or 10 sportsmen, 0 on the NT side.

WDFW covered their butts, admitted that WDFW/QIN working relationship was "strained".

Commission asked some questions about how to get more fish "up river" for conservation, BEFORE a full blown marine and net fishery takes place, much like happens in Alaska. Steve Thiefeld's comment "I'll have to think about that."

4/3 is good.......just low water and scheduled netting, hurt this year.