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HomeMy WebLinkAboutJune 2026 NPC MRC First DRAFT Meeting Summary NPC MRC 6/16/2026 DRAFT Meeting Summary 1 June 16, 2026 NPC MRC Draft Meeting Summary The Tuesday, June 16, 2026 NPC MRC meeting took place at the Peninsula College campus in Forks, Washington and by Zoom connection from 4:00 PM to 6:00 PM. Appointed committee members present at the meeting were Maggie Bockart (Hoh Tribe Representative), Eileen Cooney (Citizen Representative, Jefferson County – Economic Groups), Wendy Feltham (Citizen Representative, Jefferson County – Scientific Community), Rod Fleck (City of Forks), John Hunter (Citizen Representative, Clallam County - Conservation / Environmental Groups), Tami Pokorny (Jefferson County Representative and NPC MRC Co-coordinator), Alice Ryan (Citizen Representative, Clallam County – Recreational Groups), and Jill Silver (Citizen Representative, Jefferson County– Conservation/Environmental Groups). A quorum was established at the meeting. Rebekah Brooks (Rebekah Brooks Contracting), Malissa J (member of the public), Isaiah Jackson (Quileute Tribal School [QTS] high school graduate), Megan Juran (Washington CoastSavers), Anna Geffre (North Pacific Coast Lead Entity), Chase O’Neil (Clallam County and NPC MRC Co-coordinator), Fred Sharpe (Templeton Whale SETI Team; Alaska Whale Foundation), Christine VanDeen (Olympic Coast National Marine Sanctuary), and Chris Waldbillig (Washington Department of Fish and Wildlife [WDFW] and Coastal MRC Coordinator) were also in attendance. Introductions Public Comments Wendy Feltham shared an article earlier regarding the administration’s order that the National Science Foundation (NSF) dismantle a $368 million ocean observation system. She said that since then, a group of democratic senators have asked the NSF to reverse course and lawmakers of the House have accused the NSF of acting illegally. Additions to and Approval of the Agenda John Hunter moved to approve the June 2026 NPC MRC Agenda; Rod Fleck seconded. The motion passed by consensus. Approval of the April NPC MRC Summary Alice Ryan moved to approve the April NPC MRC Summary; Tami Pokorny seconded. The motion passed by consensus. The May NPC MRC Meeting had no quorum, so it was technically a workshop without requiring approved minutes. NPC MRC 6/16/2026 DRAFT Meeting Summary 2 Announcements John Hunter announced that he was relocating to be near family and would be retiring from the NPC MRC. The group thanked him for his years of service on the Committee. Old Business There was no old business. New Business Stories from the 2026 Remotely Operated Vehicle (ROV) Competition Alice Ryan, middle and high school science teacher at QTS, gave a presentation to dive deeper into the Competition. It was a monumental year for QTS and the Competition because a team competed for the first time at the Ranger level and it was a QTS team. There were three teams from QTS: Kraken Aqua Bulb (Ranger level), Salty Eagles (Scout level), and the Aquatic Innovators (Scout level). Kraken Aqua Bulb was the first Ranger level team for the Olympic Coast Marine Advanced Technology Education (MATE) ROV Competition. The Ranger level is the highest level for high school and lower college students and generally teams will stay at this level for a few years. Made up of sixth to tenth grade students, Kraken Aqua Bulb won the Team Spirit Award against all teams and placed seventh overall in the competition. The Salty Eagles competed in Forks at the Scout level, and won awards for Design Elegance, Top Poster, Excellence in Organization, and third place in the competition. The Aquatic Innovators is the youngest team Alice has ever had, all the students being fifth graders. They competed at the Scout level in Forks and won first place. Alice said that while the Pacific Northwest ROV Competition was a great experience, they still felt their roots were in the Olympic Coast ROV Competition. Christine VanDeen added that due to staffing changes and other challenges, the Olympic Coast ROV Competition was a small one this year, with everyone competing at the Scout level. There was a new school this year: Steven’s Middle School from Port Angeles. Alice Ryan received the Mentor of the Year Award and is the first and only Olympic Coast educator to take a team to the Ranger level. Next year, they hope to have Quinault and Tahola schools back. Christine said that the Forks team has no active mentor currently. Alice said that she was happy to continue to be the mentor for the QTS students. The program has had a huge impact on the students, and she has seen the self-esteem of the students increase over the last ten years as they have earned accomplishments and experienced more opportunities. Tami Pokorny asked about ways to encourage a local mentor for the Forks team. Christine and Alice noted that the mentor can be community member, not just a teacher, but it is an unpaid volunteer position. Alice added that she would like to involve the homeschool community as well. Discussion followed on outreach ideas; Tami suggested reaching out to the Clallam MRC for involvement and Christine noted that help with transportation costs would be appreciated. Revitalization of Quileute Traditional Ecological Knowledge using Kʷá·la (Camas) Planting Success in Different Levels of a School Yard Stormwater Basin Isaiah (Zaya) Jackson, QTS high school graduate, presented his senior science and engineering fair project, which involved planting Kʷá·la (camas) to see if it would grow in a stormwater basin, and determining what part of the basin it grew best in. Revitalization of Kʷá·la is important because it brings back the cultural and traditional ways of the Quileute People. Zaya’s hypothesis was that if Kʷá·la thrives in glacial bogs, then it should grow best in the sloped (middle) section of the stormwater runoff basin because it would receive a lot of water there, but the water should not pool for too long. NPC MRC 6/16/2026 DRAFT Meeting Summary 3 Other traditional plants of the Quileute People include bog cranberries and labrador tea. White camas flowers are deadly and also grow in nearby areas. The cultural significance of Kʷá·la includes harvesting it as a valued food source and natural sweetener, and using the flowers and stems to dye cedar, wood, and hide. Zaya hopes to try to pull their culture back into their classrooms and modern life before elders pass and to revitalize the Quileute traditional ecological knowledge. The stormwater infiltration basin was the location used for growing Kʷá·la, at six different planting spots, with each spot holding four bulbs. In addition to those 24 plants, 100 were planted last year and 160 were planted this year in the middle of the basin. Other traditional plants have been planted here too, including labrador tea, bog cranberries, red flowering currants, traditional strawberries, and snow berries. The stormwater runoff basin was believed to create a good habitat for Kʷá·la as it is similar to where they harvest already. Pros for using the stormwater runoff basin included: stormwater runoff basins exist in many schools, so if this project was successful the knowledge could be applied to other schools for revitalization programs; and Kʷá·la can also be used to teach stewardship and traditional ecological knowledge so that it is not lost. Cons included: the stormwater basin is located near roads and parking lots, so the harvested plants may not be edible, but could be used for dyeing and weaving. Zaya said he planned to pass the Kʷá·la project on to a younger student so that it could progress, and additional steps included consulting a college professor about conducting tests for toxicology. The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Association (NOAA) Ocean Guardian School supplied the plants and other project support. Zaya’s main research question was: Where would Kʷá·la grow the best in the stormwater runoff basin? He hypothesized that it would be in the middle of the basin but was surprised to find that it grew best in the upper location with a gravelly habitat. The three main levels were: • The low level: expected to retain more visible water over a longer period, but they found that the location near the school only did so for short bursts right after heavy rain. The location on the roadside retained water over very long periods, sometimes up to weeks at a time. • The medium level: expected to have the best growth because it was not up in the gravel but not submerged for too long either. However, although this area was almost always damp in the rainy season, at no time was it under water. • The high levels: mostly gravel and at two plot locations, the one toward the road being almost all gravel on top, and the one near the school having some visible soil between the gravel. This area saw the most Kʷá·la growth. Methodology and implementation included: • 1: Planting at three levels: dry/rocky, slope/partly wet, and completely submerged. • 2: Weekly rainfall monitoring using scientific rain gages to track basin inputs. • 3: Observing growth and tracking through scatter plots. Rainfall was measured over time, and growth was plotted in centimeter height over time. In general, the high locations did really well; the Kʷá·la grew there first and best, disproving the hypothesis. Zaya’s observations included clearing as much grass as possible before planting, as in the first weeks of the project, it was hard to find camas. He found that the gravel kept grass and other plants away. The standing water reduced growth, and bugs and weed eater use along the roadside strongly affected plant growth. Group discussion followed on prairie restoration. Washington CoastSavers Update Megan Juran, CoastSavers Coordinator, announced that she was working with the Olympic National Park to use helicopters to remove large debris. She received approval to move forward from the Park Superintendent, and NPC MRC 6/16/2026 DRAFT Meeting Summary 4 they are currently undergoing an internal review process to finalize documentation. A five-year program is starting next year in partnership with Park, who will manage the helicopter part. They will be using the minimal tool as much as possible, hiking things out. They are also partnering with the Port Townsend Marine Science Center and with Washington’s Department of Natural Resources. Recent beach cleanups removed 1,500 pounds out of the Ozette Triangle and 500 pounds from Scott’s Bluff. In working with the Park, Megan is trying to encourage them to renew their partnership with the WA CoastSavers for annual beach cleanups. CoastSavers was started to coordinate the annual beach cleanups, and she is hoping to bring that teamwork back. They received funding from NOAA’s National Marine Fisheries Service to continue cleanup support in Neah Bay. A cleanup event on the Long Beach Peninsula is scheduled for the July 4th weekend. Reallocation Process for 25-27 Turned Back Funds Tami Pokorny explained that the funding that was returned by Elizabeth Davis is a little over $10,000. A potential project can be sponsored by an NPC MRC member or partner. Tami suggested avoiding the request for proposals process, as it is a lot of work and would delay the start. Maggie Bockart asked about rolling the funding into the next biennium; Tami explained that was not an option. The group agreed that sending the notice out to the NPC MRC list serve was appropriate. Wendy Feltham made a motion to solicit projects for just under $10,000 through the NPC MRC email list serve, to be reviewed on a short timeline with selection in August and using the normal application process; Jill Silver seconded. The motion passed by consensus. *Tami will confirm that there is no conflict with the bylaws. River and Ocean Film Festival Planning Ian Miller was unable to attend tonight’s meeting, but Tami Pokorny announced that any films that were available to show without cost could be submitted, including historical videos that are publicly available. Film submittals total about 70 minutes so far. *Megan Juran said she would send a link to Ian for a video from William Douglas about the area that is now Olympic National Park. Wendy Feltham sent some Port Townsend organizations to Ian for possible advertising sources; everyone responded positively and started advertising for the event. See the updated Film Festival website for more information. Current Projects and Funding Update This was addressed with Megan Juran’s update on Washington CoastSavers. Updates Coast Program MRC Update Chris Waldbillig had no major updates but requested the plan for the returned funds as soon as possible. He suggested reaching out to the other Coastal MRCs if there were no projects put forward. Washington Coastal Marine Advisory Council (WCMAC) The last meeting was held in Forks on 6/3/26. Rod Fleck was unable to attend and had no update. The agenda and other WCMAC meeting materials can be found on the Ecology website. Olympic Coast National Marine Sanctuary Advisory Council The last meeting was held in Ocean Shores on 5/14/26. Chris Butler-Minor was not present for an update. West Coast Ocean Alliance Jennifer Hagen was not present for an update. NPC MRC 6/16/2026 DRAFT Meeting Summary 5 Invasive European Green Crab There was nothing new to report. Marine Debris This item was addressed under Megan Juran’s update on Washington CoastSavers. Climate/Fossil Fuels Related There was nothing new to report. Administrative and Fiscal Agent Update There was nothing new to report. Next Agenda (July 21, 2026): The next NPC MRC Meeting will be held on 7/21/26. Send any agenda items to Tami Pokorny. There may also be recruitment for vacant seats. Alice Ryan noted that she would like to transfer to the education seat when John Hunter vacated it. Public Comments/General The group commented that they would miss John Hunter but supported him in his move to be near family in Vancouver, Washington. Adjourn at 6:00 PM Action Items: *Tami Pokorny will confirm that there is no conflict with the bylaws regarding the reallocation process. *Megan Juran said she would send a link to Ian Miller for a video from William Douglas about the area that is now Olympic National Park. Meeting summary prepared by Rebekah Brooks (Rebekah Brooks Contracting).