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HomeMy WebLinkAbout20150616 FINAL NPC MRC MinutesNPC MRC 6/16/2015 FINAL Meeting Summary 1 June 16, 2015 NPC MRC 1st Final Meeting Summary The June 16, 2015 NPC MRC meeting took place at the ONRC Social Hall at 1455 Forks Avenue, Forks, WA on Tuesday the 16th from 4:06 to 6:21 PM (00:00:10 on the audio counter). A quorum of voting members was established. Appointed committee members present at the meeting were Steve Allison (Hoh Tribe Rep.), Ed Ansorg (Citizen Rep., Jefferson County), Rod Fleck (City of Forks), John Hunter (Citizen Rep., Clallam County), Katie Krueger (Quileute Tribe Rep.), Deborah Kucipeck (Clallam County Rep.), Ian Miller (Washington SeaGrant), Roy Morris (Citizen Rep., Clallam County), Rich Osborne (Citizen Rep., Clallam County), Tami Pokorny (Jefferson County Rep.), John Richmond (Citizen Rep., Clallam County), Dana Sarff (Makah Tribe Rep.) and Jill Silver (Citizen Rep., Jefferson County). Rebekah Brooks (ONRC), Casey Dennehey (Surfrider), Jennifer Hagen (Quileute Tribe) and Jon Schmidt (WA CoastSavers) were also present. Introductions Public Comments Casey Dennehey announced an upcoming Surfrider Washington Non-Consumptive Coastal and Ocean Recreation Study, a pilot program for training coastal leaders. He suggested applying for the training and/or recommending others. Announcements will be out later in the week with a link to the website. Katie Krueger said that she printed out CoastSavers beach clean-up posters and placed some in the library. Additions to the Agenda There were no additions to the agenda. The agenda was approved by consensus. Approval of the May Meeting Summary Jill Silver moved to approve the May Meeting Summary as written; Katie Krueger seconded. The May Meeting Summary was approved by consensus. Announcements Tami Pokorny announced that Ed Ansorg is officially a member of the NPC MRC. Old Business MRC Summit Update Casey Dennehey confirmed the Summit dates are set for October 15th through 17th and the La Push sites at the Quileute Resort have been reserved. Discussion followed on catering and facility options. Casey will convene another conference call meeting for details. Newsletter Articles Tami Pokorny gave an overview of the newsletter articles; they have all been distributed. Discussion and suggestions followed. NPC MRC 6/16/2015 FINAL Meeting Summary 2 Social Indicators Workshop The group commented on the presentation by WA SeaGrant as part of the Washington Marine Spatial Planning Initiative. Rich Osborne was disappointed by the lack of original data and that the study was not more rigorous. Katie Krueger expressed concern on behalf of the Quileute Tribe that the coastal information is often skewed by Port Angeles and Sequim data. Concern was also voiced over the accuracy of many of the study findings. New Business CoastSavers 2015-17 – Sponsor Request Jon Schmidt requested that he be allowed to make his presentation for Washington CoastSavers today rather than at the July meeting; the NPC MRC approved by consensus. Jon gave a rundown on the last few coastal cleanups and what is planned for the future, particularly what CoastSavers would do with continued NPC MRC funding. He discussed the marine debris symposium he attended in Japan and announced that the November 2014 and all 2015 cleanups have been fully funded using Japanese gift funds. Significant volunteer growth occurred from the ICC September 2014 cleanup to the WCC April 2015 cleanup, which was the largest volunteer cleanup ever with 2022 volunteers and 22 tons of debris recovered. Merging with RainFest this year was also a huge success. Utilizing the gift funding from Japan, CoastSavers was able to add an additional cleanup on July 5th of this year, in partnership with other organizations along the Washington coast from Cape Disappointment to Moclips. Discussion followed on remote beach cleanup efforts and tracking waste to source locations; Ian Miller reminded the group that the NPC MRC-funded Western Washington student survey found that typically well over 50% of beach debris comes from the local community. Jon will submit a full proposal to the NPC MRC soon. MRC Display and FHS Student Presentations John Hunter presented a display of posters from Forks High School students. The students created posters on debris they found on Second Beach and attempted to make scientific claims about what they found. Discussion followed on some of the grant issues with the Forks High School/Feiro student project that was funded by the NPC MRC. Apex Project Idea The group skipped ahead in the agenda to accommodate Jennifer Hagen’s schedule. Jennifer and Tami Pokorny presented their idea of starting a pilot project that would fund meetings between scientists in order to set up citizen science projects. Jennifer discussed the uniqueness of the halibut fishery, which could be an opportunity to use citizens to collect data on what the fish are eating for the purpose of forage fish. Discussion followed on opportunities and limitations and the role of citizen science. Jennifer also announced current high levels of shellfish toxins. Project Scoring and Ranking – Review Materials and Process Tami Pokorny reviewed the 2015 Funding Cycle Calendar: project applications are due on 7/3/15; sponsors present on 7/21/15; NPC MRC comments are due on 7/24/15; revised proposals are due on 8/10/15; NPC MRC score sheets are due on 8/14/15; proposals will be ranked and recommended funding levels will be determined on 8/18/15. Discussion also followed on changes to the score sheet. Plastic Paradise Movie Showing Ian Miller suggested showing the film and opening the event up to the public; Rich Osborne suggested showing it at the MRC Summit. The licensing fee is $300. The group discussed this idea with general approval. September ICC Beach Clean Up – Welcome and Celebration Roy Morris discussed hosting a salmon feed and poetry read at the Rainforest Arts Center as a pilot project for this year in order to build up the volunteer base with a festival event. He requested a series of phone conferences for those who are interested in being involved; the subcommittee would then report back at the NPC MRC 6/16/2015 FINAL Meeting Summary 3 July NPC MRC meeting and the group could decide whether or not to publicize the event in August. *Tami Pokorny will send out an email request for participation. Apex Project Idea This topic was moved up in the agenda. Updates Marine Debris/Ocean Acidification/Hypoxia Biotoxins were discussed earlier in the agenda. John Richmond brought the group’s attention to the energy news website ENENews.com. *Please forward any exceptional marine related news to Tami Pokorny so she can forward to the group. Washington Coast Marine Advisory Council The next meeting is scheduled for June 24th in Montesano. Rod Fleck announced presentations on MSP economic and social indicators; September should see portions of the MSP draft plans; it is due to the legislature by December. Additional information can be found at www.msp.wa.gov. Olympic Coast National Marine Sanctuary Advisory Council The last meeting was held on May 15th in Neah Bay. Tami Pokorny and Rich Osborne gave an overview of the agenda and a brief discussion on the presentations. Administration and Fiscal Agent Update Tami Pokorny said she was working with all the project sponsors and it was going well so far. She also asked the group whether there were any objections to distributing Florian Graner’s NPC MRC-funded film A Seal’s Tour to the south coast. Ian Miller suggested distributing it on DVD in order to have more control about where the film was uploaded, and uploading it in HD to VIMEO; this was met with general consensus. Discussion also followed on whether or not to create an NPC MRC Facebook page since the committee has no real online presence; there was no objection. Next Agenda The next NPC MRC meeting is scheduled for July 21st at ONRC in Forks and will include sponsor project presentations. Public Comments/General There were none. Adjourn The NPC MRC meeting adjourned at 6:21 pm (02:14:55 on the audio counter). Compiled by Rebekah Brooks. Action Items: *Tami Pokorny will send out an email request for participation in the salmon feed/poetry read conference call. *Please forward any exceptional marine related news to Tami Pokorny so she can forward to the group.