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HomeMy WebLinkAbout108 97 ::t~1- ~'5 ,T ftt\chMts --\ö Lìst CI.*C\.C~\ed /0/0)17 .".. ~ STATE OF WASHINGTON COUNTY OF JEFFERSON In the Matter of Supporting the } Creation of the Pacific Salmon Fund} By the Federal Government } Resolution No. 108-97 Whereas, Local governments playa key role in salmon protection and restoration; and, Whereas, Local governments are working cooperatively with community-based watershed organizations within their jurisdictions; and, Whereas, These watershed organizations are protecting and restoring critical habitat for salmon; and, Whereas, These community-based watershed organizations have developed watershed action plans; and, Whereas, These action plans require funding to implement the multitude of necessary on-the- ground projects; and, Whereas, State and local governments are providing funds to help these local groups; and, Whereas, Local governments seek a partnership with the state and federal government to protect and restore salmon; and, Whereas, All government budgets - local, state and federal - are strained; and, Whereas, through cooperation, coordination and pooling our resources we can have a positive impact on salmon and the habitats on which they depend; Now, Therefore Be it Hereby Resolved that the Board of Jefferson County Commissioners does hereby support the creation of the Pacific Salmon Fund by the Federal Government, as proposed by For the Sake of the Salmon, to match state and local funds expended on watershed-based salmon habitat protection and restoration work. 6th day of October 1997. :VOL 1820 Jefferson Street PO Box 1220 Port Townsend, WA 98368 Daniel Harpole, District 1 Glen Huntingford, District 2 Richard Wojt, District 3 MEMO To: From: For the Sake of the Salmon, Bill Bradbury Jefferson County Commissioner, Dan Harpole Support of Establishing Pacific Salmon Fund October 7, 1997 Subject: Date: Enclosed is a copy of a resolution passed by the Jefferson County Commissioners in support of establishing the Pacific Salmon Fund. The Pacific Salmon Fund is a proposal establishing a dedicated Federal funding program to help address the salmon habitat issues on the west coast. Enclosed is the executive summary describing the proposal. We encourage your review of this proposal and that you join with us in support of establishing the Pacific Salmon Fund. I VOI~ 23 "Ar,Ç 735 Phone (360)385-9100 / 1-800-831-2678 Fax (360)385-9382 jeftbocc@olympus"net . " - -"'::'" ,"'" FOR THE SAKE OF THE SALMON THE PACIFIC SALMON FUND A REGIONAL STRATEGY TO PROTECT AND RESTORE PACIFIC SALMON Executive Summary August 1997 t VO~ 23 ',~r,~ 736 . .. Pacific Salmon Fund - Executive Summary -~ _.~~v .. About For the Sake of the Salmon For the Sake of the Salmon is a regional organization whose mission is "to restore salmon to levels which ensure healthy, sustainable natural populations and support productive fisheries." For the Sake of the Salmon has among its highest priorities supporting the work of local watershed organizations and providing a forum for its members to find common ground on ways to protect and restore Pacific salmon. For the Sake of the Salmon's members include the states of Washington, Oregon and California, federal agencies, Indian tribes, local. governments, the sport and commercial fishing industries, landowners and private industry (including timber and utilities), and environmental groups. Because of its diverse membership, For the Sake of the Salmon is in a unique position to develop consensus on issues surrounding salmon recovery and protection. Grants awarded by For the Sake of the Salmon go to community-based watershed organizations which include a similarly diverse array of stakeholders and require a cost share. At present, For the Sake of the Salmon is awarding grants that allow watershed organizations to hire coordinators to help jump-start and strengthen their habitat protection and conservation efforts. About This Executive Summary This is the Executive Summary ofa larger report prepared for For the Sake of the Salmon by Cedar River Associates (Seattle, W A, John Howell and Tom Byers, Principals). The Executive Committee and staff of For the Sake of the Salmon worked with Cedar River Associates over more than a year to articulate the concepts in this Executive Summary. To request additional copies of this or the complete document, contact For the Sake of the Salmon. For the Sake of the Salmon 45 SE 82nd Drive Gladstone, OR 97027 Telephone 503-650-5447 Facsimile 503-650-5410 Email karen_mcgill@4sos.org Bill Bradbury, Executive Director ~VOL 23 ~r,ç 737 August 1997 Page 2 -- ---~.. -- The Pacific Salmon Fund: A Regional Strategy to Protect and Restore Pacific Salmon For the Sake of the Salmon proposes to establish a Pacific Salmon Fund to provide stable, long-tenn funding for a new regional strategy of watershed protection and restoration carried out by voluntary, community-based watershed groups that include all interests in the watershed. Why is this strategy needed? The coastal salmon runs of California, Oregon and Washington have been in decline for decades. For many runs, conditions have become so severe that the National Marine Fisheries Service is in the process of making critical decisions about placing various species of Pacific Salmon on the Endangered Species list. The listing decisions will have a profound impact on the management of all lands within the watersheds of the rivers at issue, affecting forestry, the power industry, agriculture, commercial and residential development, hatcheries operations and fisheries harvest. The potential social, environmental and economic consequences underscore the urgent need for a coherent strategy to protect and restore the Pacific salmon before it's too late. A new regional consensus In the past, measures to ensure the survival of species have provoked bitter divisions among the people of the Pacific region. However the response to the current salmon crisis has been very different. A remarkable coalition of forces has emerged within the Pacific region to protect and restore salmon. This coalition, incorporated as For the Sake of the Salmon (FSOS), includes 51 organizations with a direct stake in the salmon's recovery. The membership includes environmental organizations, landowners and private industry (including the forest products industry and electric utilities), the tribes, sport and commercial fishing interests, local governments, federal agencies, and the states of Washington, Oregon and California. Working together, these diverse actors have forged consensus on a regional strategy to "restore salmon to levels which ensure healthy, sustainable natural populations and support productive fisheries."l What is the strategy? The essence ofFSOS' strategy is a comprehensive effort to rehabilitate the ecosystems that sustain salmon so that native runs can recover naturally over time. To this end, FSOS is working to secure the resources to support voluntary and cooperative, watershed-wide protection and restoration measures throughout the region. These measures are being planned and implemented by local, voluntary watershed groups in each ofthe major coastal watersheds. FSOS supports those organizations in which all the interests in a watershed are represented. The strategy will be carried out in three stages: 1 FSOS Charter [VOL 23 'H~ 738 Pacific Salmon Fund - Executive Summary -- _.-,:,>' " ~ Community organization, assessment and planning within each watershed. ~ Implementation of the protection and restoration plan of action. ~ Monitoring, evaluation and refinement of the measures as necessary to meet the goal. - What resources are needed to implement the strategy? Initially, sufficient funding is needed to help local watershed groups hire coordinators ii1 every watershed which has potential to sustain significant salmon runs. These coordinators will provide the staff support watershed groups need to create action plans to restore the health of their watershed and begin marshaling resources to carry out their plan. The annual cost of a coordinator and support services is roughly $50,000 per watershed. We estimate that approximately 100 coordinators are needed to provide adequate services to the coastal watersheds with significant salmon habitat within the region, requiring a total commitment of about $5 million annually from all sources. The action plans developed by the local watershed groups will identify projects which must be carried out to protect and restore the health ofthe salmon in that watershed. These may include retiring logging roads, removing barriers to fish migration, purchasing sensitive habitat, reforestation, fencing livestock areas, stabilizing river banks, replacing culverts, in- stream habitat improvements, and a variety of other measures to improve or expand salmon habitat. The full cost of these projects will not be known until the action plans are completed, but can be expected to reach into the hundreds of millions of dollars over the next decade. As these major projects are completed, ongoing funding at a reduced level will be needed to monitor the health ofthe runs and make any necessary refinements to assure recovery. The likely pattern of expenditures within a given watershed can be illustrated as follows: Assessment Major Projects M oni toringlRe finem ent --~------------"~- ;J" -", /" , '" -'- , -~ --.-----'--- -----~.. ---~------,-~--- ------'~'--'-'"' It must be noted that the strategy will not be carried out simultaneously in all watersheds. Some watershed groups have already completed assessments and are now seeking funds to carry out major projects, while other groups are just being organized. FSOS is seeking to assist these local efforts so that they contribute effectively to the regional strategy to protect and restore salmon. I, VGL 23 . ~:; 739 August 1997 Page 2 Pacific Salmon Fund - Executive Summary .'. -.,:-". . Where is the money going to come from to carry out the strategy? The tasks of conducting the assessments, implementing the improvements, monitoring progress, and making needed refinements can only be completed with a sustained commitment and a major investment of resources. This will require a partnership among the federal government, the states, tribes, local communities, and private interests. The concept of such a partnérship is being embraced across the Pacific region. In the past year governors of three states have each crafted new salmon recovery initiatives that would provide tens of millions of dollars for watershed restoration. ¡::;! The State of Oregon has approved a plan to spend $30 million in the next two years on watershed restoration.2 ¡::;! In Washington, the newly e~ected Governor proposed a $20 million commitment to watershed restoration over the next two years. ¡::;! In California, the Governor and the Legislature are developing a coastal watershed initiative to complement the $500 million Bay Delta Restoration Initiative adopted by the voters last November. The Pacific Salmon Fund As a critical next step in building the partnership to protect salmon, FSOS is proposing the creation of the Pacific Salmon Fund. The Fund would create a regional pool of federal and non-federal dollars to support local watershed efforts to implement this strategy throughout the region. In recognition of state laws barring the allocation of state funds by independent organizations, state funding will not be blended into the Fund, but will be eligible for match by the Fund. The Fund is envisioned as the catalyst to encourage new funding for salmon protection and restoration from all sectors represented in the FSOS coalition. How will the Pacific Salmon Fund be administered? In fiscal year 1997, FSOS received $1 million in federal funding to support watershed coordinators in priority watersheds throughout the region. With these resources, FSOS was able to award grants to watershed groups in 33 of the 100 major watersheds to hire coordinators to begin or implement action plans. In the process of making those allocations, FSOS developed criteria designed to asSl.lre that funds are expended for projects that are consistent with the regional strategy, have a local base of support, and a real potential for success. The selection of an agency to administer the Fund has not yet been made, pending the advice of elected officials and other stakeholders. However we believe the criteria developed by 2 $13.6 million of this amount is to be provided by the forest products industry. $2.5 million will be provided by the fishing industry through increased license fees. 2 3 't. ~ 740 f VOL . ,r.. . August 1997 Page 3 ....--..... Pacific Salmon Fund - Executive Summary -. _.,~.. .' FSOS in its recent allocations process should be used to guide future allocations from the Pacific Salmon Fund to assure they are consistent with the regional strategy. What level of federal funding is being sought? Now that the key forces within the region have achieved consensus on a strategy and the states are making substantiàI commitments of funding, it is appropriate to request a substantial commitment from the federal government. Therefore, FSOS proposes that $45 million be allocated as the federal share of the Pacific Salmon Fund in FY 99. These funds would be used to match state and other non- federal contributions to continue the task of providing funding for watershed coordinators; conduct watershed assessments; develop watershed- specific plans of action; implement protection and restoration projects in watersheds; and conduct on-going monitoring and adaptive management efforts. In addition to providing funds to the Pacific Salmon Fund, FSOS urges the federal government to take advantage of opportunities to redirect existing federal resources to watershed restoration projects that are consistent with the regional strategy. In the course of their work, agencies such as the Forest Service, the Federal Emergency Management Agency, and the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission have considerable potential to help communities carry out major projects that are identified by watershed groups as essential to restoring specific runs. Are additional sources expected to contribute to the Pacific Salmon Fund? Local governments, tribal governments, private corporations, foundations, community organizations and individuals are all actively involved in providing funding for protection and restoration projects in specific watersheds. The creation of the Pacific Salmon Fund creates the opportunity for these contributors and others to participate in a coherent regional strategy with national importance. FSOS will actively pursue funding from all sources willing to help implement the regional strategy. . How is this strategy different than past efforts? Although no one can provide an absolute guarantee of success, the proposed strategy has three major strengths: . It is designed to help nature heal itself. The strategy will protect and restore runs by rehabilitating the ecosystems that sustain the salmon. . It is community based. The strategy will be carried out through comprehensive, voluntary and cooperative measures that are planned and implemented by local watershed groups that include all major stakeholders, and most important; . It reflects a consensus among the major sectors within the region. The strategy has the support of environmentalists, the forest products industry, public and private electric utilities, tribes, sport and commercial fishermen, local governments, federal agencies and three states. This unity provides a unique opportunity to transcend past conflicts and division and move forward to major accomplishments for the sake of the salmon-and future generations of humankind. August 1997 ! vol' 23 :.~~: 741 Page 4 Pacific Salmon Fund - Executive Summary -- -.-:- .- FSOS Executive Committee The States . John Amodio, Assistant Secretary, The Resources Agency of California . Bob Nichols, Washington Governor's Office . Dirk Brazil, Deputy Director, Washington Dept. ofFish and Wildlife . Jim Martin, Salmon Teéhnical Advisor to the Governor, Oregon Governor's Office of Natural Resources The Tribes . Terry Williams, Commissioner, Northwest Indian Fisheries Commission ~ Randy Harder, Point No Point Treaty Council (alternate) Local Governments . Charles Peterson, Supervisor, Mendocino County, California ~ Gordon Reed, Commissioner, Asotin County, W A (alternate) Environmental Or ianizations . Jeff Curtis, Western Regional Conservation Direc~or, Trout Unlimited ~ Jud Ellinwood, Salmonid Restoration Federation, (alternate) ~ Tom Weseloh, California Trout (alternate) ~ John Sayre, Long Live the Kings, (alternate) Industry . Kelly Conover, Oregon Forest Industry Council/Washington Forest Protection Assoc./California Forestry Assoc. ~ Terry Flores, PacifiCorp - utilities (alternate) Fishin i Industry . Liz Hamilton, Executive Director, Northwest Sportfishing Industry Association ~ Nat Bingham, Pacific Coast Federation of Fishennen's Associations (alternate) Federal . William Stelle, Regional Administrator, National Marine Fisheries Service ~ Larry Rutter, National Marine Fisheries Service (alternate) ~VOL 23 :MJ 742 ", . August 1997 Page 5 Pacific Salmon Fund - Executive Summary ~_.':- ..... FSOS Member Organizations FEDERAL National Marine Fìsheries Service U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service Environmental Protection Agency Bureau Of Land Management Natural Resource Cónservation Service - Western Region u.S. Forest Service Bureau Of Indian Affairs STATE Governor John Kitzhaber - Oregon Governor Pete Wilson - California Governor Gary Locke - Washington TRIBAL Northwest Indian Fisheries Commission Jamestown S 'klallam Tribe Lower Elwha Klallam Tribe Makah Tribe Nisqually Tribe Nooksack Tribe Quilete Indian Tribe Quinault Indian Nation Sauk-Suiattle Tribe Skokomish Tribe Swinomish Tribe Upper Skagit Tribe Mendocino County - California Del Norte County - California Trinity County - California Coos County - Oregon LOCAL GOVERNMENT City Of Portland King County - Washington Washington State Association Of Counties INDUSTRY Washington Forest Protection Association California Forestry Association Oregon Forest Industry Council Washington Asc. Of Conservation Districts Pacificorp Portland General Electric Public Power Council Seattle City Light Grant Public Utility District Washington Water Power FISIDNG INDUSTRY NW Sportfishing Industry Assoc. Pacific Coast Federation OfFishennen's Assoc. Oregon Outdoors (Guides & Packers) Oregon Charterboat Association Westport Charter Association Salmon For All United Anglers Of California NW Steelheaders Trout Unlimited Pacific Rivers Council Oregon Trout Long Live The Kings California Trout ENVIRONMENTAL Friends Of The River Rivers Council Of Washington Oregon Wildlife Heritage Foundation Salmonid Restoration Federation LYOl 23 ;M,~ 743 Page 6 August 1997