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Date Posted: 21:46:26 11/04/99 Thu
Author: Ron Gaul
Subject: PFMC Mtg


I made it just in time for the beginning of the HMS agenda item. The different states (CA, OR, WA) had their respective F&G reps to the PFMC on the HMS FMP give summaries of the scoping mtgs. Steve Crook of DFG gave the summary for CA. Also there was a summary of the HMS Advisory Panel Mtg that sharktagger Keith Poe went to. Bob Humphrey (Cencal divers), Ted Wheeler (public representative) and I went to the Monterey scoping mtg. Of note, no sport reps were at the OR scoping mtg.
Steve Crook gave a concise summsry of concerns, and some of what we brought up in Monterey was mentioned. Bycatch, funding, habitat studies and...public fishing zones as brought up by Ted were mentioned. Steve made sure to mention that these zones would have comm'l and recreational use the same gear. Good going Ted!
Then the agenda switched to panel members. There was various talk of limited entry, swordfish depletion and improving notice. But it was notice to comml's that got mentioned! Albeit it was albacore trollers, but what about more notice to sport reps? EFH studies were mentioned as needed. But basically there was a whole lot of NMFS-speak I still don't understand. They also bury you in paper work.
Then it was time for the public to speak.
The World Wildlife Fund (WWF) spoke on sharks. And an Audubon rep mentioned the effect on basking and whale sharks. Comm'l reps tried to take advantage of the animal welfare groups ignorance (not animal rights groups) to say there is no species in danger by the fisheries concerned.
I then spoke about RFA's concerns. Primarily the drift gillnet fishery, directed against swordfish, makos and blues. I pointed out that we shouldn't only oppose overfishing of makos and threshers, and blue shark bycatch for its own sake. I spoke of a growing nearshore mako and thresher fishery. I pointed out that one could go to www.kayakfishing.com, and sign up for a thresher clinic, how to catch them from a kayak.
I then talked about the lack of sport representation at the OR mtg. I mentioned that our RFA rep is very tied up in rockfish matters and there just isn't the time for most anglers to go to all the mtgs. I also railed about the lack of notice to sport anglers.
I then mentioned that we must have a conservation based fishery management plan for our 200 mi EEZ first. Then the US will have the high moral ground to pressure other countries to adopt sustainable fishery practices.
Lasty, the board approved consider two new comm'l reps for the Advisory Panel! Granted, they may be albacore trollers, a sustainable bunch of fishers. But we need different sport reps on the board. A tuna, billfish, and shark angler, each, at least three more.
I was swamped with work there. It would have nice to have an extra tuna and billfish guy.
Sorry I couldn't say more for tuna or marlin, but I pushed on the representation and notice issue.
I spoke briefly with party boat HMS panel rep, Donald Hansen. All letters to him and other sport rep, Michael Dormeier, should go through:
Larry Six, exec dir PFMC
2120 SW Fifth Ave, Ste 224
Portland, OR 97201
503-326-6352. Call, write! It's really important.

The rockfish agenda was spread over three days, so I caught only the first day. The only agenda item that I could interact on was the rebuilding plans for lings, bocaccio and pacific ocean perch. This was really mind numbing. For those of you at the Oct 20th F&G mtg and thought THAT technical talk was bad, you missed the mother of them in Sac. Canary and cowcod are not considered overfished, yet. There are 39 species of rockfish that have or will have FMP's. When the public spoke, the enviros (EDF, NRDC, PMCC, CMC) were there in force. Some good points were made. Biologist Josh Nowlis of CMC pointed out that NMFS used a low and inaccurate estimate of trawler bycatch from the '70's for their subsequent allocations. Mike Malone has already brought this up at other mtgs. Mostly the enviros are very general and often not as pointed in their criticism of comm'l gear as I'd like.
I spoke up about how NMFS/PFMC has driven the F&G Comm to unfairly burden the recreational fisher. I mentioned that I got input on this issue from UAC, Cencal Divers, RFA and their coalition Calif Nearshore Reefish Assoc. I mentioned that we were willing to make sacrifices if nonselective and highly efficient gear were eliminated. A council member, I didn't get the name, asked what sacrifices we were willing to make.
Then I mentioned the six points.
1. One hook, w/in one mile for rockfish.
2. Comm'l, rod and reel only.
3. No comm'l fishing for midwater Sebastes.
4. No live bait for rockfish no. of Pt Conception.
5. Limited entry for comm'l rockfish fishery.
6. Prominent ID# for live fish transporting boats and vehicles.

Well it's too late for our idea on sport restrictions. It's a done deal.

After I spoke two reporters and several anglers came up to speak with me. Steve Carson was there and should have the best writeup in SCS and/or WON.

Best input on rockfish is to the F&G Comm. They have already decided to take a pound of flesh from the recreationals. They will decide interim restrictions on the comml's only in Dec. in Sac.
Write them NOW!
Tell them you want ALL bottom rolling and dragging trawlers gone. And tell them to push the midwater trawlers to the slope, way offshore.
And for the nearshore, tell them no stick gear, longlines or fishtraps w/in one nautical mile of shore. NONE at all. This is critical. We must put aside our differences on how we want ourselves restricted. That has been decided. Let's make sure they err WAY on the side of caution in restricting comm'l gear.

Write, on rockfish, Please!:

The Calif Fish and Game Commission
Exec Dir, Robert Treanor
1416 9th St, #1320
Sacramento, CA 95814

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