It’s an independent review for federal and provincial fisheries management strategies on the Skeena River that is what is on tap as the Pacific Salmon Foundation sends four scientists out to look over the state of the salmon on the Skeena.
The Daily News provided some background on what the Skeena River Independent Science Review Panel will be looking for and what they will be using for their research purposes.
The duties and responsibilities of the panel were examined in a front page story in Thursday’s paper.
THINK-TANK WANTS TO GET TO BOTTOM OF SALMON ISSUE
New brain trust is looking to better understand Skeena River management
By Kris Schumacher
The Daily News
Thursday, March 6, 2008
Pages one and three
In what is being heralded as the first independent review of both federal and provincial salmon fisheries management, the Pacific Salmon Foundation has comprised a panel of four scientists to look at salmon management on the Skeena River.
The Skeena River Independent Science Review Panel (ISRP) has been tasked with examining whether current and possible future management practices are consistent with the principals outlined by the Fisheries and Oceans Canada Wild Salmon Policy.
With funding from the Gordon and Betty Moore Foundation, the ISRP will review data, science and stakeholder concerns with the intention of achieving long-term sustainability of First Nations, enhancing the viability and sustainability of the commercial and recreational fisheries, as well as ensuring the sustainability of the ecosystem.
“First of all, the panel will review data to see if an adequate level of information exists to base sustainable fisheries management decisions on, and also to see whether the current manner in which the fishery is conducted is consistent with the Wild Salmon Policy,” said Terry Tebb, deputy executive director of the Pacific Salmon Foundation.
The ISRP consists of Dr. John Reynolds and Dr. Randall Peterman, both faculty at Simon Fraser University, Dr. Carl Waters of the University of British Columbia and U. S. Independent fisheries consultant Jim Lichatowich. The panel has been working away analyzing data they collected from both DFO and the Ministry of Environment for more than two months already, and a two-day meeting held in Terrace earlier this week offered an opportunity for interested stakeholders to make presentations to the ISRP. A full spectrum of stakeholders turned out to give some input including First Nations representatives, commercial and sport fishing groups, processing plant workers, conservation groups and concerned citizens.
“From our perspective it was an excellent meeting. It was very open, there was no real finger-pointing by people in an area that’s been very contentious over the years. People really genuinely seemed worried about the future of the fisheries, and they gave us some very helpful suggestions,” said Dr. Reynolds.
The ISRP is fully independent of both levels of government, and government has no way manipulating or intervening in the process. While DFO and MoE did not have any part in setting it up, Reynolds said they agreed to the independent panel review and are enthusiastic about hearing the ISRP’s initial findings in a couple of months.
“We have been in touch with them so they could answer a lot of our questions about their processes,” said Reynolds. “For example, we’ve needed to ask them how the biological assessments of the stocks work, how the people who are counting the fish are communicating with people who are deciding whether there can be a fisheries opening or not, an dhow those responsible for steelhead and angling in the province were liaising with their federal counterparts.”
Reynolds said that there is a consensus among stakeholders that ‘the old way’ is no longer a viable or sustainable approach to fishery management. He said the Wild Salmon Policy has, by default, committed all stakeholders to give better protection to the weaker salmon stocks, and greater recognition of the constitutional rights that give priority to First Nations when determining if there are enough fish to have a fishery.
“A question is, ‘how robust is the existing management and scientific structures, and how well can they adapt to the changing landscape in which the governments are committed to doing business?” said Reynolds. “One question we want to know is, ‘What would it take for the current management system to fail?’ You can never predict how many fish are going to come back, it’s virtually hopeless. Instead, you have to make very quick decisions and in-season adjustments. So in a season where there are hardly any fish, would the system be fast enough and responsive enough to deal with it?
While there is no exact date set for a public release of the panels findings, the ISRP is hoping to have a draft report ready by the beginning of May.
The Daily News provided some background on what the Skeena River Independent Science Review Panel will be looking for and what they will be using for their research purposes.
The duties and responsibilities of the panel were examined in a front page story in Thursday’s paper.
THINK-TANK WANTS TO GET TO BOTTOM OF SALMON ISSUE
New brain trust is looking to better understand Skeena River management
By Kris Schumacher
The Daily News
Thursday, March 6, 2008
Pages one and three
In what is being heralded as the first independent review of both federal and provincial salmon fisheries management, the Pacific Salmon Foundation has comprised a panel of four scientists to look at salmon management on the Skeena River.
The Skeena River Independent Science Review Panel (ISRP) has been tasked with examining whether current and possible future management practices are consistent with the principals outlined by the Fisheries and Oceans Canada Wild Salmon Policy.
With funding from the Gordon and Betty Moore Foundation, the ISRP will review data, science and stakeholder concerns with the intention of achieving long-term sustainability of First Nations, enhancing the viability and sustainability of the commercial and recreational fisheries, as well as ensuring the sustainability of the ecosystem.
“First of all, the panel will review data to see if an adequate level of information exists to base sustainable fisheries management decisions on, and also to see whether the current manner in which the fishery is conducted is consistent with the Wild Salmon Policy,” said Terry Tebb, deputy executive director of the Pacific Salmon Foundation.
The ISRP consists of Dr. John Reynolds and Dr. Randall Peterman, both faculty at Simon Fraser University, Dr. Carl Waters of the University of British Columbia and U. S. Independent fisheries consultant Jim Lichatowich. The panel has been working away analyzing data they collected from both DFO and the Ministry of Environment for more than two months already, and a two-day meeting held in Terrace earlier this week offered an opportunity for interested stakeholders to make presentations to the ISRP. A full spectrum of stakeholders turned out to give some input including First Nations representatives, commercial and sport fishing groups, processing plant workers, conservation groups and concerned citizens.
“From our perspective it was an excellent meeting. It was very open, there was no real finger-pointing by people in an area that’s been very contentious over the years. People really genuinely seemed worried about the future of the fisheries, and they gave us some very helpful suggestions,” said Dr. Reynolds.
The ISRP is fully independent of both levels of government, and government has no way manipulating or intervening in the process. While DFO and MoE did not have any part in setting it up, Reynolds said they agreed to the independent panel review and are enthusiastic about hearing the ISRP’s initial findings in a couple of months.
“We have been in touch with them so they could answer a lot of our questions about their processes,” said Reynolds. “For example, we’ve needed to ask them how the biological assessments of the stocks work, how the people who are counting the fish are communicating with people who are deciding whether there can be a fisheries opening or not, an dhow those responsible for steelhead and angling in the province were liaising with their federal counterparts.”
Reynolds said that there is a consensus among stakeholders that ‘the old way’ is no longer a viable or sustainable approach to fishery management. He said the Wild Salmon Policy has, by default, committed all stakeholders to give better protection to the weaker salmon stocks, and greater recognition of the constitutional rights that give priority to First Nations when determining if there are enough fish to have a fishery.
“A question is, ‘how robust is the existing management and scientific structures, and how well can they adapt to the changing landscape in which the governments are committed to doing business?” said Reynolds. “One question we want to know is, ‘What would it take for the current management system to fail?’ You can never predict how many fish are going to come back, it’s virtually hopeless. Instead, you have to make very quick decisions and in-season adjustments. So in a season where there are hardly any fish, would the system be fast enough and responsive enough to deal with it?
While there is no exact date set for a public release of the panels findings, the ISRP is hoping to have a draft report ready by the beginning of May.
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