Petition for Open WDFW/Tribal NOF Meetings

[riverhunter]

Well I'm not a big fan of trump and not here to discuss politics but I have to admit that one of the supreme courts judge, Neil Gorsuch, he picked might be one of his decisions I might support. Neil Gorsuch is an avid fly fisherman and outdoorsman. Now this might be a long shot but given the fact that he is an outdoorsman he might side on our side if the boldt decision ever went to court again. Now before i get any backlash I support tribal netting for sustinence and ceremonial purposes but I don't support tribal netting for profit (or any kind of commercial fishing for profit within washington state Alaska in itself does enough damage as it is). This might be our chance to overrule and get back those salmon runs that the tribes and commercial guys are destroying. 50% is way to much for the tribes then Non tribal getting the other 50% with commercial guys taking at least 40% and us recreational anglers fighting over the last harvestable 10% that's left. I say we reduce quotas for tribes to 35%, eliminate commercial fleets and let recreational anglers get 25% lords knows we won't catch the 25% anyways. It is our natural resource as well and as residents of washington we deserve better opportunities to harvest our natural resources without relying on grocery stores for everything . this is just my opinion and don't expect everyone to agree

[Onmygame]

If the Boldt Decision ever went to court again??

I don't see that happening - ever.

I would expect that it will (and should) go unchallenged by all involved for the simple reason that anyone who would challenge such a thing has every bit as good a chance of losing what they have been allotted as they would of gaining more share.

Bird in the hand and all.

onmygame

[riverhunter]

I don't think it should go unchallenged giving the state that our runs are in now. I am not saying to cut the tribes out of there share whatsoever but we need to look at conservation first and not profit which is what the boldt decision was based upon in the first place. Its time to recognize that our runs cannot keep sustaining commercial fishing and start looking at them more of a resource for the tribes and its citizens. Not a paycheck. Due o agree the tribes need their fare share? Yes. Do I agree recreational is looked down on? Yes but we need to change that and show them that we also rely on these fish not just as a hobby but a natural resource as well. My problem is this, fishing for profit doesn't benefit the whole economy whether tribal or not but rather a selected few on the other hand recreational fishing supports a whole industry helping our local economies and being able to bring sustinence to the table. A lot of local businesses are hurting due to not so good fishing.

So I will add this final thought. Do I believe the boldt decision will be heard in a courtroom ever? Not likely but if it ever did that is our opportunity to let our voices be heard.

[dj2loud]

im totally against the tribes after the latest " nisqually natives not fishing the puyallup for chums " When you clearly state on national TV and I QUOTE WILLIE FRANK 3rd, WHO'S THE SON OF billy frank Jr " We are not fishing this year, it's no longer about the financial gain anymore"..... The quote right there makes me freaking sick...... The boldt decision was for subsistence only, NOT PROFIT and they put profits 1st.

FACT........


listen to the king 5 report....


http://www.king5.com/tech/science/envir ... /392884477

[Toni]

Nisqually's don't fish the Puyallup. The Puyallup's and Muckleshoot's do. He was talking about the Nisqually River.

[Onmygame]

im totally against the tribes after the latest " nisqually natives not fishing the puyallup for chums " When you clearly state on national TV and I QUOTE WILLIE FRANK 3rd, WHO'S THE SON OF billy frank Jr " We are not fishing this year, it's no longer about the financial gain anymore"..... The quote right there makes me freaking sick...... The boldt decision was for subsistence only, NOT PROFIT and they put profits 1st.

FACT........


listen to the king 5 report....


http://www.king5.com/tech/science/envir ... /392884477

Who told you that the Boldt Decision was for sustenance only?

The tribes were fishing commercially long before this was even a state, and that some think it was ever about mere sustenance displays a huge misconception.

Here is a synopsis of the US vs WA State (Boldt Decision) along with a brief history of tribal fishing since the early 1800s -

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/United_St ... Washington" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

onmygame

[Toni]

And today substance is cash.

[dj2loud]

Hi guys, just be aware the number is about to GO WAY UP!!!! There is over 15,000 members of a northwest facebook page that i just recently posted to, so expect the numbers to JUMP!

[Bay wolf]

Hi guys, just be aware the number is about to GO WAY UP!!!! There is over 15,000 members of a northwest facebook page that i just recently posted to, so expect the numbers to JUMP!

Thanks dj!
And thank you to everyone who has continued the fight! Our experience at the Sportsmen Show indicated that many, many sportsmen have very little idea about how the fisheries are managed. Once we explained to them about the secret meetings and how much of their fishing is actually impacted by the results of the meetings, almost every person we contacted signed.

So we found, it's not enough to just get a flyer in their hand. If they DON'T UNDERSTAND the IMPORTANCE and WHAT'S REALLY AT STAKE we may not get their support. If we can communicate on a personal level with people, our numbers would be in the 10,000. We got over 800 signatures just talking to people at the Sportsmen show!

[Toni]

We got over 800 signatures just talking to people at the Sportsmen show!

I knew it was close to a thousand

[Bay wolf]

WE JUST PASSED 1500 SIGNATURES ON OUR ON-LINE PETITION!!

Combined with the 904 we got on paper, we have 2,404 Sportsmen, non-tribal commercials, and other citizens sending a very clear message that we will not stand for secrets in our fisheries any longer!

The time is NOW! We cannot let the momentum fade. We cannot ease off and let the political winds blow us aside.

Keep getting the message out! Write, or better yet, call your representatives and the governor.
Let them know about the petition and the WILL OF THE PEOPLE!

They are counting on us fading away. To become apathetic, and give up. We must stay STRONG and continue to GROW STRONGER!

[Bay wolf]

Here are three advocates that we all need to send an email to right away:

Dino Rossi Senator. He has fought the Governor on Transparency in Gov't issues before;
http://dinorossi.src.wastateleg.org/contact-me/

Congresswomen Liz Pike. She is fighting very hard for the Columbia and for prioritizing sport fishing:

Liz.Pike@leg.wa.gov

Senator Pearson: He's the watchdog over the WDFW commission, department and staff.
Chairmen of the Natural Resources and Parks Committee.

Kirk.Pearson@leg.wa.gov

Get a letter to them now, letting them know that a license fee increase should not even be considered until transparency is addressed in our NOF meetings.

[Toni]

http://www.theolympian.com/opinion/op-e ... 73754.html

[Bay wolf]

Thanks Toni for the link. Very interesting article on the impact on the sport fishing retailers! I commented on the story and will try and reach out to Gabe Miller as well to see if SportCo and Far West Sports will help support the petition. My initial contact with them was less than supportive. They wouldn't even let me put it on the "public" bulletin board!

[Toni]

Thanks Toni for the link. Very interesting article on the impact on the sport fishing retailers! I commented on the story and will try and reach out to Gabe Miller as well to see if SportCo and Far West Sports will help support the petition. My initial contact with them was less than supportive. They wouldn't even let me put it on the "public" bulletin board!

Far west and sportco are one in the same.

[Toni]

Gillnetted and Gutted
http://nwsportsmanmag.com/headlines/tri ... ask-force/

[Larry3215]

Im not at all sure I understood what was going on in that last article about the bills, but I think we are getting screwed.

[Bodofish]

From my perspective it was just ignored and they wanted to discuss other issues. I think one of the most important issues is good record keeping of all catches, what, when, where, how and who. Why should the Tribes exempt from record keeping? It would only opens the door for them to cheat on existing treaties.

[Bay wolf]

We have sent a letter to the NWIFC, Chairwoman Lorraine Loomis regarding their objection to the transparency issue in the NOF meetings. In her recent article calling for more cooperation and trust building she says "WE" need to work together to better our fisheries, so we are asking her to end her opposition to having these meetings opened up. Our Petition to open these meetings has gained over 2600 signatures to date.

Here is a copy of the letter we sent:


Northwest Indian Fisheries Commission (NWIFC)
ATTN: Chairwoman Lorraine Loomis
6730 Martin Way E, Olympia, WA 98516


Chairwoman Lorraine Loomis,

Your recent article “BEING FRANK: NORTH OF FALCON UNDERWAY EARLIER” kindled some optimism for our citizens in its language of co-operation and willingness to work toward solutions that put our fish first above all else.

We agree that there are many very important issues that are facing our fisheries, not the least of which is environmental; however, it’s also clear the current climate surrounding our relationship is also impacting our fisheries in a detrimental way.

We are not politicians, nor members of any “organized” group, but rather a cross section of two thousand six hundred citizens of this state— all of whom have a deep love and respect for the resources, as you do. As a citizen based coalition, allow us to speak frankly, person to person.

In your article, you state:

“We’ve been working with the state to take a close look at the North of Falcon process and how we can be more efficient.

We can continue to cooperate.

It has taken more than 40 years for the tribes and state to build the working relationship needed to jointly manage the salmon resource. Like all relationships, ours has its ups and downs, but at the end of the day we all want the same thing: healthy, sustainable salmon populations that can support harvest.

Even with an early start it won’t be easy for the co-managers to reach agreement again this year. As salmon continue to decline, every management action we take requires increasingly careful consideration.

One thing that’s certain is that fisheries management is better when we work together.”

As you are aware, there is a major issue within our current North of Falcon process. The issue is lack of transparency in the closed door, North of Falcon meetings between us, the State, and you, the Treaty Tribes.

This issue has created a large rift between the non-tribal citizens of this State and the Treaty Tribes, a rift that fosters suspicion and distrust rather than a spirit of cooperation and respect.

During a recent meeting with the WDFW Commissioners and Director Unsworth, we were told that they support opening these meetings between the WDFW and the NWIFC representatives. They went on to explain that you oppose any type of openness in these meetings.

We’re hopeful your continued public statements for openness and cooperation do not exclude negotiations between the people of this state and your tribal members. What is implied by “working together” does not mean excluding topics that might be uncomfortable.

We are asking you to address the closed door meetings in an honest and forthright way. We urge you to take the hand that we are extending across the table in trust, and let us truly work together to find solutions to save our troubled fisheries. We are open to your ideas on how to allow full disclosure in these meetings and not disrupt the negotiations.

The first step in forming true cooperation is trust. Trust is earned by understanding and cooperation on the part of both sides. The adversarial thinking of “us verses them” must come to an end. “We” have a responsibility to work together. Let us remove the obstacles to cooperation, no matter how uncomfortable, and save our resources for future generations.

Please set aside your hard line stance and open these meetings to the public.

Looking forward to your timely reply.

Respectfully,


Perry Menchaca
and 2600+ guardians of the Fisheries Resource

[Toni]

Thank you Perry!