Get Full Government Meeting Transcripts, Videos, & Alerts Forever!
Get email alerts on the Pinniped Management topic
No spam. Unsubscribe anytime.
Leadership Council urges federal engagement on pinniped predation, directs staff to draft letter
Summary
After a multi‑agency briefing, the Puget Sound Partnership Leadership Council voted unanimously to ask staff to draft a letter to the federal delegation and governor’s office seeking targeted legislative fixes and funding for hotspot pinniped management to aid salmon recovery.
The Puget Sound Partnership Leadership Council voted unanimously to direct staff to draft a letter to the federal delegation and other officials asking for legislative fixes and funding to address pinniped predation on salmon.
The council’s action followed a four‑hour briefing from the Northwest Indian Fisheries Commission, NOAA Fisheries and Washington Department of Fish and Wildlife that described rising pinniped populations, site‑specific predation hot spots, and limits in current law for coordinated removals. David Trout, natural resources director for the Nisqually Indian Tribe and chair of the Puget Sound Salmon Recovery Council, told members: “Without dealing with pinniped predation, it is impossible to recover Chinook salmon in Puget Sound.” The motion, moved by Russ Hepburn and seconded by another council member, instructed staff to craft a letter for the leadership council to review that would urge the delegation to consider narrowly targeted amendments to the Marine Mammal Protection Act (MMPA), funding for hotspot pilot projects and continued scientific study.
Panelists emphasized the narrow scope of the request: proposed changes would seek limited, geographically scoped authority for site‑specific, heavily regulated management (similar to the Columbia River 120f approach) rather than broad rollbacks of marine mammal protections. Cecilia Gobin of the Northwest Indian Fisheries Commission outlined three MMPA pathways under consideration—Section 101 waivers, Section 109 state transfers, and Section 120/120f pinniped removal authority—observing that 120 schemes are often administratively burdensome without legislative change. NOAA Fisheries’ Chris Yates and WDFW’s Megan West described close collaboration among federal, state and tribal partners but stressed that statutory clarity and funding would be required for any scalable hotspot program.
The council also asked staff to consider whether the governor’s office should be included and to frame requests to emphasize science, strict permitting limits and adaptive oversight. The motion carried unanimously.
