January 13, 2003 Volume IX
Issue 01
By: Bob Brown @ [email protected]
The Fraser Watershed Post–Season Workshop Meeting was held on the Musqueam Reserve on November 21st and 22nd. Only a brief summary of the meetings is presented here. Detailed Minutes as well as the Report of the Tier One & DFO Sub-Committee (Sub-Committee) are available on request from Roberta Souriol, the Communications Secretary.
The Agenda for the meetings focused largely on the Report of the Sub-Committee on four Recommendations I made in my Report on the Fraser River Aboriginal Fisheries Secretariat in March 2002. These were
Recommendation 1. That a process be established as soon as possible to negotiate a new Fraser Watershed Agreement.
Recommendation 2. That a process be developed as soon as possible to negotiate a mutually acceptable consultation protocol.
Recommendation 4. That an Executive Committee be established to oversee the operations of the Secretariat.
Recommendation 9. That DFO and First Nations establish a process to clarify rules regarding how the technical process should work.
The Sub-Committee had been considering these issues over the summer, and presented recommendations and proposed action on each of them to the Forum:
Recommendation 1. - Proposed Action: That the Fraser Watershed Aboriginal Fisheries Forum agree that the Interim Executive Committee (IEC) take the lead toward preparation of a draft Fraser Watershed Agreement.
Recommendation 2. - Proposed Action: That the Fraser Watershed Aboriginal Fisheries Forum endorse the documents Framework for Consultations Between the Department of Fisheries and Oceans and Fraser First Nations and Possible Process for Pre-Season Planning, Development of Conservation and Harvest Management Plan(s), In-Season Management and Post-Season Evaluation, and recommends that they be forwarded to Fraser First Nations and DFO for formal approval.
Recommendation 4. - Proposed Action: That the Forum approve the Interim Executive Committee and eventually the Executive Committee as the appropriate body for continuing discussion of the ACTION items contained in this Report, and that the existing structure and Terms of Reference for the IEC serve as a basis for an Executive Committee once funding for the Secretariat has been confirmed for the 2003-2004 fiscal year.
Recommendation 9. Proposed Action: That the Forum adopt the draft Terms of Reference for the Stock Management Committee.
After discussing these Recommendations during a prescheduled caucus period, DFO and First Nations representatives attending the meetings agreed to accept the report and to endorse the proposed action items.
Formal acceptance of the Report of the Sub-Committee by Forum means that the Sub-Committee has completed its work Thus it has been disbanded and the responsibility for further consideration of these issues has been handed over to the Interim Executive Committee. While recognizing that there is still a long way to go, members of the Sub-Committee believe that it made substantial progress toward resolution of several contentious issues affecting relationships between Fraser First Nations and DFO.
Other items on the Agenda included a report by Marcel Shepert on the activities of the Interim Executive Committee, a presentation by Hugh MacAulay (Dept. of Justice lawyer) on issues of concern in the Watershed Agreement negotiation process, a Report by Don Lawseth (DFO) on the Species at Risk Act, an Update on the 2002 Season, by Mike Staley and Ken Wilson, and a presentation by Paul MacGillivray, DFO Director of Fisheries Management, on recent changes in DFO policy on the management of Sockeye. Mike and Ken also commented on the Long Term Escapement planning process, the Wild Salmon Policy, and Abundance Based Coho Management.
In his Report, Marcel indicated that the IEC had agreed that there will be at least three FWAFF meetings scheduled per year, Preliminary Pre-season, Detailed Pre-season, and Post-season, and that additional meetings could be scheduled if mutually agreed upon by DFO and First Nations. He also noted that a joint planning calendar for Fraser salmon species will be developed by the IEC. Due to space limitations here, I’ll present a more detailed report on these agenda items in the next Quarterly Report.
MEETINGS/ WORKSHOPS
Jan. 15, 2003 – 2003 Vision Planning Committee & Ad Hock Fraser River Technical Committee Conference Call, at 9:00 a.m. For more information, contact Roberta Souriol at (250) 828-217 or [email protected].
Jan. 28, 2003 – Interim Executive Committee Conference Call at 9:00 a.m. For more information contact Roberta Souriol at (25) 828 2178 or [email protected].
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