Two false killer whales at surface. Photo courtesy NMFS PIRO Observer Program.

The consensus Draft Plan, formally submitted on Monday, July 19, 2010 to the Pacific Islands Regional Office of the National Marine Fisheries Service (NMFS), was finalized during the fourth of a series of meetings convened and facilitated by CONCUR since February 2010. The meeting was held last week in Honolulu, Hawai‘i.

The aim of the Draft Plan is to reduce false killer whale bycatch by the Hawai‘i-based longline fishery below a level set by NMFS, as required by the Marine Mammal Protection Act (MMPA). This level, known as the “Potential Biological Removal” level or PBR, is defined in the MMPA as the “maximum number of animals, not including natural mortalities, that may be removed annually from a marine mammal stock while still allowing that stock to reach or maintain its optimal population level.”

The Draft Plan is grounded in several key recommendations. One recommendation calls for the mandatory use of circle hooks with a maximum wire diameter of 4.5 mm in the tuna-targeting deep-set longline fishery, a gear change that is expected to reduce the likelihood of hooking false killer whales, as well as increase the likelihood of a hooked individual being released without being seriously injured. Another aspect of the Draft Plan includes the proposed closure of a seasonal area north and east of the main Hawaiian Islands, where longline fishing is currently allowed for four months of the year.  The aim of this proposed closure is to protect both pelagic and insular false killer whales that may occupy the closed area.

Other recommendations in the Draft Plan include experiments to test the effectiveness of “weak” hooks designed to bend and straighten under the pull strain of a hooked false killer whale; mandatory handling and release training for vessel owners and captains regarding entangled or hooked false killer whales; and a suite of research recommendations intended to help assess the effectiveness of the Draft Plan and provide better information on long-term solutions to reduce false killer whale bycatch. Team members agreed that the recommendations, taken together as a suite of actions, have a high likelihood of achieving the goal of reducing bycatch below PBR. The consensus Draft Take Reduction Plan will now be considered by NMFS as it develops proposed regulations.

The Draft Plan was ratified by individuals from the following entities: Hawaii Longline Association, Hui Malama I Kohola, Hawai‘i Wildlife Fund, Center for Biological Diversity, The Humane Society of the United States, University of Hawai‘i, Coastal Marine Research, Duke University, Cascadia Research Collective, NMFS, State of Hawai‘i, Secretariat of the Pacific Community, Western Pacific Regional Fishery Management Council, and the Marine Mammal Commission.

A copy of the Draft Plan is posted at http://www.nmfs.noaa.gov/pr/interactions/trt/falsekillerwhale.htm

Coverage of the team’s consensus agreement is being carried in the Associated Press news story, which has been picked up widely.

Additional coverage from Hawaii Public Radio, with interviews from members of the fishing industry, the conservation community and NMFS, can be heard here.

Other meeting objectives included discussions related to swordfish buoy gear fishery management, billfish and vessel monitoring system issues. The meeting, a mix of plenary session and targeted working groups, also included several opportunities for Panel members to discuss concerns related to the BP oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico. Eric Schwaab, NOAA Assistant Administrator for Fisheries, also addressed the group. The Panel’s deliberations were facilitated by CONCUR Principal Scott McCreary and Senior Associate Bennett Brooks.

The symposium, held in Las Vegas, focused on five objectives:

• Develop a model curriculum for climate change (CC) education to be taught in Nevada’s system of higher education;
• Identify a list of priority programs/courses across Nevada’s institutions where funding will be best served to improve CC education in Nevada;
• Generate ideas for programs/courses that facilitate cooperation, mentoring, and networking between public and private sectors, university and community colleges in teaching CC;
• Identify new and existing programs across Nevada’s institutions which need funding for CC education; and
• Explore possibilities for the dissemination/sharing of teaching material across Nevada’s system of higher education.

Participants included more than 60 academic faculty and administrators from six of the seven institutions under Nevada’s System of Higher Education (NSHE), drawn from a comprehensive inventory of Climate Change courses taught within NSHE. Participants from diverse communities and disciplines within Nevada were also invited. Invitations were also extended to the New Mexico and Idaho EPSCoR programs to foster and strengthen tri-state collaboration and communication in Climate Change science and education.

The participants developed numerous strategies and ideas for enhancing the CC curriculum including: creation of a NSHE forum for faculty to exchange CC curriculum ideas, increase in the use of interdisciplinary courses for teaching of climate change, and development of a teaching module on climate change. The deliberations from the conference will be used to help guide the selection criteria for the educational grants available from Nevada EPSCoR for this year.

“The Ocean Climate Initiative, spearheaded by Gulf of the Farallones National Marine Sanctuary (GFNMS), addresses climate change impacts along the North-central California coast and ocean environment through fostering awareness, advocating solutions, and promoting action amongst government agencies, public organizations, private corporations, and individuals to build ecosystem resilience and sustainability.

The initiative’s goal is to provide real solutions on a local, state, and federal level through partnerships, research collaborations, outreach and education, and policy reform. The initiative’s objectives include: 1) identifying the physical drivers and addressing the biological impacts of climate change on the region’s coast and ocean; 2) acting as a climate change communication center to facilitate the centralization of ideas and educate the public on personal choices that reduce their carbon footprint; 3) managing local marine ecosystems for resiliency; 4) advising GFNMS on how to rehabilitate their facilities and procedures to become a model of sustainability; and 5) promoting inter and intra-agency, non-profit organizations, and business partnerships within the region to form a resource sharing alliance.”

See the article in today’s SF Chronicle for more information about the report and the Initiative.

In early 2010, CONCUR was selected by NMFS to facilitate the False Killer Whale Take Reduction Team, which is a formal regulatory negotiation process aimed at reducing false killer whale takes under an aggressive timeline. Parties to the dialogue include 19 negotiators representing a range of commercial fishing, conservation, fishery managers, gear specialists and scientific researchers. Initial meetings, held in Honolulu, brought together Team members, NMFS staff and others to initiate discussions focused on identifying potential strategies for reducing false killer whale takes below a state known as Potential Biological Removal (PBR). CONCUR’s role in the effort includes strategic planning with NMFS, preparation of draft and final meeting materials, review of and comment on draft presentations, outreach to Team members both before and after each meeting, structuring and guiding negotiations in real time, and preparation of Key Outcomes Memoranda (PDF) summarizing the meeting’s primary results and future steps.

From 2007 to 2010, CONCUR served as lead facilitator for the project. CONCUR provided process design guidance, strategic planning assistance and oversight of technical experts, and also served as the primary technical writer of the final AAG Report entitled, “Management Options for a Potential Red Abalone Fishery on San Miguel Island” (CONCUR Inc., January 29, 2010). This Report describes the management options developed by the stakeholders, the collaborative process used to guide the collaboration and the technical information that informed the management options.

At its March 2010 meeting, the California Department of Fish and Game approved the Marine Resource Committee’s recommendation to perform a supplemental modeling analysis examining the risk of total allowable catch levels. This, along with staff cost estimates of each alternative, will be used to inform its decision regarding a potential fishery for red abalone.

Visit the DFG AAG project website for more information.

The report – entitled “Management Options for a Potential Red Abalone Fishery on San Miguel Island” (January 29, 2010) and co-authored by Department of Fish and Game (DFG) staff, Abalone Advisory Group (AAG) members and CONCUR – describes a suite of management options including considerations of a Total Allowable Catch (TAC) for a potential abalone fishery. The report also details the AAG’s collaborative joint fact-finding process and the population modeling effort used in the process. The report is the culmination of four years of work by the AAG.

From 2007 until February 2010, CONCUR served as lead facilitator for the AAG, a stakeholder group convened by the California Department of Fish and Game (DFG) to represent the interests of commercial fishing, recreational diving, marine conservation, and fisheries science. The elements of the AAG’s charge were to provide recommendations regarding: 1) a “total allowable catch”, 2) alternatives for allocation between recreational and commercial take, 3) alternative regulations, and 4) potential management, enforcement, and monitoring techniques.

At its February meeting, the MRC recommended additional modeling to explore San Miguel Island abalone stock projections over a longer time frame. It further directed DFG staff to provide cost estimates and a more refined analysis of each management option. The MRC also recommended a recess of the AAG until supplemental modeling and cost estimates have been completed. These MRC recommendations will be presented to the full Commission for consideration at its March 3, 2010 meeting.

CONCUR’s multiple roles in the project included facilitation, process design, strategic planning, oversight of technical experts and technical writing. CONCUR also partnered with DFG to design the Terms of Reference for a Technical Panel process and a companion Review Committee effort. CONCUR Associate Rebecca Tuden was among the presenters to the MRC.

A PDF copy of the main AAG report is available here (PDF link). The report with all of its appendices is available here.

In documenting the Initiative’s North Central Coast Regional Stakeholder Group process, the article highlights enabling factors, strategic principles and key decision support elements that accounted for a successful collaborative planning process. One of first peer-reviewed articles to document planning for a network of Marine Protected Areas (MPAs), the authors link the rich case study to published literature on conservation biology and public policy mediation.

Full reprints of the published article are available for download/purchase via the journal publisher. You may also contact CONCUR for a copy of the pre-print version of the paper.