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~~>FISHLINK SUBLEGALS 8/11/00<~~
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A WEEKLY QUOTA OF FISHERY SHORTS CAUGHT AND
LANDED BY THE INSTITUTE FOR FISHERIES RESOURCES
AND THE PACIFIC COAST FEDERATION OF FISHERMEN'S
ASSOCIATIONS
VOL 2, NO. 6 11 AUGUST 2000
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2:06/01. PG&E UNVEILS TO CPUC PLAN FOR HYDROPOWER
DIVESTITURE/DEREGULATION: With the rest of the nation watching
as California continues down the path of energy deregulation, and with
energy costs already skyrocketing in San Diego County where energy has
now unregulated, Pacific Gas & Electric (PG&E) on Wednesday, 9 August,
unveiled its proposal for divesting of its hydroelectric facilities, the most
extensive in California and the last of the regulated assets of the energy
company. The proposal was made to the California Public Utilities
Commission (CPUC) which is currently holding hearings on the sale of the
hydro facilities (see Sublegals, 2:05/02, also 18 February 2000). Because the
divestiture of these dams and their being put into an unregulated market will
affect important salmon streams, PCFFA is a party to the CPUC proceedings.
The PG&E proposal, which has the backing of one consumer group and
a few water agencies, is much less generous than last year's proposal it had
before the California Legislature, but both propose "spinning-off" the
currently regulated hydro assets to a wholly-owned PG&E subsidiary in the
unregulated market. Once the assets are divested then the current rate freeze
in California will be lifted, as it already has been in San Diego County. In
the proposal before the CPUC, the assets would be transferred for a sale price
of $2.8 billion (compared with the $3.3 billion in last year's bill) with $68
million set aside for environmental clean-up (compared to $200 million last
year) over 40 years (less than $30 million in today's dollars). Expenditure of
the environmental monies would also be subject to a PG&E veto. Like last
year, the proposal before the CPUC gives PG&E's subsidiary to right to sell
any of the assets at any time, and in this year's proposal is specific
language
giving the Sonoma County Water Agency the right of first refusal over the
Potter Valley project in Mendocino County that diverts water from the Eel
River into the Russian to fuel Sonoma County growth. The Eel River
diversions are, in part, one of the reasons chinook and coho salmon in that
Eel watershed are now listed under the Endangered Species Act.
The reason TURN, the consumer group, is supporting the current proposal
is that it would split any return on investment in excess of 12 3/4 percent
with ratepayers on a 90:10 ratepayer/PG&E shareholder basis. While it
sounds good at least for consumers, what is not said is that PG&E has yet to
earn over 12 3/4 on its investment and could probably cook the books to
make sure that never happened. In the meantime, an unregulated hydro
system puts many salmon populations at risk, as well as water delivery and
could undue much of the fish, wildlife and Delta restoration undertaken by
CALFED. In the Legislature is a bill attempting to put a cap on San Diego
electric rates while the bill PCFFA-sponsored for a state takeover of the
hydro facilities, AB 1956 by Assemblyman Fred Keeley, remains bottled up
in the Assembly Utilities & Commerce Committee. Info on AB 1956 can be
viewed at:
http://democrats.assembly.ca.gov/english/featurestory/20000222-603.htm
2:06/02. LENT NAMED NEW DIRECTOR OF NMFS SOUTHWEST
REGION: On 4 August, NOAA Assistant Administrator for Fisheries (the
head of the National Marine Fisheries Service), Penny Dalton, named Dr.
Rebecca Lent as the new director of NMFS Southwest Region, headquartered
in Long Beach, CA. Lent takes over from Rod McInnis who has been acting
director for over a year following the departure of Dr. William Hogarth (now
deputy director of NMFS). Lent has headed NMFS' Highly Migratory
Species Division since 1997; previously she had served as chief economist
of that division. She holds a PhD. in Resource Economics from Oregon
State University and a masters degree in economics from San Diego State
University. Her graduate research focused on Pacific salmon and the
California swordfish fishery. For more information on this appointment,
contact Gordon Helm at (301) 713-2370.
2:06/03. CORPS AND EPA FIGHT OVER WATER RULES FOR
SNAKE DAMS: The US Army Corps of Engineers, in a letter dated 5 June,
rejected the US Environmental Protection Agency's (EPA) assertion in its
own 27 April official comments on the Draft Snake River EIS that the Lower
Snake River dams must meet Clean Water Act standards, particularly for
water temperature. In a sharply worded rebuttal, written with assistance from
the Department of Justice, the EPA on 31 July fired back a response which
cited statutes as well as six Ninth Circuit rulings requiring Clean Water Act
compliance at these dams. Judge Frye of the U.S. District Court of Oregon
also reached the same conclusion earlier this year in National Wildlife
Federation, et. al., v. U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, 92 F. Supp. 2d 1072,
1081-82 (D. Ore. 2000), a case in which PCFFA is a co-Plaintiff. That case
is expected to come to trial on whether the dams actually violate the Clean
Water Act sometime this fall. Water temperatures in the four slackwater
reservoirs behind the lower Snake River dams have routinely exceed
maximum safe water temperatures for migrating salmon for many weeks
each year since the dams were completed. Elevated water temperatures in the
Columbia and Snake Basins this year have reached critical highs, likely
leading to salmon dieoffs throughout the system (see Sublegals 2:06/15
below). For information:
http://www.oregonlive.com/outdoors/index.ssf?/news/oregonian/00/08/lc_
61heat11.frame.
2:06/04. CORPORATE GROWERS GO AFTER FAMILY
FARMERS' WATER, SAN JOAQUIN RIVER AND FISHERY
RESTORATION COULD BE JEOPARDIZED: The Westlands Water
District made up of large corporate growers (cotton, etc.) on the west side of
California's San Joaquin Valley have filed an "area of origin" claim seeking
more than one-half million acre-feet of water from the Friant Water Users
Authority (FWUA) that supplies some 15,000 family farms on the east side
of the valley. Friant gets its water from the Bureau of Reclamation's (BOR)
Millerton reservoir (behind Friant Dam on the San Joaquin River) near
Fresno. Westlands is a junior water rights holder that irrigates the arid
and
selenium laden-lands of the west side (land bought cheap and made valuable
by subsidized water deliveries from the state and federal water projects).
The
water Westlands is attempting to take amounts to a full one-third of Friant's
entitlement and the full capacity of Millerton reservoir.
It is more than irrigation water at stake here between two competing
agricultural interests. FWUA has been a partner with the Natural Resources
Defense Council, The Bay Institute and PCFFA in the effort to restore flows
below Friant Dam to rewater a 150-mile section of the river that has been dry
in most years following the beginning of Friant operations in 1948. The joint
project, sponsored in part by BOR, is to first reestablish riparian vegetation
and other river functions in an effort to make the mainstem of the river up to
Friant habitable for salmon. The San Joaquin, until Friant operations began,
supported a run of spring-salmon that averaged 115,000 spawners annually.
Because of the Friant Unit of the Central Valley Project (CVP) that run is
extinct.
Cole Upton a farmer and chairman of FWUA said his group "will mount
a vigorous defense against this vile attack [Westland's area of origin claim].
Due to the vicious and back-door nature of this attack and since our very
existence is at risk, we will also initiate offensive actions to ensure our
survival and prevent similar actions." For more information, e-mail FWUA
at: fwuarm at lightspeed.net.
2:06/05. GOLDBOROUGH DAM SLATED FOR REMOVAL:
Washington's Goldborough Creek Dam will be torn down next summer as
the latest Northwest dam slated for removal to help restore depressed salmon
runs. The 14-foot high dam has blocked Goldborough Creek salmon passage
for 115 years, but now serves no purpose and cannot be cost-effectively
repaired. The dam is owned by Simpson Timber Company, which will
contribute $1.1 million toward the $4.8 million demolition costs. For further
information see:
http://www.oregonlive.com/news/oregonian/index.ssf?/news/oregonian/00
/08/nw_11dam06.frame.
2:06/06. LEGISLATION INTRODUCED TO PLACE
MORATORIUM ON FOREST CLEARCUTTING IN CALIFORNIA:
On 9 August, California Assemblyman Fred Keeley (D-Boulder Creek)
introduced language that will be amended into his bill, AB 717, now before
the State Legislature, to put a two-year moratorium on clearcutting of private
industrial timberlands until there is an independent scientific review of the
clear-cutting impacts on drinking water, fish and wildlife, as well as impacts
to human health and safety from fire risk and flooding. The measure came
about as a result of plans by Sierra Pacific Industries, the nation's second
largest private landowner to begin clearcutting operations in the Sierras.
Clearcutting as a means of tree harvesting is a relatively new type of
logging,
in widespread use only in the past 30 years. Since 1972, alone, Sierra Pacific
has increased its clearcutting operations by 2422 percent!
The Sierras are the water source for California's Central Valley rivers
which now support the largest salmon run (fall-run chinook) along the west
coast, that sustain commercial and sport harvests offshore California, Oregon
and Washington. In addition to the problems with clearcutting devastating
salmon watersheds, there is also concern with the Sierra clearcutting proposal
which could silt in numerous hydroelectric facilities in the Sierras and
affect
water quality and storage reservoirs as well. The Keeley bill is supported by
conservation and fishing organizations, including the Sierra Club and
PCFFA. For more information, go to: www.forestwatchers.org.
2:06/07. CALIFORNIA FISH & GAME COMMISSION MEETING:
California's Fish & Game Commission will meet 24-25 August in Oakland
at the Elihu Harris State Building, 1st Fl. Auditorium, 1515 Clay Street. The
meeting will cover a variety of issues including the status of CALFED
habitat restoration, the Pacific Fishery Management Council's (PFMC)
marine reserve program, commercial nearshore fishery regulations and
herring fishery, restricted access pink shrimp trawl fishery, and Board of
Forestry rules for watershed assessment. For more information, visit the
Commission website at: http://www.dfg.ca.gov/fg_comm/index.html.
2:06/08. EPA TO PROPOSE NEW OCEAN DISCHARGE
REGULATIONS: The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) has
announced it will begin developing new regulations on ocean pollution
discharges. The action is in response to the recent Clinton Administration
Executive Order on Marine Protected Areas. The order includes an initiative
to issue new rules to protect those areas of the ocean that are
"environmentally sensitive and ecologically important." EPA is asking for
input to identify and expand areas that warrant special protection, enhance
marine water quality standards, and strengthen water quality criteria for
discharges into ocean waters. Among other things, EPA wants nominations
for specific ocean and coastal sites that warrant special protection. All
discharges could be prohibited in such areas if the regulations are adopted.
Candidate sites could include fish spawning habitat, critical habitat for
endangered species or marine mammals, coral reefs, and important sea grass
beds. The comment deadline is 18 August. For more information or to
submit comments, contact: Robert Wayland, Director, Office of Wetlands,
Oceans & Watersheds, U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, 301 M Street,
SW, Washington, DC 20460
2:06/09. NEW GROUP AIMS TO HEAD OFF WATER
POLLUTION TMDL RULES: The 26 July edition of the Wall Street
Journal (West Coast Edition), in an article titled "New Group Aims to Fight
Water Rules," exposes lobbying efforts by some of California's worst
polluters to convince California Governor Gray Davis to intervene to prevent
implementation of non-point source ("TMDL") water pollution rules as
currently required by the Clean Water Act and by court order. According to
the article, the group, calling itself "The Alliance for Water Quality," is
run
out of the Statehouse lobbying firm Kahl/Pownall Advocates, and opposes
efforts by the US Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) and state and
regional water quality boards to impose much needed water pollution
standards on forestry, agriculture and development. Among its members are
the California Manufacturers and Technology Assn., the California Farm
Bureau, the Forest Resources Council, the Western States Petroleum
Association and the California Business Properties Association. In a letter
dated 23 June to Gov. Davis, the group asked the Governor to "personally
ensure" that state pollution control agencies back off any further
restrictions
of nonpoint source water pollution in the State's waterways. Nonpoint
source pollution has devastated California's fisheries and filled estuaries
with
toxic chemicals. There are at least 1,500 specific pollutants in California's
more than 500 severely polluted bodies of water.
Though authority to issue TMDL standards goes back to the original 1972
Clean Water Act, the provision was rarely used until recently. PCFFA and
other organizations pressed for years for stronger efforts to control nonpoint
source pollution, culminating in a successful court effort and a Consent Order
requiring implementation of TMDLs in many northern California rivers an
effort that was unsuccessfully challenged in court by the Farm Bureau,
American Forest & Paper Association., and the California Forestry
Association in the Pronsolino case. Just last month new TMDL rules were
adopted by the Administration in spite of efforts by Congress to scuttle them
(see Sublegals 2:02/16), though Congressional Republican leaders
succeeded in delaying their implementation until 2001 by simply refusing to
fund implementation. The Farm Bureau, the American Forest & Paper
Association, and the National Pork Producers Council, among others, have
now filed petitions in U.S. District Court of Appeals in the DC Circuit to
overturn the new TMDL rules.
2:06/10. LAWSUIT GETS GO AHEAD TO TRIAL TO HALT
CHANNEL DEEPENING PROJECT ON THE COLUMBIA RIVER:
On 8 August, the Daily Astorian reported U.S. Federal District Court Judge
Barbara Rothstein rejected a motion to dismiss a lawsuit against the National
Marine Fisheries Service over the federal fishery agency's issuance of a
salmon Endangered Species Act (ESA) biological opinion (BO) that would
permit the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers to proceed with a channel
deepening project for the Columbia River. On 15 February, American Rivers,
PCFFA and IFR were among the plaintiffs filing suit in Federal Court in
Seattle to overturn NMFS' biological opinion on the dredging (see Sublegals,
18 February). The dredging program has been vigorously opposed by both
salmon and crab fishermen.
Judge Rothstein also denied the government's motion to move the case
from Seattle to Portland. Her ruling states that the groups "would suffer a
hardship by the postponement of judicial action." If the court forces NMFS
to withdraw its biological opinion, the corps can't move forward until another
opinion is completed. The U.S. Department of Justice, which is handling the
lawsuit on behalf of NMFS, had asked Rothstein to throw out the lawsuit
because the Corps still hasn't issued a final decision about proceeding with
the project. For more information, visit American Rivers website at:
http://www.amrivers.org, or go to:
http://www.dailyastorian.com/news//y128/27/Local/DredgeNews/
DredgeNews.html.
2:06/11. COMMENTS SOUGHT ON MPAS IN AUSTRALIA: The
July issue of The Queensland Fisherman reports that the Queensland,
Australia government has released a discussion paper outlining its suggested
policies on marine protected areas (MPAs) in their state waters. The
document, called "Marine Protected Areas in Queensland - A Draft Planning
Framework", has information that would have significant implications for
commercial fishermen, both positive and negative. The seafood industry has
prepared comments to the discussion paper. The paper can be viewed by
visiting the following website:
http://www.env.qld.gov.au/environment/coast/parks/. PCFFA and
IFR's policy paper on MPAs can be found at its website:
http://www.pond.net/~pcffa
2:06/12. CLINTON SIGNS BILL CREATING OCEANS
COMMISSION: The Environmental News Service reported on 7 August
that President Clinton signed the legislation creating an Oceans Commission
composed of "ocean and coastal experts, policy makers, environmental
groups and industry representatives." The government-established
commission follows on years of oceans legislation languishing in the
Congress. Finally, in May the Pew Charitable Trusts, out of frustration with
Congressional unwillingness to act, established the Pew Oceans Commission,
headed by New Jersey Governor Christine Todd Whitman and former
California Congressman Leon Panetta, and includes PCFFA/IFR President
Pietro Parravano among its 20 members (see Sublegals, 26 May 2000). After
the naming of the Pew Commission, Congress finally decided to act (see
Sublegals, 2:04/17). The Congressionally-created commission will be named
by the next President, with 12 of its 16 members nominated by the
Congressional leadership. It is intended to follow on the Stratton
Commission model whose work over 30 years ago laid the groundwork for
current federal oceans policy, and is mandated to make recommendations on
"revamping of U.S. fisheries management and marine protection laws."
2:06/13. AUTHORS SUMMARIZE SNAKE RIVER BIOP IN
SCIENCE MAGAZINE: In the 4 August issue of Science is a report by
Charles Mann and Mark Plummer, the authors of Noah's Choice, on the
situation of the Snake River dams. The National Marine Fisheries Service
(NMFS) released a Biological Opinion on 27 July which included habitat
restoration, overhauling hatcheries, limiting harvest, and improving river
flow to save salmon on the river, but did not include the immediate breaching
of the four dams on the Snake River (see Sublegals, 2:03/09). For now the
dams will not be breached and there will be a continuation of other salmon
recovery efforts. The author's use this as an example of what is
happening throughout the Pacific Northwest and California. For more
information on this article visit www.sciencemag.org
2:06/14. PFMC MEETING IN SACRAMENTO: The Pacific Fishery
Management Council will hold its 11-15 September meeting at the Red Lion
Hotel in Sacramento. Agenda items include: Groundfish Strategic Plan,
rebuilding program for canary and cowcod, marine reserves, coastal pelagic
species, highly migratory species and more. New council members will be
present that were appointed in July (see Sublegals, 2:01/01). For more
information, visit the Pacific Council website at: http://www.pcouncil.org
2:06/15. HIGH TEMPERATURES ON THE COLUMBIA
THREATEN RETURNING SALMON SPAWNERS: The Associated
Press reported today, 11 August, that returning salmon and steelhead to the
Columbia and Snake Rivers could die before spawning because of high water
temperatures in the rivers due to hot dry summer weather and the changed
flow regime in the Columbia Basin due to the myriad of hydropower dams
that hold water in large surface-area reservoirs where the water is easily
heated during summer months. Although Oregon and Washington State laws
mandate river temperatures not exceed 68 degrees, the highest temperature
salmon can endure on a sustained basis, current river temperatures have been
hovering between 70 and 72 degrees.
The temperature at McNary Dam, for example, has not dropped below 68
degrees since 14 July. Hourly temperature averages ranged from 72 degrees
to 76 degrees on Tuesday, the last day complete records were available, said
the Associated Press report. Kyle Martin, a hydrologist with the Columbia
River Inter-Tribal Fish Commission, says relief is not in sight. The forecast,
he said, is for temperatures in the mid-80s through September. "These
reservoirs have become warm pools of death," he said. High water
temperatures are also threatening salmon on the Klamath River in California
(see Sublegals, 2:01/ 04).
2:06/16. SWORDFISH FISHERMEN GET A BREAK: With new
regulations in place over the swordfish longline fishery in the Atlantic, the
"Give Swordfish a Break" campaign by a number of conservation groups
working with chefs to discourage swordfish consumption has been called off.
It's now okay to eat swordfish again, according to these groups. This past
week the National Marine Fisheries Service announced plans to close more
than 100,000 square miles of ocean to swordfishing in the Gulf of Mexico
and the Atlantic and additional closures to protect sea turtles may be enacted
in September off Georges Bank. The swordfish boycott had affected west
coast swordfish fishermen who use large mesh, short (less than 6,000 feet)
driftnets to take swordfish off California. The driftnets can select for size
and
thus avoid taking juvenile swordfish. Longlines are used in Hawaii and the
Western Pacific where this fishery is faced with similar closures because of
the incidental take of endangered sea turtles (see Sublegals, 2:02/19). For
more information on the lifting of the boycott, go to: www.seaweb.
2:06/17. PRELIMINARY RESULTS BY COMMERCE FINDS
CHILEAN SALMON FARMERS GUILTY OF DUMPING INTO U.S.
MARKET: The US Department of Commerce (DOC) announced on
Tuesday, 8 August, in its Notice of Preliminary Results of Antidumping Duty
Administrative that it has preliminarily determined "that sales have been
made below normal value (NV), in relation to exports of fresh Atlantic
salmon by nine Chilean producers/exporters from July 28, 1998, through
June 30, 1999. In response to requests by eight producers/exporters of subject
merchandise and the petitioners, the Department of Commerce (DOC) is
conducting an administrative review of the antidumping duty order on fresh
Atlantic salmon from Chile. This review covers nine producers/exporters of
the subject merchandise The period of review (POR) is July 28, 1998,
through June 30, 1999."
If these preliminary results are adopted by DOC in its final results,
it has
announced it " will instruct the U.S. Customs Service to assess antidumping
duties based on the difference between the export price (EP) or constructed
export price (CEP) and the normal value. Interested parties are invited to
comment on these preliminary results. Parties who submit arguments are
requested to submit with each argument: (1) A statement of the issue and (2)
a brief summary of the argument. Further, we would appreciate parties
submitting comments to provide the Department with an additional copy of
the public version of any such comments on diskette." For more information,
contact the U.S. Department of Commerce at its website:
http://www.doc.gov.
2:06/18. FAILURE OF FISHERY MANAGEMENT: In the August
issue of the Fishermen's News is an article by PCFFA/IFR's Glen Spain,
"Why Fisheries Management Fails" based on a paper given in July at the
10th Biennial Conference of the International Institute of Fisheries Economics
& Trade (IIFET at Oregon State University. A copy of the article is available
on PCFFA's web site at: http://www.pond.net/~pcffa/fn-aug00.htm.
GOT NEWS?: Submit news items to Molly Thomas, editor at:
ifrfish at aol.com or call the IFR office with the news and a source at either:
(415) 561-FISH (Southwest Office) or (541) 689-2000 (Northwest Office).
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