SUCCESSFUL GEAR RECOVERY Lessons from Puget Sound

Transcription

1 APEC MARINE DEBRIS SEMINAR SUCCESSFUL GEAR RECOVERY Lessons from Puget Sound Jeff June, Project Manager Joe Schmitt & Gary Wood JD Northwest Straits Commission Washington State, U.S.

2 The Northwest Straits Derelict Fishing Gear Recovery Project January, 2004 Report to APEC

3 The Puget Sound Derelict Fishing Gear Removal Project NW Straits Commission awarded project grant 2. Fourteen partners & project mgr. recruited 3. Protocol designed 4. New state law 5. Pilot recovery work 6. New funding for 2004

4 A volunteer Commission created and leads the Derelict Gear project

5 Project area - shaded The target area is part of an inland sea comprised of major shipping, oil tanker, US Navy and ferry lanes, with over one million residents. It is also a major salmon habitat, now listed as Endangered Species. SEATTLE

6 First recorded man-made marine debris in Puget Sound Whereupon, in 2002, the first effort to clear such detritus was undertaken.

7 PROJECT CORE: No Fault, goal is recovery PERMIT ISSUES ~ Resolve this issue first PROBLEM: Two types of gear involved & two techniques necessary for recovery 1. Nets - Phase One developed safety and recovery protocols for Diver-performed removal of designated nets. Surface gases and redundant safety procedures employed, with support vessels e.g., purse seines. 2. Crab & Shrimp Traps - Different threats to more species; location techniques vary, some success with side-scan sonar. Separate recovery protocols, mechanical tools. Special political (Tribal) & technical issues to consider.

8 WHERE ARE THE NETS? The Gear Database process generated a chart of of known Northern Puget Sound with all all derelict gear sites ID ID and geospatially located -by GPS- ranked for removal or or other remediation. As As new sites become known, the maps can include the new datasets.

9 Mapped net sites are not made public

10 Map of Gear Reported September 2002

11 Finally, work underwater

12 NET RECOVERIES Divers free large seine, June, 2002

13 The team performed perfectly

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16 The media attended opening day

17 Future issues include thorough biological assessments of sites and recovered species.

18 REID HARBOR, San Juan County As killer whales breached nearby and curious seals checked out the PAGE ONE - Friday, June 21, 2002 'Ghost nets' haunt waters: Divers gingerly remove abandoned fishing gear that endangers marine life By Eran Karman Seattle Times staff reporter

19 Next: Recovery of Traps and Pots

20 Task: Locate abandoned traps and pots

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22 Sidescan sonar image of pots

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27 In In September, 2003, this project was awarded the 2003 Coastal America Partnership Award by by President Bush; presented in in Seattle at at September s Estuarine Research Foundation (ERF) Conference New grants from the State s Salmon Recovery Board and NOAA/NMFS will expand this work in in 2004

28 Participating Agencies & Organizations Phase One Participants: Northwest Straits Commission National Oceanic & Atmospheric Administration/National Marine Fisheries Service primary sponsors ~Seven County Marine Resources Committees Clallam Island Jefferson San Juan Skagit Snohomish Whatcom Project Managed by: Natural Resources Consultants, Inc. Washington Department of Fish and Wildlife Washington Department of Natural Resources Washington Department of Ecology Washington Sea Grant Program Puget Sound Action Team Tulalip Tribes U.S. Navy U. S. Army Corps of Engineers U. S. Coast Guard Hood Canal Salmon Enhancement Commercial fishing and diving Private foundations

29 In Memoriam -- Doug Williams

30 We have bent these waters to do our work, only to find out they already had jobs. -- Gary Wood