An important message from CCA Washington:
We have no doubt that you have closely followed the many recent twists and turns of the collective efforts of CCA in Oregon and Washington to put an end to commercial gillnetting on the Columbia River. CCA’s actions over the past several years, including this year’s ballot measure effort in Oregon, have been strategically focused on getting indiscriminate gillnets off of our native fish and wildlife populations forever. Period. CCA members across the Northwest have been critical to all of these efforts.
The time has come for all of us to strike a final blow to indiscriminate gillnetting by attending an important meeting
Thursday, October 18 in Portland and sending WDFW Commission members a pre-drafted email in support of the essential components of Oregon Governor Kitzhaber’s proposal. Please continue reading this alert as more important details are included below.
It would take too long to describe how we have arrived at this critical moment, but the more important fact is that we are just weeks away from a watershed moment when the Washington and Oregon Fish and Wildlife Commissions will vote to adopt a proposal that would rid the lower Columbia River of gillnets. After years of work our elected officials agree that non-selective gillnets have no place in the sensitive, mixed-stock fisheries of the lower Columbia River. Oregon Governor Kitzhaber and the two candidates to become Washington’s next Governor are on board with a plan that removes gillnets, is good for the fish and would boost the economy of our region.
By now you are well aware of the fundamental components of this proposal. While the bi-state Commission working group is working through important details, there is growing agreement that gillnets must be removed from the mainstem of the Columbia River where they threaten native fish and wildlife populations.
This decision will be made in the next three months. The outcome will set the tone for how we will manage fisheries across the Pacific Northwest for years to come. We have no choice to but to go all in at this critical moment as we know the gillnet lobby will do the same.
Here’s what we need you to do:
Attend Thursday’s Important Meeting in Portland. The next meeting of the bi-state Commission Working Group is scheduled for Thursday, October 18 at the Portland Airport Embassy Suites Hotel (address: 7900 Northeast 82nd Avenue; Portland, OR 97220) The meeting will start at 8:30 and is open to the public. The agenda can be found here. We need to pack the room with supporters of this common sense reform (we will have stickers and signs available). Be sure to sign in clearly indicating your support for removing gillnets. While the workgroup public comment period is likely to be short, you can provide brief comments to the Commissioners to express your support. In short, show up and be counted! If you do plan to attend the meeting or would like talking points, please email us at info@ccapnw.org.
Take 30 seconds to send a pre-drafted email to the Washington Fish and Wildlife Commission: We must make it abundantly clear that the public overwhelmingly supports removing gillnets from the Columbia River. While we have pre-drafted the email, we encourage you to personalize it indicating why you support this critical reform. Emails can also be sent directly to commission@dfw.wa.gov.
Commit to attending ODFW Commission meetings in November and/or December to push this over the top. We will provide more details as the meetings are scheduled.
Friends, this is our time to stand up for the resource and the next generation of those who will care for it!
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