1286-S

1286-S.E AAS 04/11/01

ESHB 1286 - S COMM AMD

By Committee on Natural Resources, Parks & Shorelines

ADOPTED AS AMENDED 04/11/01

Strike everything after the enacting clause and insert the following:

"Sec. 1. RCW 77.95.210 and 2000 c 107 s 11 are each amended to read as follows:

(1) Except as provided in subsection (2) of this section, the department may supply, at a reasonable charge, surplus salmon eggs to a person for use in the cultivation of salmon. The department shall not intentionally create a surplus of salmon to provide eggs for sale. The department shall only sell salmon eggs from stocks that are not suitable for salmon population rehabilitation or enhancement in state waters in Washington after the salmon harvest on surplus salmon has been first maximized by both commercial and recreational fishers.

(2) The department shall not destroy hatchery origin salmon for the purposes of destroying viable eggs that would otherwise be useful for propagation or salmon recovery purposes, as determined by the department and Indian tribes with treaty fishing rights in a collaborative manner, for replenishing fish runs. Eggs deemed surplus by the state must be provided, in the following order of priority, to:

(a) Voluntary cooperative salmon culture programs under the supervision of the department under chapter 77.100 RCW;

(b) Regional fisheries enhancement group salmon culture programs under supervision of the department under this chapter;

(c) Salmon culture programs requested by lead entities and approved by the salmon funding recovery board under chapter 77.85 RCW;

(d) Hatcheries of federally approved tribes in Washington to whom eggs are moved, not sold, under the interlocal cooperation act, chapter 39.34 RCW;

(e) Governmental hatcheries in Washington, Oregon, and Idaho.

The order of priority established in this subsection for distributing surplus eggs does not apply when there is a shortfall in the supply of eggs.

(3) All sales, provisions, distributions, or transfers shall be consistent with the department's egg transfer and aquaculture disease control regulations as now existing or hereafter amended. Prior to department determination that eggs of a salmon stock are surplus and available for sale, the department shall assess the productivity of each watershed that is suitable for receiving eggs.

Sec. 2. RCW 77.95.270 and 1989 c 336 s 6 are each amended to read as follows:

Except as provided in RCW 77.95.210, the department may make available to private contractors salmon eggs in excess of department hatchery needs for the purpose of contract rearing to release the smolts into public waters. However, providing salmon eggs as specified in RCW 77.95.210(2) has the highest priority. The priority of providing eggs surplus after meeting the requirements of RCW 77.95.210(2) to contract rearing ((~~shall be~~)) is a higher priority than providing eggs to aquaculture purposes ((~~which~~)) that are not destined for release into Washington public waters.

Sec. 3. RCW 77.100.050 and 1987 c 505 s 73 are each amended to read as follows:

(1) The department shall:

(a) Encourage and support the establishment of cooperative agreements for the development and operation of cooperative food fish, shellfish, game fish, game bird, game animal, and nongame wildlife projects, and projects which provide an opportunity for volunteer groups to become involved in resource and habitat-oriented activities. All cooperative projects shall be fairly considered in the approval of cooperative agreements;

(b) Identify regions and species or activities that would be particularly suitable for cooperative projects providing benefits compatible with department goals;

(c) Determine the availability of rearing space at operating facilities or of net pens, egg boxes, portable rearing containers, incubators, and any other rearing facilities for use in cooperative projects, and allocate them to volunteer groups as fairly as possible;

(d) Make viable eggs available for replenishing fish runs, and salmon carcasses for nutrient enhancement of streams. If a regional fisheries enhancement group, lead entity, volunteer cooperative group, federally approved tribe in Washington, or a governmental hatchery in Washington, Oregon, or Idaho requests the department for viable eggs, the department must include the request within the brood stock document prepared for review by the regional offices. The eggs shall be distributed in accordance with the priority established in RCW 77.95.210 if they are available. A request for viable eggs may only be denied if the eggs would not be useful for propagation or salmon recovery purposes, as determined under RCW 77.95.210.

(e) Exempt volunteer groups from payment of fees to the department for activities related to the project;

((~~(e)~~)) (f) Publicize the cooperative program;

((~~(f)~~)) (g) Not substitute a new cooperative project for any part of the department's program unless mutually agreeable to the department and volunteer group;

((~~(g)~~)) (h) Not approve agreements that are incompatible with legally existing land, water, or property rights.

(2) The department may, when requested, provide to volunteer groups its available professional expertise and assist the volunteer group to evaluate its project. The department must conduct annual workshops in each administrative region of the department that has fish stocks listed as threatened or endangered under the federal endangered species act, 16 U.S.C. Sec. 1531 et seq., in order to assist volunteer groups with egg rearing, share information on successful salmon recovery projects accomplished by volunteers within the state, and provide basic training on monitoring efforts that can be accomplished by volunteers in order to help determine if their efforts are successful.

Sec. 4. RCW 77.100.060 and 2000 c 107 s 112 are each amended to read as follows:

The commission shall establish by rule:

(1) The procedure for entering a cooperative agreement and the application forms for a permit to release fish or wildlife required by RCW 77.12.457. The procedure shall indicate the information required from the volunteer group as well as the process of review by the department. The process of review shall include the means to coordinate with other agencies and Indian tribes when appropriate and to coordinate the review of any necessary hydraulic permit approval applications.

(2) The procedure for providing within forty-five days of receipt of a proposal a written response to the volunteer group indicating the date by which an acceptance or rejection of the proposal can be expected, the reason why the date was selected, and a written summary of the process of review. The response should also include any suggested modifications to the proposal which would increase its likelihood of approval and the date by which such modified proposal could be expected to be accepted. If the proposal is rejected, the department must provide in writing the reasons for rejection. The volunteer group may request the director or the director's designee to review information provided in the response.

(3) The priority of the uses to which eggs, seed, juveniles, or brood stock are put. Use by cooperative projects shall be second in priority only to the needs of programs of the department or of other public agencies within the territorial boundaries of the state. Sales of eggs, seed, juveniles, or brood stock have a lower priority than use for cooperative projects. The rules must identify and implement appropriate protocols for brood stock handling, including the outplanting of adult fish, spawning, incubation, rearing, and release and establish a prioritized schedule for implementation of this act, and shall include directives for allowing more hatchery salmon to spawn naturally in areas where progeny of hatchery fish have spawned, in order to increase the number of viable salmon eggs and restore healthy numbers of fish within the state.

(4) The procedure for the director to notify a volunteer group that the agreement for the project is being revoked for cause and the procedure for revocation. Revocation shall be documented in writing to the volunteer group. Cause for revocation may include: (a) The unavailability of adequate biological or financial resources; (b) the development of unacceptable biological or resource management conflicts; or (c) a violation of agreement provisions. Notice of cause to revoke for a violation of agreement provisions may specify a reasonable period of time within which the volunteer group must comply with any violated provisions of the agreement.

(5) An appropriate method of distributing among volunteer groups fish, bird, or animal food or other supplies available for the program.

NEW SECTION. Sec. 5. A new section is added to chapter 77.04 RCW to read as follows:

(1) The department shall prepare an annual surplus salmon report. This report shall include the disposition of adult salmonids that have returned to salmonid hatchery facilities operated under the jurisdiction of the state that:

(a) Have not been harvested; and

(b) Were not allowed to escape for natural spawning.

(2) The report shall include by species, the number and estimated weight of surplus salmon and steelhead and a description of the disposition of the adult carcasses including, but not limited to, the following categories:

(a) Disposed in landfills;

(b) Transferred to another government agency for reproductive purposes;

(d) Sold to contract buyers after spawning;

(e) Transferred to Native American tribes;

(f) Donated to food banks; and

(g) Used in stream nutrient enrichment programs.

(3) The report shall also include by species, information on the number of requests for viable salmon eggs, the number of these requests that were granted and the number that were denied, the geographic areas for which these requests were granted or denied, and a brief explanation given for each denial of a request for viable salmon eggs.

(4) The report shall also be included in the biennial state of the salmon report required by RCW 77.85.020 and other similar state reports on salmon.

(5) The report shall include an assessment of the infrastructure needs and facility modifications necessary to implement this act.

NEW SECTION. Sec. 6. This act is necessary for the immediate preservation of the public peace, health, or safety, or support of the state government and its existing public institutions, and takes effect immediately."

ESHB 1286 - S COMM AMD

By Committee on Natural Resources, Parks & Shorelines

ADOPTED 04/11/01

On page 1, line 1 of the title, after "eggs;" strike the remainder of the title and insert "amending RCW 77.95.210, 77.95.270, 77.100.050, and 77.100.060; adding a new section to chapter 77.04 RCW; and declaring an emergency."