Building a River Community, continued

Year 2008
Proponent Fraser River Salmon Table Society
Project type Governance
Project type Fisheries
Project type Engage First Nations
FSWP funding source Fraser Salmon and Watersheds Program
Grant amount $140,000.00
Total project value $153,500.00
ID number FSWP08 PDM LR87

Location: Fraser River Basin

Project Summary

In early 2006, the Integrated Harvest Planning Committee (IHPC) completed a structured decision-making process with regard to Cultus Lake recovery.  A key outcome was the decision of the Commercial Salmon Advisory Board (CSAB) to approach lower Fraser First Nations - Sto:lo Nation, Sto:lo Tribal Council and independents to collaborate on the development of an integrated Fraser River sockeye salmon management plan. While many First Nation communities expressed an interest in this initiative, an urgent issue identified for immediate action was the current state of the Cultus Lake sockeye salmon population.  The outcome of these historic discussions was the development of the first Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) between the CSAB and Sto: lo First Nations.  As part of an inclusive strategy, other upriver First Nations were invited into the discussions and contributed to the development of the MOU.

‘Building a River Community’ continued the work begun in the first MOU. Elements of this work included the continued development of cross-cultural relationships between the CSAB, Sto:lo First Nations, upriver First Nations, and other groups such the recreational fishery and the conservation sector as well as the development of a framework and work-plan to identify activities which need to be carried out to restore and conserve Cultus Lake sockeye. 
‘Building a River Community’ brought together the Fraser River First Nations, Conservation organizations, the Commercial Salmon Advisory Board, and the Sports Fish Advisory Board to foster mutual respect and increased understanding of individual interests among fishers and rights-holders. The parties worked together in order to reduce conflict, foster effective communication and governance approaches, protect and restore habitat and water and support responsive and effective fisheries management, identify and organize the essential elements for recovery of the Cultus Lake sockeye stock, lay the foundation for addressing the key threats to this stock and map opportunities for recovery.

In the course of this project, a non-governmental organization, The Fraser River Salmon Table Society, was developed with an expanded mandate that not only included all First Nation communities within the Fraser River system as well as the other three partners, but a willingness to engage all issues relevant to the sustainability of wild salmon stocks on the Fraser River system.

The Mission of the Fraser River Salmon Table Society:
Recognizing that the maintenance of biodiversity is fundamental to the long term health of the Fraser River and acknowledging their responsibilities for the management and stewardship of Fraser River salmon, founding members from the Fraser River First Nations, Conservation organizations, the Commercial Salmon Advisory Board, and the Sports Fish Advisory Board (the Parties) came together to create The Fraser River Salmon Table Society. Members of this Society recognize the importance of working together to define good salmon management and to identify and achieve common objectives.  The Society recognizes that First Nations within the Fraser Watershed assert aboriginal title and rights. These are now being defined and must be acknowledged and reconciled in a just and fair manner. 

The Fraser River Salmon Table Society fosters mutual respect and increased understanding of individual interests among various fisheries and rights-holders in order to achieve reduced conflict, better decision-making, effective harvest management, improved health of salmon stocks and greater economic opportunity for all. Plans and activities must be adaptable and able to respond to external pressures and changing social values.

There are four projects and five identified goals that comprise the Continuing to Build a River Community proposal:
1) Main Table - Governance Design and Implementation
During ‘Building a River Community’, representatives of the CSAB, SFAB, UFFCA, BC Environment, Fisheries and Oceans Canada, Watershed Watch, Marine Conservation Caucus and the Sto:lo, Chehalis, Siska, Nicola, Hul’qumi’num, Soowahlie, Shuswap, Cheam, Tsilhqo’tin and Tl’azt’en First Nations met six times over a period of six months (June 27- Dec 7) as the “Salmon Table”. Over the course of these meetings, statements of Vision, Mission and Principles as well as a Constitution and Bylaws were developed for the Fraser River Salmon Table Society (FRSTS). These established a basis from which to grow. It is through the practice of collaborative decision-making that people become skilled at bringing complex joint projects to fruition. Ongoing development of governance design and principles of operation is essential to the realization of the project objectives that the Salmon Table has identified.

2) Best Practices Dialogue
With DFO’s introduction of the Pacific Integrated Commercial Fisheries Initiative to transfer licenses from the ocean fisheries to First Nations in BC, information and exchange is needed. New participants in the inland fishery are faced with new challenges; operating a landing station, dealing with buyers and developing sound business arrangements.  Buyers and processors need to get to know the new producers, develop new products and markets, and become familiar with the challenges of the inland fishery. Some have highlighted the need for a certification program to provide stability in a volatile market-place during the salmon season.  Regulators are faced with myriad demands to address the BC Food Health Act and the BC Fish Inspection Act, and to protect the standards of quality set for the BC salmon fishery. Tidal fishery regulations have limited applicability in the freshwater context and so must be adapted. The new role for regional health authorities needs time and interaction with existing participants and regulators to become effective. Inland processing capacity needs to be examined with a view to establishing portable processing facilities that could deal with the natural fluctuation in sockeye stocks, as well as to finding remedies for currently under-utilized processing facilities, such as that owned by the Scowlitz First Nation. Finally, research and development dealing with food quality and new products is needed. UBC Food Sciences has contributed to the programming with sampling systems and technical tools but much more time and project collaboration is required to eliminate “dumping” of salmon that is not suitable for the fresh-frozen market place.

3) Development and execution of Fraser River/ Cultus Lake Recovery Initiatives
Many initiatives to address predator control, Eurasian Milfoil removal, and hatchery augmentation were carried out during the 2006-2007 year.  Two additional specific trials in Milfoil removal will be conducted in 2008.  It became clear during 2007 however, that the successful application of such programs to ensure ongoing recovery and consistent enhancement for this stock would benefit from the development of stewardship by First Nations.  Thus, a training and work experience program was devised to develop First Nations fisheries field technicians able to work and apply established techniques in local waters. A one year program of classroom training combined with in-field work will yield between three and ten trained fisheries technicians, able to work in local communities and apply both established and experimental techniques in habitat and stock recovery and enhancement. This increase in capacity and involvement of local First Nations in fisheries management will positively impact the health of Cultus Lake Sockeye stocks and improve habitat and environmental conditions necessary for the its healthy survival and that of other Salmon stocks in the Fraser River Watershed.

Goal: To continue with the ongoing development and execution of Cultus Lake Recovery Initiatives including; predator control, Eurasian Milfoil removal, hatchery augmentation, education and training of First Nations fisheries technicians. Develop linkages to the DFO’S Cultus Lake Conservation Team.

Fraser River Recovery Box Initiative: Experience from the commercial fisheries on BC’s coast suggests that the use of recovery boxes in which pumped water revives incidentally caught fish prior to release, is an effective tool that greatly increases the survival rate of such fish. As most of these are from stocks of concern, the boxes help to permit the targeting of healthy stocks while allowing the release of depleted stocks. It is likely that such a system might be adapted for use in the inland fisheries.  The development of a series of roving recovery boxes that could be moved to the sites of various First Nation and recreational fisheries as needed could help to create a common, mobile recovery mechanism for stocks of concern that could be organized and used on a collective basis.

Goal:  To explore the feasibility of developing a pilot program to test the use of roving recovery boxes to be moved among sites of First Nation and recreational fisheries by newly trained First Nations fisheries technicians.

4a) Develop operational terms of reference and supply technical support for inter tribal initiatives along the Fraser River.

Faced with the likelihood of low returns of sockeye and chinook salmon to the Fraser River in 2008 and beyond, challenges to FSC access experienced by upriver First Nations, and the move by DFO toward co-management, it is clear that all Fraser River First Nations will benefit from understanding the issues and needs of all the other First Nations who share the harvest of the same stocks. The exploration of novel approaches such as the establishment of extra-territorial harvesting points for upriver Nations is necessary to ensure that all First Nations get their FSC fish each year.

Support of the inter tribal treaty process via the Salmon Table will assist First Nations organizations in dealing with contentious issues surrounding the execution of the salmon fishery while avoiding the usual AFS/AAROM political traps. The successful implementation of the inter tribal treaty process has the benefit of providing a venue for First Nations to come to a common understanding of their fishing rights and responsibilities while reestablishing inter tribal collaboration on the execution of the fishery. Envisioned is a project to bring together First Nations, supported by strong technical data as needed, to examine options for the management of the 2008 Fraser salmon season and beyond.

4b) Stuart Initiative: The early Stuart sockeye population has returned in record low numbers over the last number of cycles. This once abundant but erratic producer has been reduced to a plateau of low abundance by a number of factors. One possible factor contributing to low survivals of Stuart Lake sockeye is the culmination of low water flows coupled with higher water temperatures. In the years since the Hell’s Gate fish-way was installed there have been greater fluctuations in flows and the entrance and exit of the fish-way are sometimes above the water level. Fish held up at Hell’s Gate waiting for a change in water levels are put in a state of significant stress due to high water temperatures.

One possible solution for this might be to increase the operating range of the Hell’s Gate fish-way, offsetting the stress of high temperatures by lessening the need to use energy to hold in turbulent waters waiting for better flow conditions. An initial scoping of the extent of the flow problem is required at Hell’s Gate. This would involve a biological and engineering team to review the original blueprints, assess the design flows and compare them to the flows of today. Based on this assessment the team will be in a position to scope out the feasibility of retrofitting the fish way to accommodate additional follow conditions and establish a preliminary cost estimate.


Final Results

The final report for the study is posted in the orange resource box to the right.