Building a River Community, continued Phase II

Year 2009
Proponent Fraser River Salmon Table Society (08 LR 87)
Project type Governance
FSWP funding source Living Rivers
Grant amount $119,100
Total project value $194,740
ID number 09-LR60-G

Location: Basin wide

Project Summary

Overview

The Fraser River Salmon Table Society is a newly registered society. The founding members - Fraser River First Nations, Commercial Salmon Advisory Board, Sports Fish Advisory Board and Conservation organizations � share a vision to foster mutual respect and increased understanding of interests among the diverse salmon fisheries in the Fraser River watershed. The Salmon Table advocates coordinated, responsible fisheries management, reduced conflict, transparent communications and shared governance, and protects and restores salmon habitat.

This progressive organization is evolving in three phases. Phase one (2006-08) identified a group committed to the restoration of Fraser basin salmon stocks. In phase two, (2008-09) this group created a structure called the Fraser River Salmon Table Society. Phase three (2009-10) will focus on securing this Society as a durable entity designed to achieve the goals of its members.
Now that the lives and habitat of Fraser River salmon are threatened in myriad ways, it is imperative that former adversaries learn how to work together. They are choosing to do this within the auspices of the Salmon Table by working together on restoration projects of common concern, and in so doing are already discovering unanticipated synergies that boost their joint productivity.

Objectives
1. The Salmon Table will continue to evolve governance structures and build constructive relationships among founding partners, and beyond. It will apply to new funding sources and pursue creative revenue streams
2. The Salmon Table will continue Cultus Lake recovery initiatives including predator control, Eurasian Milfoil removal, hatchery augmentation, and education and training of First Nations fisheries technicians.
3. The Salmon Table will actively promote integrated intertribal fisheries planning and governance initiatives by providing consultation and liaison functions among lower, mid, and upper river representatives.
4. The Best Practices Dialogue facilitates discussions among First Nations, private sector processors, academics, and government involved in the Fraser River inland commercial salmon fishery, and their agency and industry partners.

Methods

1. The new Board of Directors and its Coordinator will continue to strengthen and build the Salmon Table Society by conducting its business and steering it through its inaugural year. This includes establishing its own bank account and generating new financial resources. The Society will continue to sponsor open, bi-monthly meetings in locations throughout the Fraser watershed.

2. The Cultus recovery project will continue to address the needs to remove pike minnow, explore options to remove Milfoil and continue work started on a stewardship program. An initiative to develop a market for pike minnow as well as suckers, caught as by-catch, will be undertaken as will a test removal of complete Milfoil plants using technology from the geoduck industry. Funds from Services Canada will be used to begin training programs for several Sto:lo stewards.

3. The Salmon Table (ST) respects and upholds First Nations� approaches to Fraser River salmon fisheries and also believes that traditional fisheries management must now incorporate integrated approaches to enable sustainable, long term solutions to fisheries� challenges. The ST has retained one upper-river representative and one lower-river representative to work in conjunction with mid-river ITFT representatives to further our vision for building watershed-wide capacities for integrated fisheries planning and governance. This will occur as a series of meetings, designed to stimulate inter-tribal dialogue and shared actions.

4. Participants in the inland fishery are faced with challenges that require sound business arrangements and relationships with existing producers. 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. The ST will continue to educate and coordinate participants from all facets in the new inland fishery.



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