Long Range Plan For The Klamath River Basin ... - KrisWeb

PUBLIC LAW 99-552, THE KLAMATH RIVER BASIN ACTThe Klamath River Basin Act creates a Klamath River Basin Fisheries TaskForce and directs the U.S. Secretary of Interior to cooperate with the Task Force in thecreation and implementation of "a 20-year program to restore the anadromous fishpopulations of the [Klamath River Basin] Area to optimum levels and to maintain suchlevels." (See Appendix A for the full text of the Klamath Act.) The Act also created theKlamath Fishery Management Council to assist the Secretary, and to coordinate with theTask Force in planning and carrying out the Restoration Program. (The Secretary hasassigned responsibility for the Program's day-to-day administration to the U.S. Fish andWildlife Service. The Service established a Program headquarters, the Klamath RiverFisheries Resource Office, in Yreka in 1987.KLAMATH FISHERY MANAGEMENT COUNCILThe 11-member Klamath Fishery Management Council is to "establish acomprehensive long-term plan and policy, that must be consistent with the goals of the(Restoration) Program, for the management of the in-river and ocean harvesting thataffects or may affect Klamath and Trinity River basin anadromous fish populations." TheCouncil is directed to conduct public hearings for the purpose of developing and makingrecommendations concerning harvesting regulations to the California Fish and GameCommission, Oregon Department of Fish and Wildlife, Pacific Fishery ManagementCouncil, Bureau of Indian Affairs, and the Hoopa Valley Tribal Council. The Council'srecommendations are to be based upon the best scientific information available, are tominimize costs, avoid unnecessary regulation, and shall be designed "to achieve anescapement that preserves and strengthens the viability of the Area's naturalanadromous fish populations."The members of the Council are appointed by the Governor of California (onerepresentative each from the California's salmon fishing industry, the in-river sportfishingcommunity, the offshore recreational fishing industry, and the California Department ofFish and Game), Hoopa Valley Tribal Council (Hoopa Valley Indian Tribe), Secretary ofInterior (non-Hoopa Indians of the Area and the Department of Interior), Secretary ofCommerce (National Marine Fisheries Service and Pacific Fishery ManagementCouncil), and the Governor of Oregon (Oregon's salmon fishing industry and the OregonDepartment of Fish and Wildlife).Since its organization in July 1987 the Klamath Fishery Management Council hasconducted a number of public meetings to gather information upon which to base itsharvest recommendations and has appointed a team of technical advisors to assist it inorganizing and analyzing biological and harvest data. In November 1989 the Councilbegan a focused effort, with planning assistance from the National Marine FisheriesService, to create its Congressionally mandated "long-term plan and policy" to guide itsharvest regulation recommendations.