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Officials Plan More Sea Lion Harassment by Henry Miller Statesman Journal, March 22, 2006

Salmon smorgasbord target of increased hazing area

NEWPORT -- Officials in Oregon and Washington are hoping to close the "Bonneville buffet" in April. Hazing of sea lions below the fish ladders at Bonneville Dam will be expanded 12 miles downriver on the Columbia River the first week of April into concerted effort by Fish and Wildlife departments in both states, as well as ongoing efforts by the Army Corps of Engineers, to try to curb salmon losses at the choke point for fish passage.

"The activities between the dam and Marker 85 (12 miles downriver), will focus on individual animals utilizing all of the tools that are available to us for hazing techniques," said Steve Williams. "In an attempt to address the salmon issue, but also the sturgeon issue ..."

Williams, the executive administrator of the Fish Division of the Oregon Department of Fish and Wildlife, briefed commission members on the sea lion issue Friday during the March meeting here.

The high-profile situation at the dam, with footage on nightly newscasts of California sea lions munching on spring-run chinook salmon, some federally protected, and Stellar sea lions killing and eating spawning-size sturgeon, caused commission member Skip Klarquist of Portland to refer to the situation as the "Bonneville buffet." Efforts to drive the sea lions from the area near the dam will be ramped up soon, Williams said.

"We're going to start this activity the first week of April, and focus through the months of April and May and be monitoring, of course, as we go," Williams said, adding that the efforts will include all the non-lethal tools at the disposal of federal and state officials allowed under Section 109 of the federal Marine Mammal Protection Act.

Williams' briefing came on the heels of a request at the January meeting by commissioner Dan Edge of Corvallis for department officials to look into the possibility of implementing Section 120 of the act.

That allows states to ask for authority kill sea lions that are specifically identified as preying on fish that are federally protected under the Endangered Species Act.

While commissioners in both Oregon and Washington have asked their respective Fish and Wildlife departments to look into the potential for using Section 120, that is a long, expensive, divisive and frustrating road, Williams said.

Nothing should be overlooked in the pursuit of both short- and long-term solutions, said Marla Rae of Salem, the commission chairwoman

Itemizing the options, Rae asked and received confirmation from Williams that:

• "You will be upping the Section 109 hazing effective in April and also getting that information out widely to folks," she said.

• "We will pursue a Section 120 permit knowing that it is a lengthy process, but it's a potential management tool in our arsenal," Rae added, then reiterated, "So we're going into it with eyes open, recognizing that it's not the be-all and end-all for this problem."

• Officials from both Oregon and Washington, as well as relevant federal agencies, will work with interested groups from anglers to Native American tribes, conservation organizations and others to come up with a long-term strategy to deal with seals and sea lions on the Columbia and other rivers where they pose a threat to fish populations.

• "And then with the Pacific States (Marine Fisheries Commission), to look to the appropriate amendments to federal law," Rae said about the Marine Mammal Protection Act. "Knowing that it takes an act of Congress rather than an act of the commission."