FMS Business Meeting Minutes
Sunday August 17, 2008, 3:00 PM, Chateau Laurier, Renaissance
Room, Ottawa, Ontario
38 people present (36 members) in attendance (documented)
Welcome and Announcements (Joe Larscheid)
- Call to Order 3:00 p.m.; Quorum present.
- Acknowledgement of current and previous officers (several in attendance)
Mary Fabrizio- Summary of Governing Board Meeting
- In-stream flow resolution- going to membership at business meeting
- Lead in fishing policy statement
- May issue of Fisheries
- Recognize that The Wildlife Society and other groups are developing their own statement (pushing for ban)
- AFS will recognize limited toxicity
- Increase education
- Annual meeting proceeds
- Organized by local Chapters (10% returned to Chapter)
- Change to 20% to increase incentives
- Organized by local Chapters (10% returned to Chapter)
- Retreat updates
- Changing demographics of AFS- younger and more diverse
- Bulletin Board focus group- select group of AFS members addressing open ended questions
- Guide Strategic planning
- Electronic forum for input on policy statements, etc.
- Increase participation
- Overcome travel restrictions
- More inclusive
- New initiatives procedure
- AFS budget surplus
- Increase unit services (e.g., seed money, repaid loans, membership services)
Approval of minutes from 2007 Annual Meeting (San Francisco)
- Dave Willis- Motion, Gary Whelan- Second
- No discussion, minutes approved
Review and Approval of Financial Report (Brian Graeb)
- Current balance of about $26,000
- Mark Pegg- Motion, Ken Kurzawski- Second
- No discussion, motion passed
OLD BUSINESS
FMS Awards (Ron Essig)
- Hall of Excellence inductees (plaques will hang in the FMS Hall of Excellence at the Ak-sar-ben Aquarium in Gretna, NE)
- Thomas Gengerke received the sections highest honor. Thomas has an extensive background in fisheries management with 35 yrs of service with Cornell University, Kansas Department of Wildlife and Parks, and Iowa Department of Natural Resources. He also has extensive experience with AFS, serving on a wide range of committees and as president of the Iowa Chapter. Tom was not present to accept the award.
- Dr. Howard Tanner was also inducted into the FMS Hall of Excellence. Howard has very broad experience in fisheries management and administration. Howard was a key figure in resurrecting Great Lakes fisheries after the near elimination of lake trout. He was very active in Great Lakes management. Dr. Tanner was not present to receive the award.
- Dr. Richard Whitney was inducted into the FMS Hall of Excellence. Dr. Whitney has been an AFS member since 1951 and has had a long, diverse career in fisheries. He worked with anadromous fish passage in the Susquehanna River, developed methods for tuna harvest, and spent several years working on West Coast fisheries issues. Dr. Whitney was present at the meeting and graciously received the award.
- Award of Excellence
- Dr. Ian Cowx and Dr. Robert
Arlinghaus in recognition of their many accomplishments
and leadership in the field of recreational fisheries management
at the international scale.
- Neither was present. Dr. Arlinghaus will be presented the award at the International Fisheries Section meeting later in the week. Dr Cowx will be presented the award at the Institute of Fisheries Management (IFM) meeting in October in Great Britain.
- Dr. Ian Cowx and Dr. Robert
Arlinghaus in recognition of their many accomplishments
and leadership in the field of recreational fisheries management
at the international scale.
- Note: There were no recipients this year for the Award of Merit or the Conservation Achievement Award.
FMS/Fisheries Administration Section Exchange program with the IFM
- Ron Essig will attend IFM meeting in 2008.
- This will conclude the “experimental cycle”
- Section needs to decide if the program should be continued.
- Ron will provide a report after his trip and the Section will decide whether or not to continue the exchange program.
FMS Web Page (Fred Janssen)
- Fred was not present, but everybody agreed that “Fred is awesome” and doing a “great job.”
FMS Newsletter (Colombo)
- No report
Committee Reports
- Fisheries Techniques Standardization Committee (Scott Bonar)
- 47 authors involved, 9 agencies, international representation.
- Now In press with AFS.
- Available 2009.
- Inland Fisheries Management in North America, 3rd
edition update (Quist)
- 21 chapters, including several new chapters.
- First draft ready by Spring 2009
Sponsored Symposia
- Enhancing the States’ lake Management Programs: Making
the connections between lake water quality, fish, recreation,
economics and the quality of life (Don Gablehouse)
- Idea started with Don Bonneau (IA DNR).
- Shift more money to lakes.
- Show “love to the water quality brothers”
- Requested that Sections write letter of support (FAS, FMS, Water Quality Section) to EPA and have Gus Rassam and officers sign letters.
- Officers will draft a letter.
Installation of new officers
- President: Ron Essig
- President-Elect: Dirk Miller
- Secretary-Treasurer: Brian Graeb
NEW BUSINESS
Incoming president remarks:
- Ron was “honored” to lead the largest section in AFS (800-900 members).
- He identified many challenges in the upcoming year, including re-authorization of Federal Aid in Sportfish Restoration funding.
Requests for funding
- Equal Opportunity Section student travel fund ($500)
- Line item in budget
- Skinner challenge $5,000 (Tom Kwak)
- Enhance this student travel endowment fund.
- Education section is donating $25,000
- Requesting $25,000 from other divisions and sections to match Education section donation of $25,000
- Ultimate target is a total of $75,000.
- Motion to donate $5,000 to the Skinner fund- Dirk Miller, 2nd Jason Vokoun
- No discussion, motion passed.
- Catfish Symposium 2010 (Tom Lang)
- Already have 80 presenters.
- Lots of public involvement.
- Proceeds from symposium proceedings go to the Southern and North Central Divisions.
- Asked for $5,000.
- Motion- Dave Willis, 2nd Joe Larscheid.
- Motion passed
- International Fisheries Section Joint Symposium on
Wild Fish Disease $500 (Doug Beard)
- Sponsor AFS speaker ($3,000 needed)
- Motion- Scott Bonar, 2nd Steve Cooke
- Motion passed.
Other New Business
- Proposal to formalize and add “Urban and Community
Fisheries Management Committee” (Tom Lang)
- Tom Lang and Rick Eades would co-chair committee.
- Dirk Miller pointed out that we need 2/3 vote to establish standing committee.
- Steve Filipek suggested we form an ad hoc committee to allow them to organize.
- Ad hoc committee formed.
- Resolutions to consider:
- Curtailing Illegal Stocking (Duane Chapman)
- Resolution came out of the CO/WY chapter and they want to elevate to parent society level.
- Seek volunteer.
- Officers will continue discussion.
- Curtailing Illegal Stocking (Duane Chapman)
- Motion to adjourn made by Joe Larscheid, Vaughn Paragamian 2nd, Motion passed. Meeting adjourned at 5:00 p.m.