SDAFS Reservoir Committee

Reservoir Committee, Southern Division AFS
2012 Annual Meeting, Biloxi, MS
9:00 am, January 26, 2012

2012 Meeting Agenda (15)

1.  Welcome, Opening Remarks, Introductions
2. Reading and Approval of 2011 Annual Meeting Minutes
3. Financial Report
4. Scholarship Committee Report (K. Kuklinski)
5. Old Business
1. Recap of Summer Meeting – Questions? (S. Sammons and A. Kaeser)
2. Habitat Classification in Reservoirs (S. Sammons)
3. Update on the Reservoir Habitat Partnership and the RC Involvement (J. Boxrucker)
4. Collaboration With Striped Bass Committee (J. Bulak)
6. New Business
1. RC Website (Life After Freddie)
2. Secretary/Treasurer Position and Other RC Business (M. Abney, K. Kuklinski)
3. New RC Chair – K. Kulinski
4. Summer Meeting
7. Roundtable Discussion – Issues Faced by RC members
8. Adjorn

Minutes of the Southern Division Reservoir Committee meeting held on January 13, 2011 (Tampa Bay, Florida)
9:35am – 12:07am; 2:00pm – 4:10pm

Recorded and submitted by Michael A. Abney, Secretary/Auditor (Duke Energy)

• Reservoir Committee (RC) Chair Steve Sammons called the meeting to order and recognized
  attendees for traveling to the meeting during the tough economical times.  There was no summer
  2010 meeting due to a lack of attendees (due to travel restrictions), but hope for one in summer
  2011 perhaps south of Atlanta.
• Sammons recognized the really good meeting held in Asheville, NC, especially the habitat
  mapping presentations and discussions.  Habitat mapping will relate well to SARP and will
  become a primary focus of the RC.
• 2/25/2010 meeting minutes from Asheville, NC are available online and were emailed to
  committee members.
  • Motion to accept minutes: Joe Slaughter; 2nd: Gene Gilliland
• Financial Report – Michael Abney presented current financial standing of $23,292 in Edward
  Jones investment account at end of 2010.  Abney noted that all RC monies are now consolidated
  into a single account with Edward Jones.  Although financial advisor is based in Mooresville,
  NC, Edward Jones offices are nationwide.
  • Rick Ott asked if the recent upturn in the economy had helped the balance and, indeed, it had with a drop of < $1,000 even though we spent > $2500 in 2010.
  • Kurt Kuklinski asked if we have income from the 2007 symposium book.  No, as that book had been “sold” to National AFS.  However, we still receive <$100/yr from the 1995 Symposium book.
• Scholarship Committee Report – Kurt Kuklinski reported there were 5 applicants for the two
  2011 Jenkins Memorial Scholarships ($1,000 each).  The winners were Jonah Dagel (Mississippi
  State University) and Ryan Lothrop (Auburn University).  He has all five submissions for
  members to review.  Each winner will also be eligible for the 2012 scholarships.

Old business:

• Reservoir Fisheries Habitat Partnership (RFHP) – Jeff Boxrucker continued discussion topic from 2010 Asheville meeting focusing on Steve Miranda’s habitat assessment work.  He suggested going to reservoirresearch.org to follow progress.  Miranda’s team requested information from the lower 48 states on reservoirs > 250 acres that met certain criteria.  So far, response has been good.  Survey analyses should be completed by summer 2011 and have the complete assessment completed by the 2012 SDAFS meeting.  Questions/answers followed.

• Striped Bass Committee – Jim Bulak discussed recent 2010 striper symposium and the publication of a book that will serve as source of information on stripers and hybrids including a survey of committee members.  They will follow up with questions for non-known answers such as how to best establish forage fish, stocking numbers, and impacts on other species and user groups.  He mentioned the need to have input from the RC and the difficulty with travel and meeting attendance for members. 

  John Taylor mentioned the takemefishing.org website and its possible inaccuracies with fishing information such as fishable reservoirs, boat ramp locations, and species present.

• RFHP (continued) – Jeff Boxrucker continued previous discussion and noted importance of local “chapters” and partnership involvement such as Partnership for Fish Friendly Waters and home owners’ associations.  He mentioned all information can be found on website reservoirpartnership.org including executive committee members and partners.  They’re still in need of a hydropower industry representative.  Spring meeting is always at Table Rock Lake, MO (Bass Pro Shops) with fall meetings moved around near ongoing project sites.   Funding is still a major issue as many partnerships rely heavily upon federal funding that may dry up soon. 
  The partnership received $90,000 in both 2009 and 2010. 
• Lunch
• RFHP (continued) – Discussion continued on the RFHP and how to get the best response from the states.  Going through state fish chiefs is probably the best route.  Also, how best to get funding before other partnerships gain traction?  SARP is really only other partnership at the same point as the RFHP.  Joe Slaughter asked about access to mitigation funds from private companies and government agencies (DOT, TVA).

New business:

• Website – who can take over as webmaster of RC website after Fred Janssen leaves position?  Fred can work with that person over next year prior to handing it over for good.  Kurt Kuklinski mentioned that form applications (scholarships) would help.  Sammons will ask John Taylor about taking over position.

• Chair – Sammons announced that Kurt Kuklinski will take over as Chair at 2012 meeting in Biloxi, MS.  Kurt works closely with Gene Gilliland and Jeff Boxrucker to assist with RFHP. 

  Who can take Kurt’s position as Scholarship Chair?  Other members (Mike Wood, Neal Jackson, Brent Hess) were not present, but committee thought Neal Jackson would be a good replacement as long as we get another addition to the Scholarship Committee.

• Summer Meeting – We’re aiming for 15 attendees at a summer meeting to be held south of Atlanta.  Discussion of the RFHP and habitat mapping will continue; may be able to get Adam Kaiser to attend although he recently took position with the USFWS in Panama City, FL.

• Round-table discussion ensued with much of focus on summer 2010 striper mortalities around the Southeast.  

Motion to adjourn at 4:10pm: Fred Heitman; 2nd: Joe Slaughter 
 
Attendees:
 
Steve Sammons  Auburn University
Gene Gilliland   Oklahoma Department of Wildlife
Dan Shoup    Oklahoma Department of Wildlife
Joey Slaughter   Georgia Power Company
Warren Schlechle   Texas Parks and Wildlife
Rick Ott    Texas Parks and Wildlife
Craig Bonds    Texas Parks and Wildlife
Cliff Sager    Oklahoma Department of Wildlife
Kurt Kuklinski  Oklahoma Department of Wildlife
Mark Oliver     Oklahoma Department of Wildlife
Wes Porak    Florida Fish and Wildlife Commission
Tim Churchill   Tennessee Wildlife Resources Agency
Stuart Wooldridge  Oklahoma Department of Wildlife
Jim Hedrick     West Virginia Department of Natural Resources 
Chad Holbrook  South Carolina Department of Natural Resources
Jeff Boxrucker  Oklahoma Department of Wildlife
Larry Pugh    Mississippi Department of Wildlife, Fisheries, and Parks
Brian McRae    North Carolina Wildlife Resources Commission
Colton Dennis   Arkansas Game and Fish Commission
Greg Summers  Oklahoma Department of Wildlife
Chris Racey    Arkansas Game and Fish Commission
Michael Abney  Duke Energy
Fred Heitman    American Aquatics
Damon Abernathy  Alabama Department of Conservation and Natural Resources
Fred Janssen    Office of the Attorney General of Texas
John Taylor    Texas Parks and Wildlife
Dave Buckmeier  Texas Parks and Wildlife
Mike Allen    University of Florida
Jim Bulak    South Carolina Department of Natural Resources 

OK, folks, below are the details for this year’s summer meeting. It looks to be a good one- so make plans to attend. Also, if you think anyone from your agency would benefit from learning the side-scan technique, please bring them. As the meeting gets closer, we will figure out what everyone needs to bring. Right now, I would suggest laptops, and if any of you are GIS-compatible, bring Arcview with you too.

Mapping habitat in reservoirs is a very important topic that is of great interest to both SARP and RFHP, so hopefully we are expecting some support from your chiefs and directors for you to travel to this meeting. This is a one-time chance, after this, you’ll be paying for a workshop like this one. So I hope to see you all in Warm Springs!

Thanks to Joey Slaughter and Brent Hess for working on the local arrangements, and to Adam Kaeser and Thom Litts for lending us their expertise for this workshop!

Please let me know ASAP if you are (or are not) coming and how many you are bringing…

steve

Steven M. Sammons, PhD
sammosm@auburn.edu

SD-AFS Reservoir Committee
2011 Summer Meeting
Warm Springs, GA
July 26-28, 2011

Monday, July 25

Tuesday, July 26

Wednesday, July 27

Thursday, July 28

Warm Springs Regional Fisheries Center
5308 Spring Street
Warm Springs, GA 31830

Lodging:

I suggest we all try to stay at the Days Inn in Pine Mountain. Although closer, there are reports and suspicions that the one in Manchester may be sketchy. But if Crystal Meth parties are your thing, have at it! If you and/or your agency are independently wealthy (like those power company guys), then I am sure Callaway will pamper you up to your usual standards. If you get hives from staying more than 20 miles from an Interstate, then LaGrange is your bag. That is Hess territory, make sure you consult him to stay away from the bad part of town, which from what I can tell, is most of it….

For those arriving by air (Atlanta Airport):

Hartsfield-Jackson International Airport is located approximately 1 hour north of the Warm Springs area. If you can coordinate your arrival with other members, the area is easily access by a rental car. We can also arrange pickups and drop-offs for those who need it (what else are grad students for?). I recommend that you try to arrive at and/or depart from the Atlanta area before 4pm or after 6pm, to avoid the worst of the traffic. Although the airport is advantageously located for travel to and from Warm Springs, Atlanta traffic is frequently awful even when it should not be.

Details are still being worked out, but we ARE going to have a summer meeting this year. Looks like a 2-3 day meeting, held somewhere near Atlanta, Georgia. Adam Kaeser will again be coming to the meeting, this time to provide a 2-day workshop on how to use dual-beam sonar and GIS software to map reservoir habitat. One day will be in the field, as Adam demonstrates the unit and how it works. The second day will be in the lab, where Adam takes the images collected the day before and shows us what to do next. Entertainment will consist of floating on area rivers for shoal bass.

As I understand it, the week of July 25 is the target for this. Thanks to Joey Slaughter and Brent Hess for working out the local arrangements. For now, block off that week and plan to attend- it’s gonna be a good ‘un!

Steve

Reservoir Committee, Southern Division AFS
2011 Annual Meeting, Tampa, FL
9:00 am, January 13, 2009

1. Welcome, opening remarks, introductions
2. Reading and Approval of 2010 Annual Meeting Minutes
3. Financial Report
4. Scholarship Committee Report (K. Kuklinski)
5. Old Business
   1. Update on the Reservoir Habitat Partnership and the RC Involvement (J. Boxrucker)
   2. Habitat Classification in Reservoirs (S. Sammons)
6. New Business
   1. Common Technical Issues With Striped Bass Committee (J. Bulak)
   2. RC Website Maintenance (Life After Freddie)
   3. Chair Elect and Other RC Business
   4. Summer Meeting – More About Habitat Mapping in Reservoirs
7. Roundtable Discussion – Issues Faced by RC members
8. Adjourn

The 2010 Southern Division AFS Reservoir Committee Meeting was held on February 25, 2010 in Asheville, North Carolina.  The minutes from the meeting are posted here.

Attached is the agenda for our meeting in Asheville.  If there are any last-minute additions, please let me know and I’ll add them and send out an updated agenda.

Also attached is the final version of the Reservoir Habitat Strategic Plan, developed by the Reservoir Fish Habitat Partnership.  Jeff Boxrucker and Steve Miranda will be giving us an overview of the Partnership and how the RC can be involved in this effort, so it may be worthwhile to familiarize yourselves with this plan.

Looking forward to seeing you in Asheville, come ready for a meeting packed with good information.  I have lined up two presentations on methods currently used to map aquatic habitats in the southeast, including reservoirs.  After these presentations, be prepared to ask questions and discuss these methods in a roundtable format with the presenters.  For the recent habitat partnerships (SARP and RFHP) to succeed, they must first be able to measure habitat successfully: both before and after any restoration.  We have spoken at length in various RC meetings over the last decade about the difficulties in measuring habitat in our reservoirs; I believe that both presentations will show you ways that we can economically and quickly measure habitat in a quantitative manner in even our largest reservoirs.
I look forward to a productive meeting….

Steven M. Sammons, PhD
Department of Fisheries
203 Swingle Hall
Auburn University,  AL  36849
334-844-4058
SAMMOSM@auburn.edu

The SDAFS Reservoir Committee Spring Meeting will be held at the Renaissance Hotel in Asheville, North Carolina on Thursday, February 25, 2010 from 9:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m.

Folks, we are one month out from our upcoming meeting, and I am in the process of developing an agenda. 

I have a draft going, but if looking over the minutes you see something you would like to discuss, please let me know ASAP.  Also, if you have something new you want to discuss, let me know.  I will send out the final agenda by the end of the week…

Steven M. Sammons, PhD
Department of Fisheries
203 Swingle Hall
Auburn University,  AL  36849
334-844-4058
SAMMOSM@auburn.edu