SEHAB ROUNDTABLE CONTRIBUTION - SOUTH VANCOUVER ISLAND                      1
Representative – Don Lowen
Community Advisor – Tom Rutherford
Community – South Vancouver Island from Cowichan to San Juan River, and Southern
Gulf Islands
February 3, 2008
Sooke Salmon Enhancement Society Cancels 2008 Fundraising Derby
As you know, SSES has cancelled its August salmon fishing derby, thus forfeiting the opportunity to
raise $20K in funds for core expenses. The media release issued in early January bases this decision on poor chinook returns to the Cowichan
River, and calls on other organizations to reconsider their 2008 derby plans. The media release and SEHAB’s written response are posted at www.sehab.org
The community response to date has been mostly positive. In fact, the response has become a
potential impromptu fundraising strategy. Unconfirmed total donations to date is about $5,725.
Report on SFAB Cowichan chinook meeting – 28 November 2007
About 120 people attended an evening meeting in Cowichan Bay to discuss poor returns of Cowichan
chinook. The Sport Fishing Advisory Board organized the event.
Moderated by South Coast Area Director Wilf Luedke and  SFAB member Paul Ricard, the agenda
inlcuded:
1. Opening statements by Larry George, Cowichan FN and Wilf Luedke, South Coast Area
Director, DFO.
2. About 75 minutes of presentations by Wilf Luedke, Arlene Tompkins, Dick Beamish, Tom
Rutherford and Brian Tutty – all DFO staff. Here are some of the points made:
 Luedke – interpreted large turnout as an indication of support to put “more resources” into
Cowichan River.
 Beamish – Climate Change has huge effect on salmonid marine survival in Georgia Strait.
Historical survival rates at sea of 10-15% are now 1% or less.
 Tompkins – Using CWT assessment strategy, Department has found that Georgia Strait
chinook survival to age 2 in late 1980’s was 6%, now is 1%.
 Rutherford – Cowichan Band Hatchery has been strategic enhancement facility for chinook
and coho for 30 years. Goal is increase in returns of wild stock. In spite of existing strategies, including intense assessment, there is a decrease in survival, especially of early releases. Net pen releases showing some survival rate increase. Recent $150K funding increase after budget frozen for 10 years.
 Tutty – Reviewed Tom Rutherford’s successful project to shore up Stoltz bluffs and reduce sedimentation.
3. Table discussions – Groups asked to formulate questions for the panel – ones that were not answered during the presentations.
Participants expressed a broad range of opinions. Another public meeting is planned.
SEHAB ROUNDTABLE CONTRIBUTION - SOUTH VANCOUVER ISLAND                      2
Representative – Don Lowen
Community Advisor – Tom Rutherford
Community – South Vancouver Island from Cowichan to San Juan River, and Southern
Gulf Islands
February 3, 2008
Friends of Mt. Douglas Park Streamkeepers
“The burning issue for us is stormwater management. We can, year by year, tinker with the ecology of
Douglas Creek; what we can't do is to control the upstream processes that poison and tear apart Douglas Creek and other Creeks like it.
It may seem a long stretch from habitat units and fry output to PAH’s and PAB’s, but as you know stormwater lies at the heart of every urban stream restoration.
I don't think for a minute that this information is any revelation, but I do think that it is time we raised and re-raised the stormwater issue - it is global.
I won't bore you with what the Fisheries Act says about deleterious substances - you know all of this. Again I think that stormwater needs to be raised whenever and however. So ... our two cents and please raise the issue.”
- Bob Bridgeman, January 13/08
Education
Local Stream to Sea
Local coordinators have recently completed egg delivery to about 120 classroom incubation projects in
Tom Rutherford’s area, which includes 5 public school districts.
Regional Stream to Sea
I am currently working on two committees for the Regional education program.  The strategic planning committee meets monthly by phone as it moves toward the creation of a
strategic plan that will guide the program through to 2012. The group is considering changes to the structure of the Regional Education Steering Committee and of the Working Group model that was created to address action items between conferences. The strategy continues as a systems-based collection of human and curriculum resources that adapts to the needs of many Pacific Region communities.
 The training and support working group is organizing the August 2008 annual conference to be held in the Fraser Valley.