Regional Ecosystem Office
333 SW 1st P.O. Box 3623
Portland, Oregon 97208-3623
Website: www.reo.gov E-Mail: REOmail@or.blm.gov
Phone: 503-808-2165 FAX: 503-808-2163

Memorandum

Date:

April 8, 2004

To:

Regional Interagency Executive Committee (see attached distribution list)

From:

/s/Anne Badgley, Executive Director

Subject:

REGIONAL INTERAGENCY EXECUTIVE COMMITTEE MEETING NOTES – March 10, 2004

Dave Allen, US Fish & Wildlife Service
Terry Rabot, US Fish & Wildlife Service (Alt)
Elaine M. Brong, Bureau of Land Management
Judy Nelson, Bureau of Land Management (Alt)
Jon Jarvis, National Park Service
Rory Westberg, National Park Service (Alt)
Linda Goodman, Forest Service
Jim Golden, Forest Service (Alt)
Bob Graham, Natural Resources Conservation Service
Dianne Guidry, Natural Resources Conservation Service (Alt)
Col. Richard W. Hobernicht, U.S. Army Corps of Engineers
Curt Loop, U.S. Army Corps of Engineers (Alt)
Anne Kinsinger, USGS Western Region
Dave Busch, USGS/REO (Alt)
Robert Lohn, NOAA Fisheries
Mike Crouse, NOAA Fisheries (Alt)
Jennifer Orme-Zavaleta, Western Ecology Division, EPA
Dan McKenzie, Western Ecology Division, EPA (Alt)

California Federal Executives
Kent Connaughton, Forest Service
Kathy Anderson, Forest Service (Alt)
Steve Thompson, U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service
John Engbring, U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (Alt)
Phil Detrich, U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (Alt)
Michael Pool, Bureau of Land Management
Paul Roush, Bureau of Land Management (Alt)
Jim Sedell, Station Director, Pacific Southwest Forest and Range Experiment Station
Garland Mason (Alt)

Topic: REPORT ON RESEARCH AGENCY EXECUTIVES’ MEETING

REO Contact: Dave Busch (USGS Rep.)

Issue Statement: Anne Kinsinger (USGS) reported on the January 30 meeting of the regional leadership of natural resources science agencies (USGS-BRD, FS-PNW, FS-PSW, EPA, and NOAA-Fisheries) that was held at the USGS Western Regional Office in Seattle. Agreed upon meeting goals were to meet and get to know one another, share priorities for their organizations, evaluate opportunities to expand collaboration, and identify next steps (action items) in key areas.

Summary of Discussion:

The research executives identified the following topics to pursue in furtherance of their role.

1. Sustainability - Integration across aquatic, terrestrial, landscape, and socioeconomic issues. The issue of integration among all strategies remains an important and potentially fruitful area of interaction between managers and scientists.
2. Risk assessment and management - Strategies to assess and manage risk and opportunity at multiple scales. This issue is related to the partitioning of risk among scales and the strategies that are employed to manage risk. There appears to be inconsistency in the strategies to manage some risks at a fine scale that prohibit achieving broader scale objectives that are the real goals.
3. Adaptive management– Strategies that design learning into management actions across landscapes, and clarify and strengthen understanding and implementation at the regional level. An interactive process with managers might prove useful to adopting an active learning atmosphere where managers and scientists can form stronger partnerships.
4. Monitoring – Strategies that address scale issues and reflect integrated outcomes. There are many opportunities to achieve monitoring outcomes at broader scales if strategies are adopted to address specific questions of concern to the public and policy makers.
5. Science quality and review – New demands are being placed upon research agencies, particularly with regard to the systems by which the scientific products are reviewed. The diverse set of research agencies in the Northwest are ideally poised to consider questions of coordinated scientific review of products and of interagency programs.

Several RIEC members voiced support for pursuing these topics. Various venues for exchanging science information were mentioned, ranging from the Northwest Executive Forum to a workshop on the state of the science related to the NWFP.

Next Steps (who/what/when): The science executives will continue to work toward developing the topics identified for greater research collaboration among their organizations, and for possible presentation to the management and consulting agencies.

Topic: EXPANDING RIEC MEMBERSHIP

REO Contact: Anne Badgley (REO)

Issue Statement: A proposal has been made to include the Forest Service, Pacific Southwest Forest and Range Experiment Station as a new member of the RIEC. The new Station Director, Jim Sedell, has a background with the Northwest Forest Plan and is interested in becoming more engaged with the RIEC.

RIEC Decisions: Unanimous approval.

Next Steps (who/what/when): A welcome letter, along with meeting notes, and calendar dates will be sent to Jim Sedell and his alternate Garland Mason (Assistant Director).

Topic: IAC MEETING TOPICS AND PROCESSES

REO Contact: Anne Badgley (REO)

Issue Statement: Anne Badgley quickly outlined the basic recommendation processes and changes that would be introduced in the following Intergovernmental Advisory Committee (IAC) meeting (see the IAC notes for additional details).

RIEC Decision: Present REO workgroup findings and recommendations to the IAC.

Next Steps (who/what/when): See IAC notes.

Topic: NWFP IMPLEMENTATION IMPROVEMENTS ACTIVITIES

REO Contact: Anne Badgley (REO)

Issue Statement: The Regional Interagency Executive Committee subcommittees have been evaluating ten potential NWFP implementation improvement activities. Not all of the topics were discussed at this meeting. Notes, including information related to any decisions or additional assignments, for the items presented follow.

Next Steps (who/what/when): General status reports for these activities will be requested prior to the next full meeting.  

Dave Allen (FWS)

John Engbring (FWS)

Mike Mottice (BLM)

Kathy Anderson (FS, CA)

Dave Gibbons (FS, CA)

Judy Nelson (BLM)

Anne Badgley (REO)

Jim Golden (FS)

Debbie Pietrzak (REO BLM)

Elaine Brong (BLM)

Linda Goodman (FS)

Dave Powers (EPA)

Dave Busch (REO USGS)

Bob Graham (NRCS)

Tom Quigley (PNW)

Chris Cadwell (BLM)

Becky Gravenmier (REO PNW)

Terry Rabot (FWS)

Kath Collier (REO)

Laurie Lee Jenkins (REO NPS)

Paul Roush (BLM)

Kent Connaughton (FS, CA)

Anne Kinsinger (USGS-BRD)

Jim Shevock (NPS)

Bill Connolly (FS)

Becky Loomis (REO)

Jay Watson (REO FWS)

Mike Crouse (NMFS)

Curt Loop (USACE)

Alex Whistler (BIA)

Shawne Mohoric (FS)