Page 6
Spilyay Tymoo, Warm Springs, Oregon
Great district tournament
Pi-Ume-Sha
Fun Run
Jayson Smith/Spilyay
Warm Springs Nation Little League girls team at district tournament, where they took
second overall: Coach Edmund Francis, manager Juliane Smith, Breann Heckathorn,
Haileey Kathrein, and coach Donnie Bagley (back row from left); Keira Tortalita,
Rebecca Francis, Marena Langnese, Ashley Alire-Camas, Lily Moses, Breanna
Lacey (middle row), and Sally Medina, Carlica Dixon, Bianca Plazola Rosemary
Medina, Valerie Alonso (front).
At the
Spokane
Hoopfest,
Women’s
Elite
Champions
Abby Scott,
Shoni
Schimmel,
Lucia
Alvarado and
Yolanda
Martinez
Diaz.
Jayson Smith/Spilyay
Warm Springs Recre-
ation hosted the Pi-Ume-
Sha Fun Run. In the cat-
egories here are the run-
ners with the best times
(winners all from Warm
Springs unless otherwise
indicated):
One Mile Race
Eight years and under,
girls: Mateja Sutterlee.
Women, 30-39: Jaylyn
Suppah.
Women, 40-49: Angela
Smith.
Women, 60-69: Sylvia
McCabe.
Men, 20-29: Jeremiah
Miller.
‘ Based
on years of
experience... the Co-
lumbia River fishing
tribes contend that
predator manage-
ment is necessary to
restore balance to
the Columbia River
system. ’
Ryan Smith, CRITFC
lumbia River basin, espe-
cially in the last decade.
These sea lions prey
heavily on salmon and steel-
head runs listed under the
Endangered Species Act, in-
cluding thousands of fish at
Bonneville Dam each year.
The impacts come at a
time when many Chinook
salmon runs are already at
historic lows.
The recovery of sea li-
ons since the passage of the
Marine Mammal Protection
Act in 1972 is a success
story, said Kessina Lee, Re-
gion 5 director with Wash-
ington Fish and Wildlife.
But that recovery has also
brought challenges.
“The vast majority of
these animals remain in
coastal and offshore waters,
but several hundred have
established themselves in
upriver locations,” Lee said.
“Where salmon and
steelhead numbers are low,
any unmanaged increase in
predation can cause serious
problems.”
“For decades, we’ve
made strides in habitat res-
toration, hydropower policy,
hatchery production, and
fishery management, and
we continue to work with
our partners to further
those initiatives,” Lee said.
“Predator management re-
mains an essential part of
the equation.”
The application submit-
ted to the National Marine
Fisheries Service by Wash-
ington Fish and Wildlife and
tribal partners is the first
since Congress passed an
amendment to the Marine
Mammal Protections Act in
December 2018.
That amendment, spear-
headed by the Pacific
Northwest congressional
delegation, passed with
strong bipartisan support
and offers greater flexibil-
ity to wildlife managers
when determining if a sea
lion should be lethally re-
moved in waters that host
ESA-listed runs of salmon
or steelhead.
The tribes and Fish and
Wildlife have taken steps to
deter California sea lions in
the Columbia River basin
for more than a decade, but
non-lethal measures have
proven largely ineffective,
driving animals away for
only short periods.
These hazing measures
appear similarly ineffective
against Steller sea lions.
Seventy-plus men: Doug
Cleavenger, Bend.
Men 60-69: Walt Carter,
Prineville.
5k Run
Men age 50-59:
Vincent Simtustus.
10k Run
Women 60-69: Jane
Cleavenger, Bend.
Non-lethal measures con-
tinue to be used as a short-
term deterrent when appro-
priate.
Wildlife managers have
conducted lethal removal
operations of California sea
lions in the Columbia River
basin since 2008, when
National Marine Fisheries
Service first issued a letter
of authorization under sec-
tion 120 of the Marine
Mammals Protection Act.
From 2008-2019, wild-
life managers removed a
total of 219 California sea
lions that met the federal
criteria for removal below
Bonneville Dam.
Steller sea lions have not
previously been subject to
lethal removal.
“Prior to this legislation,
wildlife managers were se-
verely limited in their abil-
ity to effectively manage sea
lions in these areas,” Lee
said. “Additional action is
required to protect these
troubled fish stocks before
they are completely elimi-
nated. This is an unfortu-
nate, but necessary step in
the salmon recovery pro-
cess.”
If approved, the tribes
and partners expect to be-
gin humanely removing ani-
mals under the terms of the
expanded application begin-
ning in 2020. The applica-
tion is subject to a public
comment period and review
by National Marine Fisher-
ies Service.
First Nations mark ‘historic moment’ in treaty talks
Three British Columbia
First Nations marked what
is being called a “historic
moment” after joining in-
ternational talks to mod-
ernize the Columbia River
Treaty.
Representatives of the
Ktunaxa, Syilx/Okanagan
and Secwepemc Nations
participated as observers
when the most recent ne-
gotiations on the Columbia
River Treaty were held in
Washington, D.C. in June.
Foreign Affairs Minister
Chrystia Freeland an-
nounced in April that the
three First Nations would
join the seventh round of
talks and Indigenous rep-
resentatives are to return
when discussions recon-
vene in Cranbrook, B.C., in
September.
A joint statement from
Indigenous representatives
says much work lies ahead
to modernize the treaty,
but they are pleased with
what they observed.
“This precedent-setting
role as observers builds on
and enhances our impor-
tant work with Canada and
B.C. over the last two
Jayson Smith/Spilyay
Age 50-59: Allen
‘Stretch’ Jones.
Age 60-69: Romaine
Miller (Bend).
Tribes, state apply to lethally remove more sea lions
A group of tribes, and the
the Washington Department
of Fish and Wildlife in June
submitted an expanded appli-
cation to lethally remove Cali-
fornia and Steller sea lions
from the Columbia River and
tributaries.
The sea lions are preying
on threatened and endan-
gered salmon and steelhead
runs in the Columbia and
tributaries.
Predator management is a
key part of a multi-faceted
effort to restore salmon and
steelhead populations in the
Pacific Northwest.
“Based on years of expe-
rience working within the
bounds of the Marine Mam-
mal Protection Act, the Co-
lumbia River fishing tribes
contend that predator man-
agement is necessary to re-
store balance to the Colum-
bia River system,” said Ryan
Smith, chairman of the Co-
lumbia River Inter-Tribal
Fish Commission.
“Strong partnerships and
collaboration with the states,
northwest congressional del-
egation, federal authorities,
and nongovernment organi-
zations resulted in this
amendment, which applies
robust tools to manage sea
lions in the lower Columbia
River and recognizes tribal
sovereignty in that manage-
ment.”
California sea lions—and
increasingly, Steller sea li-
ons—have been observed in
growing numbers in the Co-
July 3, 2019
years,” says the statement
from the Ktunaxa, Syilx/
Okanagan and Secwepemc
Nations.
“We are confident that
we can continue to contrib-
ute positively to these nego-
tiations and help realize the
First Nations’ goals for
meaningful outcomes that
are of critical importance to
our nations and homelands.”
Age 14-19 males:
Leander Smith.
Men 30-39: Johnathan
Courtney, Madras.
Men 40-49: Kahsuss
Jackson.
Men 50-59: Don
Courtney, Madras.
Rodeo: 2019 results
(Continued from page 3)
Seniors breakaway (50 and over): Tod Cline,
Reno. Robert Bruisedhead, Alberta Canada. Norbert
Gibson, Owyhee.
Junior breakaway roping: Casey Johnson, Schurz,
Nevada. Logan Cummins, Owyhee. Aliya Christie,
Tulee River.
Team roping: Doc Walker and Norbert Gibson.
Gene Curtis and RC Crutcher. Mike Holyan and Casey
Green. Travis Thom and Leon Ramone. Rudy Blos-
som and Norbert Gibson. Rick Watlamet and Blaine
Wheeler.
Senior team roping: Rudy Blossom and Norbert
Gibson. Bob Joseph and Ed Harry. John Guerro and
Tod Cline. Bob Joseph and Cort Herrera.
Linda Larson photo
Pi-Ume-Sha Rodeo junior roper.
Junior bulls: Isaiah Florendo, Warm Springs.
Calf roping: Clint Bruisedhead, Warm Springs.
Robert Bruised Head, Alberta, Canada. Casey Green,
Warm Springs. Mike Holyan, Warm Springs.
Steer wrestling: Clint Bruised Head. Greywolf
Herrera, White Swan.
(More Pi-Ume-Sha Rodeo results on page 10)
Fishery open through today
A zone 6 fishery is open through 6 p.m. this
Wednesday evening, July 3. Gear: Set and drift gillnets
with a 7-inch minimum mesh size restriction.
Allowable sales: Salmon (any species), steelhead,
shad, yellow perch, bass, walleye, catfish and carp may
be sold or retained for subsistence. Fish landed dur-
ing the open periods are allowed to be sold after the
period concludes.
Sturgeon may not be sold, but sturgeon from 38
to 54 inches fork length in the Bonneville Pool; and
sturgeon from 43 to 54 inches fork length in The
Dalles and John Day Pools may be kept for subsis-
tence purposes.
Closed areas: River mouth and dam closed areas
applicable to gillnets in effect. The Spring Creek hatch-
ery closed area is not in effect in the summer man-
agement period.
The tribes will consider additional fishing at a later
time. The zone 6 platform, and hook and line fishery
regulations remain unchanged.