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Pacific County Commissioners established the Pacific County MRC as a subcommittee of the existing Willapa Bay Water Resources Coordinating Council in fall of 2009.
Following the formation, the County Commissioners appointed a robust group of individuals and alternates to fill the seats on the committee representing all of the marine resources related interests in the county (Table 5).
Table 5.
Pacific County MRC Membership and Representation
| Member |
Organization |
Alternate |
Organization |
Representation |
| Mike Johnson |
Pacific Conservation District |
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|
Interim Coordinator |
| Jim Neva |
Port of Ilwaco |
Mary DeLong |
Port of Pennisula |
MRC Chair, Ports |
| Faith Taylor-Eldred |
Pacific County |
Mike DeSimone |
Pacific County |
Local Government* |
| Doug Kess |
Local Citizen |
Key McMurry |
Local Citizen |
Local Citizens* |
| Ross Barkhurst |
Anglers Association |
Michael Spencer |
|
Recreational Groups* |
| Cathy Russ |
EDC |
Dan Todd |
Port of Chinook |
Economic Groups* |
| Ammie Ammer |
CREST |
Micah Russell |
CREST |
Conservation/Environmental Groups* |
| Kim Patten |
WSU |
Tom Kollacsh |
TNC |
Scientific Community* |
| Mike McGinniss |
Shoalwater Tribe |
Ray Gardner |
Chinook Tribe |
Tribal Governments* |
| Tim Morris |
Oyster Aquaculture |
Dave Nisbet |
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Aquaculture |
| Dale Beasley |
Columbia River Crab Fishermen's Association |
Dwight Eager |
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Commercial Fishing |
| Will Greene |
City of Ilwaco |
Steve Russell |
City of South Bend |
Cities |
| Julie Tennis |
State Parks |
Rob Allen |
WDFW Forks Hatchery |
State/Federal Government |
| Steve Harbell |
WSU Extension |
Boyd Keyser |
Ocean Beach School District |
Education |
| Sue Pattillo |
Small Forest Land Owner |
Allen “Jim” Goulter |
Dairyman |
Agriculture |
Pacific County MRC volunteers worked with the Grass Roots Garbage Gang to pick up this garbage from the beach.
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Pacific County (PC) MRC developed and completed a diverse group of projects that focused on water quality assessments, invasive species surveys, and education and outreach. PCMRC sponsored and volunteered in three (January, April and July) beach clean-ups along the Long Beach Peninsula's 28-mile beach organized by the Grass Roots Garbage Gang inspiring hundreds of volunteers.
The MRC has also participated in the State Ocean Caucus meetings by sending a representative from the committee to build partnerships, and to increase citizen participation in local and governmental decisions regarding marine and estuarine resources. In the late fall of 2010, the PCMRC focused its strategic planning sub-committee on regional planning efforts to identify, organize, and promote a unifying 'partnership' mentioned above in the North Pacific Coast MRC summary. After a December planning meeting including the NPC MRC, Grays Harbor MRC, and PCMRC, the group agreed to meet in January to discuss this idea further.
PCMRC was involved in multiple projects that addressed the Sound Science Benchmark including water quality surveys conducted by the county to test for failing septic systems in Tokeland, participation in the National Mussel Watch Program through volunteer training and site sampling; and sponsoring a Spartina survey. The Coastal Resources Alliance trained a group of volunteers to scout and document the presence of Spartina. The results of this survey were used to identify and map infestation spots that were later treated by crews.
Raymond 5th grade students on a field trip to the Forks Creek Fish Hatchery. |
Students from Willapa Valley Elementary visiting the Willapa Bay National Wildlife Refuge to learn about shellfish, mud critters, frogs, mammal skulls, soils, raptors, and bird watching.
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PCMRC emphasized their individual priorities in the Education and Outreach Benchmark by sponsoring the 2010 Coastal Summit: Your Coastal System to educate the MRC members and public about marine and estuarine issues. Some of the topics presented at the summit included ecosystem and razor clam management, Spartina eradication and their impacts on shorebird populations and native marsh succession, and coastal hazards and tsunamis. The MRC also focused effort on working with local high school students to design and build a local KIOSK to educate citizens and local students about marine and estuarine issues. Finally, PCMRC sponsored transportation for educational field trips and curriculum development to promote learning about the sciences associated with the natural marine resources of the region. This funding was dedicated to Ocean Beach, Raymond, South Bend, Willapa Valley, and Naselle School Districts.
Future priority projects for the PCMRC include debris removal in Willapa Bay, native plant nursery and environmental education, and continued water quality studies and continued support for the three beach clean-ups. Due to organizational timing, PCMRC has accomplished a variety of well developed projects in a short period of time, and appreciates the partnerships developed through many different interest groups working towards common goals at a local level. The MRC is looking into grant writing to possibly find and receive funds from additional sources to take over many current projects, so that the group can use the existing project funds in new areas. The PCMRC would also like to find larger funding sources to attack large ticket projects such as oil spill prevention, intertidal fish passage projects, helping with material recruitment on our beaches, expand educational programs throughout the county, and invasive species removal. The PCMCR also intends to keep involved in Olympia on critical issues about the marine and estuarine environment and the natural resource industries that our community relies on.
For more information, contact the MRC’s interim coordinator Mike Johnson.
Mike Johnson
Interim Pacific MRC Coordinator
PO Box 336, South Bend, WA 98586
Ph: (360) 875-9424
Fx: (360) 875-6280
paccon@willapabay.org
Signed resolution establishing a Marine Resource Committee [PDF]
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