Major recreational fishing, boating and aquatic resource conservation interests are again represented as Secretary of the Interior Gale Norton recently announced new appointments and reappointments to the Sport Fishing and Boating Partnership Council (SFBPC). Members of the SFBPC advise the Secretary through the Director of the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (FWS). SFBPC members are appointed or reappointed by the Secretary every two years.
ASince its creation in 1993, the Council has been one of the Service=s and Department of the Interior=s most stalwart and engaged partners,@ said FWS Director Steve Williams, who serves ex officio on the SFBPC. AThis important group of state agency, conservation, recreation and industry leaders has a lengthy and distinguished list of accomplishments on behalf of our nation=s anglers and boaters to conserve and protect aquatic resources. The Service and the Department look forward to working productively with the Council as we address a variety of important aquatic resource issues.@
Reappointed to the SFBPC are: James Anderson, Executive Director, Northwest Indian Fisheries Commission (Olympia, Wash.); Doug Hansen, Director, South Dakota Division of Wildlife (Pierre, S.D.); Mike Hough, Past President, States Organization for Boating Access (Harrodsburg, Ky.); Ryck Lydecker, Associate Director for State Affairs, BOAT/US (Alexandria, Va.); Robert McDowell (ex officio), President, International Association of Fish and Wildlife Agencies and Director of the New Jersey Division of Fish, Game and Wildlife (Trenton, N.J); Eddie Smith, Chairman and Chief Executive Officer, Grady-White Boats (Greenville, N.C.); William Taylor, Chairman, Department of Fisheries and Wildlife, Michigan State University (East Lansing, Mich.); and Carl Wilgus, Administrator, Division of Toursim, Idaho Department of Commerce (Boise, Idaho).
New appointees to the SFBPC are: Bill Anderson, President, Westrec Marina Management Inc. (Encino, Calif.); Doug Boyd, Board Member, Coastal Conservation Association (Boerne, Texas); Michael Chrisman, Regional Manager, Southern California Edison Company (Tulare, Calif.); Dean Kessel, Vice President and General Manger, Bass Anglers Sportsman Society/ESPN (Montgomery, Alabama); John L. Morris, Founder, Bass Pro Shops (Springfield, Mo.); Jim Range, Honorary National President, Izaak Walton League of America (Gaithersburg, Md.); and Paul Sandifer, Director, South Carolina Department of Natural Resources (Columbia, S.C.).
The SFBPC=s charter requires that Council members be senior-level representatives for recreational fishing, boating and aquatic resource conservation interests. The charter allows, but does not require, up to 18 members. Recent accomplishments by the SFBPC include a report, AA Partnership Agenda for Fisheries Conservation,@ produced in a long-term effort to assist the FWS as it develops a strategic vision for its Fisheries Program.
Note: Copies of AA Partnership Agenda for Fisheries Conservation: A Special Report by the Sport Fishing and Boating Partnership Council@ can be obtained by calling 703/358 1711.
The Sport Fishing and Boating Partnership Council was formed in January 1993 to advise the Secretary of the Interior through the Fish and Wildlife Service Director about sport fishing and boating issues. The Council represents the interests of the public and private sectors of the sport fishing and boating communities and is organized to enhance partnerships among industry, constituency groups and government. Visit the Council=s Web page at http://sfbpc.fws.gov.
The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service is the principal Federal agency responsible for conserving, protecting and enhancing fish, wildlife and plants and their habitats for the continuing benefit of the American people. The Service manages the 95-million-acre National Wildlife Refuge System, which encompasses nearly 540 national wildlife refuges, thousands of small wetlands and other special management areas. It also operates 70 national fish hatcheries, 64 fishery resource offices and 78 ecological services field stations. The agency enforces Federal wildlife laws, administers the Endangered Species Act, manages migratory bird populations, restores nationally significant fisheries, conserves and restores wildlife habitat such as wetlands, and helps foreign governments with their conservation efforts. It also oversees the Federal Aid program that distributes hundreds of millions of dollars in excise taxes on fishing and hunting equipment to state fish and wildlife agencies.
