Oct. 6, 2011:  NOAA Fisheries announces that the task force charged with advising the agency on interactions between sea lions and salmon at Bonneville Dam will meet Oct. 24. The meeting, in the form of a conference call and web conference, will be held 8:30 a.m.-4:30 p.m. Pacific Time. We’ll post the agenda with call-in number and web access information on Oct. 12 on our Pinniped – Fishery Interaction Task Force web page. Members of the public may call to listen to the meeting. A specific time slot will be provided on the agenda for the public to provide comments or information for the task force to consider.

On Sept. 12, 2011, NOAA Fisheries accepted the joint application from Idaho, Oregon and Washington for a new authorization under Marine Mammal Protection Act (MMPA) Sec. 120. Such an authorization, if approved, would allow the states to lethally remove individually identifiable sea lions eating Endangered Species Act-listed salmon and steelhead at Bonneville Dam.

The public comment period on the application closes Oct. 12, 2011. (PDF 162KB) The task force will convene to review the application, public comments, and other relevant information. The task force is composed of NOAA Fisheries staff, independent scientists, representatives from affected conservation and fishing communities, tribes, states, and others. The task force recommendation will inform our determination to approve or deny the states' application.

For more information about the history of NOAA Fisheries’ efforts to address the pinniped-salmonid conflict at Bonneville Dam, see our MMPA Section 120 web page.