Abalone Coast Watch Forum
Bamfield Marine Sciences Centre
February 27 to March 1, 2007

A Way Forward:
Abalone Coast Watch Recomendations

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• Address increased visibility and awareness of the Abalone Coast Watch program coast-wide and strengthen and build on the network of communities involved:
  1. Identify long-term contact people from communities (continuity important), these people are like local “champions” for abalone recovery
  2. Schedule meetings, forums, workshops (video- or tele-conferencing possibilities).
  3. Put communications in with fish license package, information on public docks.
  4. Develop poster/signage based on map presented in Fisheries and Oceans PowerPoint presentation (LC), for use in public places (boat ramps, fishing lodges, public docks etc.) Map shows Abalone Coast Watch coverage on the coast.
  5. Increase awareness of consumers and others in urban and ‘inland’ centres.
• Broaden Coast Watch coverage on the coast, and facilitate in other communities, travel, communication.
• Offer support to new Coast Watch:
  1) An invitational letter offering examples of proposals for funding.
  2) Copies of materials.
  3) Educational/informational presentations to take back to the communities.
• Improve communication and collaboration amongst groups and with the public by providing:
  a) Links on OceanLink (www.oceanlink.island.net).
  b) List-serve for interested parties (e-mail list started).
  c) Potentially use Abalone Recovery Implementation Group (RIG) site for discussion.
  d) Encourage capacity building in communications training.
• Seek alternative funding other than federal. Collectively apply for funding (Turning Point given as an example).
  
• Increase the sustainability of Abalone Coast Watch by securing funding.
  
• Encourage the return of fine monies to Abalone Coast Watch activities.
  
• Establish a five-year plan for an Abalone Coast Watch Network.
  
• Take a broader ecosystem approach to program. Use abalone as an indicator of coastal health and social values, use it as a model for a way to take small steps.
  
• Improve communication and collaboration between communities and Fisheries and Oceans Canada (FOC) by:
  a) Making efforts to bridge the gap identified between FOC and some community groups (meetings/workshops between stewardship groups and lead agencies).
  b) Encourage FOC presence at community meetings (fisheries officer’s presentations).
  c) Set up rules of conduct at beginning of meetings/forum.
  d) Sit in a circle.
  e) Broaden the opportunities.
  f) Keep politics out of dialogue.
  g) Concerted effort.
  h) Work together.
  i) Work together on communication strategy.
  j) Channel energy into working together for positive outcomes for abalone’s recovery; avoid negative energy, rhetoric and issues that are too large to be addressed by Abalone Coast Watch.
  
• First Nations capacity building:
  a) Capacity building needed for First Nations (for example; technical diving, training the community educators).
  b) In First Nations communities, use trained First Nations educators so education is internal (increase acceptance and build capacity).
  d) Need for more role models in our (First Nations) communities, many who get training move away to big cities.
  e) Do more inventory, be more involved in the science.
  f) Address the difficulty of reporting on each other in a small community or with an extended family.
  g) Relationship with FOC an issue for many communities (history and some hard feelings).
  h) Everyone present wants to work with FOC.
  i) Work together to improve the relationship, provide a presence in communities, and build positive relationships.
  j) Work together towards the same goal to protect the abalone on the coast.
  
• Strengthen monitoring and enforcement:
  a) Expand understanding of compliance – conditions, motivation, incentive.
  b) Strengthen the watch program by combining with the guardian and watchmen program. Support monitoring by providing boat and/or fuel.
  c) Provide access to information from FOC enforcement: Information on markets where poached abalone goes.
• Over-come barriers to out-planting abalone along the coast:
  a) Work with science community.
  b) Collaborate with First Nations for training and inventory.
  c) Encourage capacity building in dive survey work, monitoring, abalone detection, video-conferencing with divers is now a possibility through BMSC.
  d) Benefit Abalone Coast Watch with increased “ownership/stewardship” in areas with out-planted abalone.
  
  Bamfield Marine Sciences Centre conducted an evaluation of the Abalone Coast Watch Program and the recommendations below come from the final report for that project which was partially funded by the Habitat Stewardship Program. They reflect many of the suggestions made above by forum participants:
  
  Recommendations:
  1. Continue to fund and/or assist communities to acquire funding for Abalone Coast Watch (for example Foundation money & fine money).
  2. Continue to work together with respect toward identifiable common goals.
  3. Increase dialogue and continue to build positive relationships between Fisheries and Oceans Canada and coastal First Nations.
  4. Encourage participation in Abalone Coast Watch with a mixture of diverse leadership.
  5. Fund educational programming for a more integrated approach to marine species at risk recovery education.
  

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