The State of the WSC: Year 1

 I wanted to take a few minutes to share my view of where the WSC is one year after its formation. It was a year ago that a group of concerned citizens got together at Ted’s Sporting Goods to discuss standing up for the fish. I’m very proud of what we have accomplished in the last 12 months. We have taken an idea and made it a reality. We have built a political force from scratch. Regardless of how the commission votes on C & R, we have for the first time put the issue on the table and forced the department to publicly defend their policies of MSY and wild steelhead harvest.

I am proud of our mission statement as I feel it is a clear declaration of who and what the WSC is. We are for more than Catch and Release. We are for hatchery reform, angler education and resource conservation. We have a been given a unique opportunity in this major rules cycle year to force a decision on C & R. For this reason, most of our resources in the past year have been directed toward this goal.

The challenge the WSC will face in the coming year is moving beyond C & R. There are hard issues to tackle which will require more internal debate that was the case with Catch and Release. C & R was easy because everyone in the organization supported it. Other potential issues are more divisive. The WSC enjoys the power it currently has because it is a diverse group with a common goal. To survive as an organization, it needs to remain a diverse group. The minute we stop being that, we become just another fishing club.

Over the last year, through the hard work of the board and the membership, we have built a voice for change. The next six months will see the current board begin to flesh out the agenda for the next two years. My personal goal during this time is to make sure of two things. First this agenda accurately reflects the views of the membership and secondly, to recruit board candidates for the next board that reflect the diverse nature of our membership. Some members of the current board, myself included, will not be running for re-election. In my case, the by-laws preclude my running again. My hope is some the members that have been so helpful up to this point will step up and run.

We have certainly come a long way in a single year. This has been easy though, the challenge lies ahead.

Sincerely,

Duggan Harman

WSC Board President

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