02/07/2006: "A Synopsis Of A Marine Resource Meeting"

By Stephen A. Garrison

The EDC (Economic Development Council) sponsored a meeting at Islander's Bank on January 26, where County Councilman Ranker brought the attendees up to date regarding discussions held over the past month with various not-for-profit organizations and government agencies interested in influencing all the factors leading to environmental degradation of the US coastal marine areas. Commissioner Ranker proposed that a model institute be formed in the Puget Sound zone, since this area contains the largest marine biodiversity in the United States, and still has sufficient vitality to respond to change initiatives.

Commissioner Ranker made the point that the building of such an organization could be a "win-win" situation for both the marine sponsors and the counties' economy. The sponsoring organizations and federal government have spent in excess of $75 million in various reports that have defined the extent of the problem.

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These reports have been issued by the US Commission on Ocean Policy, the Pew Oceans Commission, the Rockefeller Foundation, the Surfrider Foundation, and Washington State's Puget Sound Initiative. Unfortunately, since the reports were issued over the past five years, virtually no action has been taken, and the various sponsoring organizations have been frustrated by the inaction. Commissioner Ranker has proposed to them that a Marine Institute be established in the county that would become a "model" for other action based organizations across the coastal areas of the United States. He also mentioned to the group that he had three sources of money totaling $360K that might be made available to the county on a short term basis for critical resources planning. Commissioner Ranker assured the audience that new funds would not be tied to "bricks and mortar", or matching contributions by county sources, but could be used for the planning of the institute.

After the speech, the attendees proceeded into a free-form discussion regarding what kinds of organizations would be needed in a Marine Institute to respond to the various concerns of the state government and the NGOs, what skill sets and businesses were already operating in this area, what business or organizations would likely have to be formed, and what talent and resources existed today to bring to bear on the problem. Once a format was developed for answering these questions, it was determined that the attendees would leave the meeting and then report back by email (garrison@rockisland.com) (with a copy to, jeffbossler@rockisland.com) with responses as follows:

Areas of need/expertise

● High Technology
● Trades
● Craftsmanship
● Tourism
● Education
● The Sciences
● Applied Sciences (including an incubator)
● A Community College Initiative
● Research and Development

Requested Responses from Attendees and the Public:

1. In what areas listed above do you have specific interests or expertise? Please describe.

2. What other people do you know who have specific interests or expertise in your area? Also, who do you know which expertise in the other areas listed? Please describe.

3. What other organizations (names of leadership, and telephone or email numbers) exist who are operating in one of the listed areas?

4. What other businesses must we consider forming to fill in the gaps and cover the initiatives desired by the state and the NGOs?

5. What other support groups or service organizations must be formed to fill in the gaps and cover the initiatives desired by the state and the NGOs?

Next Steps

Once we get this information back from the attendees- and hopefully from interested members of the public at large- and collated, the group will announce a meeting time and place, invite the public, and make an attempt to build an organizational structure to pursue a County Marine Institute.