IEP Stakeholders News

Greetings IEP Community,

On October 31, 2024, the California Department of Fish and Wildlife (CDFW) released a request for assistance in spreading awareness about the detection of Golden mussel (Limnoperna fortunei) in the California Delta. Golden mussels are native to rivers and creeks of China and Southeast Asia. They are similar in appearance, biology, and impacts to quagga and zebra mussel, and pose a significant threat to water conveyance systems, infrastructure, and water quality.

CDFW is working to disseminate additional detection and response information as it becomes available. For now, CDFW is requesting the press release be referenced for additional detail and shared with all water managers throughout California to inform them of this discovery.

More information on Golden Mussels in California is available on the CDFW California Invasive Species web page.

Questions can be directed to invasives@wildlife.ca.gov.

Greetings IEP Community Members,

The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service would like to invite you to a joint information update on Thursday, November 7, 2024 from 10:00 a.m. - 11:00 a.m.

As has been the case for the past three years of the Delta Smelt Experimental Release project, we normally provide individual updates to various technical teams on our planning efforts.

Next month, we are inviting all interested parties to one joint meeting where we will focus on Year Four Experimental Release plans.

The meeting will be held virtually through Microsoft Teams.

Meeting Information

• Microsoft Teams meeting link
• Meeting ID: 220 701 303 621
• Passcode: CvVsvr

Thank you and we look forward to seeing you in November.

Katherine Sun
Fish & Wildlife Biologist
U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service
San Francisco Bay-Delta Fish and Wildlife Office
650 Capitol Mall, Eighth Floor Suite 300
Sacramento, CA 95814
(916) 930-5641

Dear IEP community,

The Delta Independent Science Board, which provides scientific oversight of programs that support adaptive management, is planning to host a symposium in early 2025 that explores the 1) current climate projections for California’s Sacramento-San Joaquin Delta and related uncertainties; and 2) how organizations in the region are incorporating climate change into their decision making. The goal of the symposium is to increase the understanding among Delta ISB members, researchers, practitioners, and affected parties about the latest climate science. The Delta ISB has released a draft prospectus that describes the scope of the symposium and is interested in your feedback on the draft prospectus, as well as ideas for speakers.

You can email comments to disb@deltacouncil.ca.gov by November 19, 2024 at 12:00 p.m.

Please let us know if you have any questions.

Delta Independent Science Board
715 P Street, 15-300
Sacramento, CA 95814
disb@deltacouncil.ca.gov
 

Greetings IEP Community Members,

The Delta Science Program would like us to share their Science Communication Survey with IEP community members to better understand the science communication needs of those who live, do research and advance knowledge of California's Bay-Delta. The survey consists of 13 questions, including a mix of multiple choice and short answer questions, to help the Delta Science Program better tailor its science communication efforts. Answers to the survey are by default anonymous. You can choose to share your contact information should you wish to be included in follow up information-gathering efforts on this topic.

• Delta Science Program's Science Communication Survey Form

Questions related to the science communication survey can be directed to Miranda Tilcock at Miranda.Tilcock@deltacouncil.ca.gov.

Greetings IEP PWT Chairs and Community Members,

Mark you calendars for Wednesday, November 13 from 1:30 p.m. to 3:30 p.m. for our last IEP Project Work Team Chair & Stakeholder Group meeting of 2024!

This will be a hybrid meeting hosted on MS Teams with an in-person option at the CDFW West Sacramento office (1010 Riverside Parkway). Meeting information will be sent closer to the date.

Calling for Agenda Items!

• Do you have a topic you'd like to present to the group?
• Is there a topic you'd like to hear more information about?
• Do you have a suggestion for a guest speaker?

Send your items and ideas to iep@wildlife.ca.gov.

Kind regards,

IEP Program Support

Please see the general announcements below that may be of interest to you and others.

Reclamation, Fish and Wildlife Service announce Notice of Funding Opportunity for Central Valley Project fish studies

The Bureau of Reclamation and the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service announced a Notice of Funding Opportunity for projects that collect information on Chinook salmon, rainbow trout, green sturgeon, white sturgeon, and Delta smelt.

Reclamation and the Service are awarding up to $5M in FY2025 to projects that collect biological information on select fish population in the Central Valley and Sacramento-San Joaquin River Delta. The information will be used to reduce uncertainties in existing decision support models, which are used to evaluate recovery strategies for Chinook salmon, rainbow trout, green sturgeon, white sturgeon, and Delta smelt. Eligible projects include field and laboratory research studies that are aimed at measuring fish growth and survival rates, movement, spawning population size, abundance and distribution, and many others.

View the News Release for more information about this exciting funding opportunity and how to apply.

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CDFW Kicks Off White Sturgeon Season Opener with "Conserve The Sturg" Campaign

The white sturgeon sport fishing season opens Oct. 1, 2024, only for catch-and-release fishing. Anglers may continue to fish using 2024 Sturgeon Fishing Report Cards purchased earlier in the year, but all remaining 2024 sturgeon harvest tags are invalid, and no harvest is permitted under any circumstances.

“Conserve The Sturg” Campaign

In support of sustaining sturgeon and California’s fisheries, CDFW has developed the “Conserve the Sturg” campaign that aims to raise awareness about sustainable angling and stewardship for this large, long-lived and prehistoric fish.

“There is a unique thrill to catching this living-legend fish while also releasing it back to its waters knowing that this species will live on for future generations,” said Jonathan Nelson, CDFW environmental program manager.

To learn more about “Conserve the Sturg” and about how the public can help sustain this prehistoric species, visit wildlife.ca.gov/Conserve-the-Sturg.

View the 2022-2024 CDFW News Releases for more information about the Sturgeon Season Opener, the "Conserve the Sturg" campaign and monitoring efforts for white sturgeon.

Greetings IEP Community,

Last year, the Predation Project Work Team (PWT) rebooted a Predation Project Tracker. The objective of the tracker is to share predation-related projects in the region, to promote complementary efforts and collaboration, and to provide a resource for researchers and managers who are interested in project design, methods, or results.

The tracker consists of a voluntary project submission form that people who lead predation-related projects in the region can share information about their projects. In our first year, a total of 12 projects were entered into the Tracker and posted on the Predation PWT web page.

As planned, we are sending an annual reminder to update existing projects or submit new predation-related projects. If you previously submitted a project and have any changes or updates, please complete the project submission form. If you have a new project to submit, use the same form. If you know of someone else who leads a predation project, please share this message or the form link. The form is largely multiple choice with a few short answer questions, with an average completion time of under 15 minutes.

Please be aware that form submissions will be posted publicly, except for email addresses. Please submit your revised or new predation-related projects by the end of October, although the form will remain open at all times for new projects or to update already-entered projects.

In early November, we will post the updated list of predation projects on the Predation PWT web page.

Questions may be addressed to Geoff Steinhart (geoffrey_steinhart@fws.gov).

Thanks,
Geoff Steinhart and Tyler Pilger
Predation PWT Co-Chairs

Greetings IEP community,

Analisa Vavoso, an undergraduate researcher at Chapman University, in collaboration with Dr. Richelle Tanner, is conducting a survey on environmental practitioner's emotions related to climate change. They kindly requested we share this survey with our members. See their announcement below.

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IEP community members,

We thank you in advance for your consideration to distribute this message to your staff, colleagues, and organization.

We are reaching out to individuals whose work or education concerns the environment. This survey is focused on emotions concerning climate change and burnout. We hope you can help us address the role that climate change plays in environmental practitioner’s emotions by answering a quick, ~10-minute survey. If you complete the survey, you will be entered into a raffle to win one $100 Amazon gift card.

If you are interested, follow the survey link to take the survey. We will make every effort to keep your study data confidential and not share your personal information with anyone outside the research team, however, we cannot guarantee confidentiality.

Thank you in advance for your participation!

Survey Link: Chapman University environmental practitioner's emotions concerning climate change(opens in new tab)

Please consider helping us distribute this widely across the environmental science field by sharing this email.

If you have any questions, please let us know.

Richelle Tanner, PhD
Email: rtanner@chapman.edu

Analisa Vavoso
Email: vavoso@chapman.edu

Greetings IEP Stakeholders,

At the August 14 IEP Stakeholder meeting, Dr. Rosemary Hartman (DWR), IEP Synthesis Lead, presented an overview on the new Food Web Synthesis effort. A Food Web Synthesis Proposal has been developed and is now available for review.

• Food Web Synthesis Proposal (pdf)

Please direct your questions, comments, or interest in participating on the Food Web Synthesis Team to Rosemary.Hartman@water.ca.gov.

Kind regards,
IEP Program Support

Greetings IEP PWT Chairs and Community members,

A reminder that our next quarterly IEP Project Work Team Chair & Stakeholder Group meeting will be Wednesday, August 14, 2024 from 1:30 p.m. to 2:30 p.m. This will be a shorter meeting than normal due to summer schedules. See the meeting agenda below for the MS Teams link.

The meeting will be hybrid (in-person + MS Teams) and held at the California Department of Fish and Wildlife office (1010 Riverside Parkway, West Sacramento) in the Garibaldi Conference Room. If coming in person, send an email to iep@wildlife.ca.gov so we can provide your name to the front desk personnel. Guest WiFi will not be available inside the building, so please bring your phone to hotspot, if needed.

• August 14 meeting agenda (pdf)

We look forward to seeing you all there.

If you'd like to present at a future meeting, or would like to request a topic for a future meeting, send Program Support an email at iep@wildlife.ca.gov.

Kind regards,
IEP Program Support