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The attached report provides the Independent Scientific Review Panel’s final comments and recommendations on 71 proposals submitted for the Resident Fish, Data Management, and Regional Coordination Category Review to implement the Columbia River Basin Fish and Wildlife Program. For ongoing projects, these ISRP comments include a retrospective evaluation of results. The ISRP finds that 14 proposals meet scientific review criteria, 37 proposals meet criteria with some qualifications, and 3 proposals did not meet criteria. In the preliminary review, the ISRP made a specific programmatic recommendation that applies to the 17 regional coordination proposals. In addition to these 71 proposals, the ISRP considered 9 "contextual" projects that had been reviewed recently but were included in this review for reference because of their relation to the proposals under review.
In addition to individual project reviews, this report contains comments on issues that cut across projects and apply to the Program in general. Topics covered include non-native fish management, trout stocking strategies, monitoring and evaluation, regional coordination, results reporting, and process issues. An attachment to this report contains ISRP feedback on drafts of the Resident Fish Monitoring Strategy (RFMS) and Wildlife Monitoring Implementation Strategy (WMIS). Those strategy documents were used for context in this review.
The ISRP emphasizes again what it stated in its preliminary review, that the ISRP continues to be supportive of the category and geographic review approach. It incorporates some of the best features of past reviews such as site visits, presentations, and a response loop. It also adds some positive new features such as an emphasis on topical reviews (e.g., data management) and a recognition of program commitments. The ISRP especially appreciates the efforts of project sponsors and Council and BPA staff in organizing and providing invaluable site visits and presentations. The ISRP also appreciates the constructive responses received to address the ISRP concerns raised in the preliminary review. These responses, tours, and presentations demonstrated that the projects are led by dedicated staff and progress is being made. Specifically, greater understanding and appreciation of the Council’s Fish and Wildlife Program goals for native species and ecosystem restoration are evident in the projects the ISRP visited and reviewed.
Please note, the ISRP recommendations and comments are unchanged for the 41 proposals that received final recommendations in the ISRP’s preliminary review. These are the proposals that the ISRP recommended met criteria, and/or had qualifications, and responses were not requested. This includes all proposals in the data management and regional coordination categories. The 30 proposals that were augmented with responses received new and final ISRP recommendations and comments. These proposals can be identified in the ISRP report by the ISRP recommendation line that reads "ISRP recommendation (response review)."
If you print, be aware the printed report is 273 pages.
