**WRP Executive Committee**

**Conference Call**

**Thursday, August 11, 2005**

**Members Present: Blaine Parker, John Chapman, John Wullschleger, Karen
McDowell, Robyn Draheim (for Mark Sytsma), Susan Ellis**

**Members Absent: Dwight Williamson, Scott Smith**

**1. Final Plans for WRP Morning Session at Annual Meeting**

The EC discussed the WRP morning session (8-12) and decided on the
following agenda:

-   Business meeting with election of executive committee

-   Presentation of budget

-   Work Plan Committee -- presentation of proposals plus voting on
    which ones will be funded

-   Current project updates (written plus short presentations)

    -   Mexico invasive species strategy meeting (Susan)

    -   Upcoming Desert Fishes Council in Cuatro Cienegas, Mexico (John)

    -   Research Priorities workshop (Robert Leavitt)

    -   Hull fouling collaboration (Leigh Johnson)

    -   Rapid Response for two plants species (Lars Anderson)

    -   ANS materials for Canada/US border (Kevin Anderson)

-   Update on WRP "Recommendations to States"

-   Discussion of direction of WRP -- how to get members more active --
    are we doing the things we need to be doing? Is the committee
    structure working?

**2. Election of Executive Committee**

Tina has 9 people who have agreed to run for the 8 slots for the
Executive Committee. The EC agreed that the terms should be shorter and
Tina will write a change for the Guide to Procedures to shorten the
terms from 4 years to 2 years. Tina was concerned that only 2 of the 9
people who have agreed to run are not from coastal states. The coastal
states have been involved in the ANS issues for a longer time and there
are more people who have full time jobs doing ANS. Also, there are
people from Oregon or other coastal states, for example, who have very
different skills and jobs. Some of the interior states are members of
the Mississippi River Basin panel also which stretches their time pretty
thin. If Tina can recruit any other people to run, she will.

**3. Actions for WRP and MRBP to work together on**

Susan and Jay Rendall will be leading a discussion on this issue at the
meeting of the Panels. Susan wants suggestions and ideas to lead things
off. Suggestions were: 1) to discuss transporting species across panel
borders and 2) uniting to help get more funding for states.

**4. Priority paragraph for NOAA RFP for 2007 Research and Outreach
Grants**

Blake Feist, NOAA, will head a subcommittee to create a paragraph to go
into the NOAA RFP for their 2007 Research and Outreach grants. We will
get a subcommittee developed at the Panel Business meeting.

**5. Zebra Mussel Rapid Response Plan for Pacific NW**

Mike Fraidenburg will send out an announcement to the 82 people on his
e-mail list about a meeting in Portland in late September at the Port of
Portland facilities. Robyn said there is a conflict with Mike's proposed
dates of Sept. 22-23. There is a National Association of State Boating
Law Administrators meeting in Portland on those days. They will be
sponsoring a one-day ANS session and Robyn thinks there will be several
people at that who may be important to the rapid response plan meeting.
Tina will call Mike and discuss changing the dates. Blaine said there is
meeting space at the Columbia River Intertribal Fisheries

Commission which is in downtown Portland.

**6. Experts Database**

Robyn spoke with Ron Lukens about his suggestion that the regional
panels request funds from the ANS Task Force to create an experts
database. He agreed that the burden of compiling the lists will fall on
the regional panels and there is no money for updating the list.
Basically the \$20,000 requested will go to put the information into a
database. The EC decided to participate with the understanding that we
will have input as this proposal goes forward.