MEMO TO: Members of the City Council
FROM: Mayor Angela Birney
SUBJECT:
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Approval of Interlocal Agreement for Lake Sammamish Watershed Investigations and Kokanee Salmon Recovery Actions
I. RECOMMENDED ACTION
recommendation
Approve of an Interlocal Agreement that supports Lake Sammamish Kokanee Salmon Recovery actions
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II. DEPARTMENT CONTACTS
Dave Juarez, Public Works Director 425-556-2733
Gary Schimek, EUSD Manager 425-556-2742
Aaron Moldver, Environmental Programs Supervisor 425-556-2756
Peter Holte, Senior Planner 425-556-2822
III. DESCRIPTION/BACKGROUND
Kokanee are a unique type of sockeye salmon that spend their entire lives in and near fresh water lakes-unlike other salmon, they do not migrate to the ocean. Lake Sammamish Kokanee are one of only two native kokanee stocks left in Western Washington.
Lake Sammamish Kokanee currently face severe environmental pressures caused by increased predation by non-native species, increased water temperature, and low dissolved oxygen levels within the lake. A severe decline in the number of adult kokanee returning to spawning streams between 2016 and 2018 reveals an elevated risk that this population of fish will become extinct unless additional conservation actions are taken.
The environmental conditions affecting kokanee also raise concerns regarding the overall health of the lake’s ecological system, the lake’s ability to support other species of concern-including the federally listed Chinook salmon-and the lake’s use as a recreational resource.
The proposed Interlocal Agreement (ILA) among the cities of Redmond, Bellevue, Sammamish, Issaquah, the Snoqualmie Tribe, and King County will provide a mechanism for signatories to collectively fund actions associated with the Lake Sammamish Kokanee recovery. This ILA will remain in effect for 10 years starting in 2019. Redmond could choose to withdraw from the ILA in any given year by following notification of termination requirements defined in the ILA. The cities of Bellevue, Sammamish and Issaquah and the Snoqualmie Tribe signed the ILA in 2019. King County has not yet signed.
Work funded by this ILA is intended to be regional in nature, pertaining to the stewardship of Lake Sammamish as a natural resource that is shared by the jurisdictions surrounding it, King County and the Snoqualmie Tribe. This work includes: kokanee rearing and supplementation programs, research into water quality conditions in Lake Sammamish, and investigations into predation or disease within the lake.
A “Kokanee ILA Management Committee” made-up of elected officials (or designees) representing each participating jurisdiction and the Snoqualmie Tribe will meet annually to review and approve a scope of work and budget for activities funded by the ILA. Annual draft work plans and budgets will be developed by a Staff Committee made-up of staff representatives from each jurisdiction signing the ILA. King County will act as the service provider taking on administrative tasks and overseeing any contracts with third parties. ILA-related actions will be implemented in coordination with the Washington Department of Fish & Wildlife and US Fish & Wildlife Service.
The Lake Sammamish Kokanee Work Group is an organization made-up of local municipalities, non-profits, state and federal agencies, the Snoqualmie Tribe, and concerned residents, who have been working to conserve the lake’s remaining kokanee population for the last ten plus years. This group conducts educational events, runs a volunteer monitoring program, and takes other citizen-driven actions to support recovery efforts. Actions funded by the ILA will be conducted in addition to and not supplant the citizen-initiated actions carried out by the work group.
IV. PREVIOUS DISCUSSIONS HELD
COUNCIL ACTIONS/COMMUNICATION
|
Date (MM/DD/YYYY) |
Action / Committee Presentation |
|
02/11/2020 |
Planning and Public Works Committee of the Whole |
|
11/2020 |
Mayor’s Weekly |
|
Today |
Approve Interlocal Agreement |
V. IMPACT
A. Service/Delivery:
A list of activities funded by this ILA for the first two years are listed in ILA’s Exhibit B. Activities funded by this ILA should have no impact on City services.
B. Fiscal Note:
Redmond’s cost-share for 2019 and 2020 for this ILA is $10,200. Starting in 2020, the ILA limits the annual growth of member contributions to no more than 10% plus inflation. This limit can be exceeded by a majority vote among members of the Kokanee ILA Management Committee. Assuming the committee does not vote to increase cost-shares beyond the 10% per year limit, the City’s total maximum expenditure of associated with the ILA’s over 10 years is $105,118.
The ILA’s Exhibit A details the cost-shares among all ILA partners during the first two years of the agreement, starting in 2019. Because Redmond did not sign the ILA in 2019, King County and City propose that Redmond make a payment of $10,015 in 2020. This amount combines the $4,262 cost-share Redmond would have provided in 2019 with the $5,753 the City would have provided in 2020, had the City signed the ILA in 2019. A note detailing this arrangement has been added to Exhibit A and all ILA the signatories have been notified of this arrangement. This payment arrangement will not alter the limitations in the ILA regarding annual increases to Redmond’s cost-share. The base for future increases to the City’s cost-share will remain $5,753, which is Redmond’s 2020 cost-share as detailed in Exhibit A’s payment schedule.
VI. ALTERNATIVES TO STAFF RECOMMENDATION
1) Forgo participation and directly funding specific measures-The City could choose to not sign the ILA and instead directly purchase materials or professional services that support conversation efforts. Doing so the City will forgo the opportunity to approve annual conservation work plans and would likely require the City develop an alternative means to publicly express support for kokanee recovery efforts.
2) Forgo participation and choose not support kokanee conservation actions.
VII. TIME CONSTRAINTS
ILA partners hope to have the agreement ratified by all participating parties by the end of the first quarter of 2020.
VIII. LIST OF ATTACHMENTS
Attachment A: Interlocal Agreement for Lake Sammamish Watershed Investigations and Kokanee Salmon Recovery Actions