Commission schedules goat citizen-science pilot, website drought outreach and revises 2026 calendar

At the April 18 meeting debrief, Deputy Director Windrope told commissioners staff had noted a request to pursue a goat citizen-science effort and proposed bringing a short update in June. Commissioners broadly supported a pilot as a reliable, low‑ambiguity citizen‑science project and suggested committee oversight and a possible case-study approach.

Windrope said the executive committee had developed a proposal to alter the 2026 calendar to save money: cancel one Sequim meeting, move a planned Yakima meeting to Olympia, hold Long Beach and Spokane as scheduled and use webinars where feasible. Commissioners discussed the scheduling tradeoffs and asked staff to be mindful of season openers and public access when finalizing dates.

On communications, staff member Sam said WDFW coordinates with the Department of Ecology on drought announcements and is preparing blog posts and web updates about drought impacts on bears, cougars, wolves and ungulates; commissioners asked web content to be practical and emphasize actionable guidance for the public.

Deputy Director Windrope also reported several items were approved without additional follow-up in the director’s report, including a lands transaction, a 2020 lands item, livestock compensation and commercial non‑spot shrimp; staff flagged a potential future briefing related to Pacific Salmon Treaty negotiations.

Next steps recorded in the debrief: staff will provide a June update on the goat pilot, publish coordinated drought content and finalize the 2026 calendar with commissioners’ input. No formal votes were taken on the debrief items during the session.