WASHINGTON - U.S. Rep. Wayne Gilchrest, R-Md., said Thursday it's going to take a lot of cooperation, intellect and innovation to come up with a comprehensive plan to manage the nation's oceans, speaking at a marine resource conference in Washington, D.C.

"We need to exchange information," Gilchrest said. "(We need) to have a sense of tolerance of other opinions."

Gilchrest, chairman of the House Subcommittee on Fisheries Conservation, Wildlife and Oceans, addressed fisheries experts from all parts of the country during a banquet Thursday. Members of the eight fisheries management councils, environmentalists, fishermen and processors, policymakers and scientists attended the Managing Our Nation's Fisheries II Focus on the Future conference, sponsored by the councils and the National Marine Fisheries Service.

But before Gilchrest addressed the audience, Greenpeace attempted to infiltrate the banquet. A handful of Greenpeace members, dressed as waiters and resembling the staff of the Omni Shoreham Hotel, distributed "menus" with copy titled "Mismanaging Our Nation's Fisheries: a menu of what's missing."

They weren't menus at all.

The pamphlets listed 11 issues of concern, such as problems with Atlantic cod, among others. They also listed Greenland turbot, Pacific Ocean perch and rougheye rockfish in the North Pacific, and albacore in the Pacific, as overfished species. But none of those species is considered overfished, according to current U.S. government criteria.

Council members ushered the Greenpeace members out of the banquet, but another returned shortly thereafter with blue mylar balloons. A tag hung from each balloon, reading, "Who stole the fish? Sen. Ted Stevens did!" Other tags were variants thereof, blaming the Western Pacific Fishery Management Council or someone else for, as Greenpeace believes, fishery mismanagement.

Several banquet attendees were intrigued by the Greenpeace menus, but most gave Gilchrest a standing ovation for his comments.

The Maryland Congressman followed up his comments about cooperation - working not just within U.S. borders, but with fishing and ocean interests overseas - with remarks about oceans legislation in the 109th Congress.

Even though issues such as the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan and the potential nuclear threats from North Korea and Pakistan take up much of the lawmakers' time, he and other congressmen have not forgotten about the marine environment.

"We realize those other issues are important and with a sense of urgency and they're vital," Gilchrest said. "But many of us in the House, working with (under secretary of commerce for oceans and atmosphere retired Vice) Adm. (Conrad) Lautenbacher, working with (NMFS assistant administrator for fisheries) Bill Hogarth, working with you as a group, working with our staff, are pushing forward the issues that oceans are not only important, are not only vital, but there's a huge sense of urgency to deal with those oceans."

Gilchrest expects ocean issues debates to be ongoing, volatile and strong, but is confident that two key pieces of legislation, one on the reauthorization of the Magnuson-Stevens Fishery Conservation and Management Act and the other a comprehensive oceans bill that will likely deal with many of the reports from the U.S. Commission on Ocean Policy, will be introduced and pushed through Congress this year.

Along with U.S. Rep. Don Young, R-Alaska, and U.S. Sen. Ted Stevens, R-Alaska, he likely will be responsible for keeping oceans issues before Congress, Gilchrest said, and he also said the timetable for getting draft legislation out is short - about a month or so.

Passing a large oceans bill won't be an easy effort, Gilchrest said, but one that is necessary, as is the Magnuson-Stevens Act. Both will require working together with diverse groups and creative planning.

At issue is the future, Gilchrest said in closing comments. How will future generations look back and consider the effects of this Congress' decisions on oceans?

Susan Chambers covers fishery issues for The World. She can be contacted by 269-1222, ext. 273; or by e-mail at schambers@pulitzer.net.