|
June 29, 2004 Action alert: Think now about absentee voting & registration for Aug 24 Primary UFA's motto on our logo is "I Vote Fish" - that says it all. Fishermen who will not be on dry land in their home port for the August 24 primary can vote absentee as soon as 30 days before the primary. Four ways to Vote Absentee: http://www.gov.state.ak.us/ltgov/elections/abinfo.htm & Absentee Ballot Application: http://www.gov.state.ak.us/ltgov/elections/abvotapp.htm . To vote in a party primary you must be registered with that party, non partisan, or undeclared. If you have moved and need to register, or would like to change your registration see Voter Registration Application and Instructions: http://www.gov.state.ak.us/ltgov/elections/regapp.htm Table of Contents: 1. Coast Guard investigates Freon leak - tender crew member dead in Valdez 2. Crab boat buyout program halted due to math mistake 3. Sen. Murkowski Wins WIC program change to increase salmon purchases 4. Sockeye price drops for Area M fishermen 5. Special Legislative Session ends with Tobacco Tax passed 6. Potential 'eco-label' could pay off for pollock fishery 7. AFDF under federal investigation 8. Bill introduced to Address Ocean Commissions' Recommendations 9. Alaska shellfish farmers struggle to grow their industry 10. Klukwan village says no to corporate pesticide spraying plans 11. AK Seafood companies need 600 workers immediately for salmon processing 12. Cook Inlet tops toxic list 13. EPA: Alaska ranks tops in Toxic Releases 14. ASMI hosts China Trade Delegation for taste of Alaska Seafood 15. ASMI: AK Marine Highway travelers to taste Great Taste of Alaska 16. Alaska fishermen concerned over increase in Canadian farmed fish 17. UAS Ketchikan offers first two-year fisheries tech program in state. 18. Continued: Voluntary Country of Origin Labeling bill 19. NEB: Changes to COOL law unlikely this year, Hagel says 20. ND Grocers support, farmers oppose voluntary labeling 21. Maryland State Senator Wants Investigation into Crabmeat 22. Sellers warn against shrimp tariffs - Duties would hike prices, they say 23. Florida Shrimp fleet cut by half - more losses expected 24. Florida Shrimp - Wild & Wonderful campaign encourages consumers to buy local 25. US team to visit India in shrimp anti-dumping probe 26. NY Times: Wild Flavor of the Yukon, Now in the Lower 48 27. Kensington mine wins draft permit 28. McCormick & Schmick's sets IPO at 10 million shares 29. Hoonah welcomes cruise ships 30. Ketchikan tender leaks Ammonia 31. Health Reuters: Women and Kids should strictly limit fish 32. Florida chef entrepreneur links fishermen to restaurants 33. IRL: Seven skippers qualify for Irish Wild Salmon quality scheme 34. NOAA Fisheries experts travel Alaska to explain Community CQ programs 35. NOAA posts IFQ Community Purchase reporting requirements effective date 7/22 36. BOF posts 2004/2005 proposal book
37. Salmon Market Bulletin and Price Report 1. Coast Guard investigates Freon leak - tender crew member dead in Valdez The Coast Guard is investigating a Freon leak on a fishing vessel that killed one man and injured another in Valdez Sunday. The Steelhead, a 69-foot fish tender, was at the Nautilus Fish Plant in Valdez where its crew began offloading 32,000 pounds of Chum and Sockeye salmon… The Valdez Fire Department (VFD) responded and removed both men from the vessel. Officials pronounced one crewmember dead on arrival at the Valdez Hospital and the master of the boat in stable condition and admitted to the hospital… http://www.uscg.mil/d17/allnews/news04/062804.htm 2. Crab boat buyout program halted due to math mistake Federal fisheries
authorities suspended a program to buy out more than two dozen crab boat
owners yesterday after they leaned that a government math error awarded
buyouts to the wrong boats…http://seattlepi.nwsource.com/local/179623_ Mistakes by federal agency foul up buyout of crab fleet
http://seattletimes.nwsource.com/html/business 3. Sen. Murkowski Wins WIC program change to increase salmon purchases …Murkowski worked with Sen. Thad Cochran, R-Miss., to insert language into the reauthorization of the Women, Infants and Children (WIC) Nutrition program to allow the Secretary of Agriculture to conduct periodic scientific reviews of the supplemental foods available and then to alter purchases to “reflect the most recent scientific knowledge” and to “reflect nutrition science, public health concerns and cultural eating patterns.” The change should encourage a decision to include salmon, which recently won FDA agreement to allow labeling salmon with a “nutrient content claim” noting that it contains a large amount of Omega-3 fatty acids…
http://www.alaskareport.com/news/2004/Murkowski 4. Sockeye price drops for Area M fishermen Sand Point fishermen this year have been able to end their grumbling about how few hours they are allowed to fish and go back to a more traditional gripe--the price they receive for their glorious haul of wild fish. http://www.news-miner.com/Stories/0,1413,113~7244~2239925,00.html 5. Special Legislative Session ends with Tobacco Tax passed State lawmakers pulled the plug on Gov. Frank Murkowski's special session Thursday night after passing a $1 a pack increase to the state cigarette tax but shooting down the governor's proposal to balance future budgets with hundreds of millions of dollars from the Alaska Permanent Fund. "We came down here to cut a fat hog, and all we ended up doing was fighting over a little piece of meat," said Rep. Nick Stepovich, R-Fairbanks… http://www.news-miner.com/Stories/0,1413,113~7244~2234783,00.html 6. Potential 'eco-label' could pay off for pollock fishery Alaska's $750 million dollar pollock fishery is one step closer to receiving an "eco-label" from the Marine Stewardship Council, having met critical standards for conservation and management, industry officials said June 14…
http://www.alaskajournal.com/stories/062804/loc_ 7. AFDF under federal investigation The U.S. Department of Commerce has launched an investigation into the Alaska Fisheries Development Foundation over the use of federal grant funds.
http://www.alaskajournal.com/stories/062804/ 8. Reps. Rahall and Farr Introduce Bill to Address Ocean Commissions' Recommendations; Legislation Designed to Fix Flawed Council System Rep. Nick J. Rahall (D-W.Va.), Ranking Democrat on the U.S. House Resources Committee, and Rep. Sam Farr (D-Calif.), co-chair of the House Oceans Caucus, along with 14 other members of Congress, today introduced a bill that would reform the system that manages the nation's fisheries. This is the first piece of legislation that would enact policy proposals made by the U.S. Commission on Ocean Policy and the Pew Oceans Commission… http://releases.usnewswire.com/GetRelease.asp?id=152-06242004 9. Alaska shellfish farmers struggle to grow their industry …Regulatory and legal hurdles and the remoteness of growing sites have made shellfish farming a tough venture here. But state officials say the industry may be close to emerging from some of its troubles. "I believe this industry is right now ready to springboard to growth," said Jackie Timothy, statewide mariculture coordinator for the Alaska Department of Fish and Game…
http://www.juneauempire.com/stories/062804/sta_ 10. Klukwan village says no to corporate pesticide spraying plans The Chilkat Indian Village of Klukwan went public this week with an April 30 resolution opposing the use of herbicidal sprays on village corporation lands. The opinion was inspired by Klukwan, Inc.’s controversial permit application to the state to spray herbicides aerially this summer on 2,000 acres of its land near Hydaberg. http://www.chilkatvalleynews.com/stories/story-1.html If story has timed out,
look for it on the Chilkat Valley News Archive at:
http://www.chilkatvalleynews.com/archive/ 11. AK Seafood companies need 600 workers immediately for salmon processing Alaska Department of Labor and Workforce Development officials report 600 workers are needed as soon as possible to fill seafood processing jobs in 15 locations around the state. Of those needed, 120 seafood workers are needed in Ketchikan, Alaska. Hundreds of additional workers will be needed statewide throughout the peak commercial fishing season…
http://www.sitnews.us/0604news/062604/062604_ 12. Cook Inlet tops toxic list Cook Inlet led all of Alaska in nonmining, manufacturing-related toxic discharges in 2002, according to the latest Toxics Release Inventory issued by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency. In a press release announcing the report Wednesday, the Homer-based environmental organization Cook Inlet Keeper said the EPA report showed more than 1.9 million pounds of pollution were released to the region's land, air and water that year…
http://www.peninsulaclarion.com/stories/062404/new_ Governor: Cook Inlet Keeper Report "Rubbish".
http://www.peninsulaclarion.com/stories/062104/new_ 13. EPA: Alaska ranks tops in Toxic Releases Alaska ranks as the state with the greatest volume of toxic chemicals being released into the environment, according to a new U.S. Environmental Protection Agency report. The report says most of the releases are coming from the Red Dog mine near Kotzebue, the world's largest zinc mine. http://www.news-miner.com/Stories/0,1413,113~7244~2234792,00.html 14. ASMI hosts China Trade Delegation for taste of Alaska Seafood …China - previously a closed market - has started importing Alaska seafood over the last few years. While the Chinese do not eat as much seafood as Japanese consumers, their appetites far exceed Americans'. Per capita consumption of seafood in China is about 80 pounds per year. Per capita consumption in the United States is "more like 15 pounds,'' said Laura Fleming of the Alaska Seafood Marketing Institute, which is hosting the Chinese delegation. Alaska seafood exports to China are in some cases increasing, Fleming said… http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/5315906/ 15. ASMI: AK Marine Highway travelers to taste Great Taste of Alaska Seafood lovers traveling on Alaska's Marine Highway System will have more delectable dining choices than ever before during the "Great Catch…Perfect Match!" celebration of Alaska Seafood… The cooks on Marine Highway vessels excel at preparing Alaska Seafood: it's part of a tradition established forty years ago when service first started.
http://www.alaskareport.com/news/2004/Alaska%20 16. Alaska fishermen concerned over increase in Canadian farmed fish To the worry of Alaska fishermen, 47 licenses have been quietly approved in British Columbia for fish farmers to expand their operations beyond raising salmon and shellfish. These include seven licenses for halibut, 22 for sablefish and 18 applications from salmon farms that want to add sablefish to their existing licenses. It marks the first time these species will be farmed in Canadian waters - and that has wild harvesters there and in Alaska extremely worried… http://www.alaskajournal.com/stories/062804/fis_fish.shtml 17. UAS Ketchikan offers first two-year fisheries tech program in state. Laine Welch Fish Factor: http://www.kinyradio.com/fishfactor.html And Fish Radio audio: http://www.vesselconnection.com/fish_radio.htm 18. Continued: Voluntary Country of Origin Labeling bill Federal legislators who say mandatory country-of-origin labeling (COOL) is too costly for farmers have introduced a bill that would make it voluntary. The proposed Food Promotion Act of 2004 would let the Secretary of Agriculture build a voluntary program for labeling produce, beef, pork, veal, lamb and seafood with country-of-origin information. The bill was introduced June 15 by House Agriculture Committee Chairman Bob Goodlatte, R-Va., and Ranking Minority Member Charles Stenholm, D-Texas. The bill had 13 additional cosponsors and has garnered support from 325 groups… "This approach, which benefits both consumers and producers, is preferable to a mandatory program which is more likely to hurt the folks it was intended to help."
http://www.zwire.com/site/news.cfm?newsid=12062821 19. NEB: Changes to COOL law unlikely this year, Hagel says …attempts in the House of Representatives to open up the current farm bill and make country-of-origin labeling a voluntary program instead of a mandatory one will be unsuccessful, especially if the legislation were to make it to the Senate…
http://www.theindependent.com/stories/062604/new_ Nebraska Farm Bureau says voluntary COOL bad idea Organizations join Rep.
Tom Osborne in voicing opposition:
http://www.theindependent.com/stories/062304/ 20. ND Grocers support, farmers oppose voluntary labeling Grocers in North Dakota are supporting a bill in Congress that would repeal "country of origin" food labeling requirements and make them voluntary. But the president of the North Dakota Farmers Union says a voluntary labeling law would kill the program.
http://www.grandforks.com/mld/grandforks/news/ 21. Maryland State Senator Wants Investigation into Crabmeat A state Senator from the Mid-Shore is asking for an investigation into allegations that questionable crabmeat is being shipped into Maryland from Venezuela. Sen. Richard Colburn says he has corresponded with state health officials and local seafood producers. Colburn says he wonders how South American processors can produce their product for less money. And he says he wants to know whether they skipping procedures designed to rid the crabmeat of bacteria. http://www.thewbalchannel.com/news/3472009/detail.html 22. Sellers warn against shrimp tariffs - Duties would hike prices, they say Tariffs on imported
shrimp would drive up the price of the No. 1 seafood in the country by as
much as 44 percent right at a time when Americans are eating shrimp at
record levels, a coalition of shrimp importers, restaurants and grocery
chains argued on Wednesday…
http://www.sunherald.com/mld/sunherald/business/ 23. Florida Shrimp fleet cut by half - more losses expected Florida's Gulf Coast shrimping fleet has shrunk by nearly half in the last 10 years and the rest could be out of business soon if market conditions don't improve, a state official says. Shrimpers in Florida and other states are facing stiff competition from pond-grown foreign shrimp, mostly from Asia and South America, that have driven down market prices. Recent fuel price increases have only compounded the problem… http://www.ledger-enquirer.com/mld/ledgerenquirer/news/local/8977170.htm 24. Florida Shrimp - Wild & Wonderful campaign encourages consumers to buy local product. An association of Southern shrimpers is seeking tariffs on imported shrimp in a trade action against six foreign countries. The industry is also hoping to uphold a "country of origin label" law in Congress. In Florida, shrimpers have taken the initiative with an education campaign called "Florida Shrimp - Wild & Wonderful," which encourages consumers to ask for the local product.
http://www.sptimes.com/2004/06/28/Opinion/Know_ 25. US team to visit India in shrimp anti-dumping probe Accusing India and the other countries of flooding the US market with cheap shrimps, the Southern Shrimp Alliance in America had filed a request with the US International Trade Commission and the Department of Commerce. The petition demanded to slap tariffs on the $2.4 billion worth shrimp imports to America. Early this year, the Commission came out with a preliminary verdict to impose anti-dumping duties against these countries saying lower-priced shrimps have been hurting the US seafood industry. A team of officials from the US Department of Commerce will soon visit India to probe whether the country's shrimp farming units are producing and exporting cheap seafood products to America… http://inhome.rediff.com/money/2004/jun/22shrimp.htm 26. NY Times: Wild Flavor of the Yukon, Now in the Lower 48 Starting this month, Yukon River kings made their way into American markets in the lower 48 states for the first time in a generation. They arrived with a reputation, spread by travelers who know the Last Frontier State well, as perhaps the best-tasting salmon in the world, rich in oil content, as fat as a football, netted at the mouth of the river by native Yup'ik Eskimo fishers who have lived off this run for thousands of years…
http://www.nytimes.com/2004/06/23/dining/23SALM.html 27. Kensington mine wins draft permit EPA approval of draft water permit opens Kensington to 45-day public comment period… http://www.juneauempire.com/stories/062204/loc_mine.shtml Governor: "Another Major Breakthrough for Mining"
http://www.sitnews.us/0604news/062204/062204_ EPA Announcement & call
for Comment:
http://yosemite.epa.gov/r10/water.nsf/NPDES+Public+ 28. McCormick & Schmick's sets IPO at 10 million shares McCormick & Schmick's Seafood Restaurants Inc. on Wednesday set its planned initial public offering at 10 million common shares at $14 to $16 per share.
http://www.reuters.com/financeNewsArticle.jhtml?type= 29. Hoonah welcomes cruise ships http://seattlepi.nwsource.com/connelly/179454_joel25.html 30. Ketchikan Tender leaks Ammonia An ammonia leak was detected at about 3:30 p.m. Tuesday on board a fish tender tied up at Casey Moran Boat Harbor, prompting a response from the Ketchikan Fire Department, the U.S. Coast Guard and local fish processors. No injuries resulted, according to Assistant Fire Chief Jim Hill, and the situation was under control by about 7:30 p.m… http://www.ketchikandailynews.com/news1.shtml#1088100170 31. Health Reuters: Women and Kids should strictly limit fish Children, pregnant women, and women who are planning to become pregnant should strictly limit their intake of fish and avoid some types altogether to avoid potentially harmful levels of mercury and PCBs, experts said on Thursday… Marmagas explained that there are two different types of canned tuna, chunk light and albacore. Research has shown that albacore contains around three times the amount of mercury as chunk light… (How about different kinds of salmon?)
http://story.news.yahoo.com/news?tmpl=story&cid= 32. Florida chef entrepreneur links fishermen to restaurants Fishermen e-mail Food Innovations from their boats with their catch at 4 a.m. every day. The company has secured 1,800 boats, 145 of which are in Florida. The fishermen filet the fish, box it and put it on a truck to be shipped directly to the restaurant…
http://www.naplesnews.com/npdn/business/article/ 33. IRL: Seven skippers qualify for Irish Wild Salmon quality scheme Seven fishing skippers have qualified for the Bord Iascaigh Mhara (BIM) wild salmon quality scheme - the first such scheme for wild fish in the world, writes Lorna Siggins, Marine Correspondent…Accredited vessels can earn as much as € 13 a kilo for quality assured wild salmon.
http://home.eircom.net/content/irelandcom/biznews/ 34. NOAA Fisheries experts travel Alaska to explain Community CQ programs NOAA Fisheries experts have been visiting small coastal Alaskan communities, explaining a new federal program that authorizes 42 Gulf of Alaska fishing communities to form non-profit corporations to purchase, hold, and use halibut and sablefish fishing quota. http://www.fakr.noaa.gov/newsreleases/newfishprogram.htm Community Quota Program website: http://www.fakr.noaa.gov/ram/cqp.htm 35. NOAA posts IFQ Community Purchase reporting requirements effective date 7/22 …This action provides authority to implement certain reporting requirements to implement the Individual Fishing Quota (IFQ) Community Purchase Program… Sections 679.5(l)(8), 679.41(d)(1), (l)(3), and (l)(4), published at 69 FR 23681 (April 30, 2004) are effective on July 22, 2004.
http://a257.g.akamaitech.net/7/257/2422/06jun20 36. BOF posts 2004/2005 proposal book The board received 451 proposals for this meeting cycle. A limited number of books will be printed and mailed to advisory committee members, local libraries around the state, and some department offices in late-July 2004. http://www.boards.adfg.state.ak.us/fishinfo/meetinfo/fprop.php 37. Salmon Market Bulletin and Price Report The May Salmon Market Bulletin and the week of June 21 salmon price-tracking report are posted on the ASMI website as a PDF file (update Friday afternoons) http://www.alaskaseafood.org/fishingprocessing/bulletin.htm
|