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February 1, 2005 Last call for COOL Comments - deadline Tomorrow (Feb 2) Send an email today - and comment specifically to include canned, cooked, smoked and cured fish and shellfish. Refer to Docket No. LS-03-04 -Email to cool@usda.gov . -FAX to (202) 720-3499 For the Interim Final Rule, Q&A, and public comments see http://www.ams.usda.gov/cool/ Contents 1. BOF Cook Inlet: Fish board nets mixed review 2. Kodiak crab fishermen wait for higher price 3. Fishing downtime leads to more safety training 4. Bering Sea crab derbies to die out with advent of quotas 5. Doomed boat overloaded, probe finds 6. Crab boat used sunken vessel's pots to overfish 7. Next Kodiak launch adjusted due to fishing seasons 8. Kodiak: Cod A under way 9. Kodiak Workers at work, but still in need 10. Discovery Channel catches Alaska crabbers 11. State contributes to Tsunami Relief efforts 12. Alaska works on tsunami preparedness 13. NOAA Magazine: Making our coastal communities "tsunamiready" 14. Four candidates to be considered by Fish, Game boards committee 15. Sen. Murkowski introduces rural airplane ticket, floatplane tax repeals 16. Stevens and Inouye Introduce The National Ocean Exploration Program Act 17. Stevens Introduces Alaska Floodplain and Erosion Mitigation Commission Act 18. NPFMC votes on dragging next month - Guest Opinion by Ben Enticknap 19. Big, Old Fish Key To Restoring Groundfish Stocks 20. Canadians set Mining sights on Alaska Peninsula 21. Ketchikan cold storage project lacks land 22. Cook Inlet Pacific cod fishery gets new look 23. Dutch Salmon Giant Nutreco Eyes New Fish To Fry - Farmed Cod 24. 'Environmental movement has lost its way' By Patrick Moore 25. Fish Farming's Bounty Isn't Without Barbs 26. Disney characters soon to star on a child's dinner plate near you 27. Reviewing scientists say proposed conservation measures unlikely to help whales 28. Laine Welch's Fish Radio, sponsored by VesselConnection / Wireless Matrix 29. NPFMC Gulf Ratz. Community Committee Meeting January 28, Anch. 30. Halibut Commission Completes 2005 Annual Meeting 31. Halibut commission raises Southeast catch quota
32. IPHC posts Technical papers on gear and bait experiments,
Statistical areas 34. Preliminary Final EIS for Essential Fish Habitat ID and Conservation in Alaska 35. AFSC Groundfish Observer Database Spatial Display Home Page 36. NOAA Final Criteria and Data for an Inventory of Existing Marine Managed Areas 37. NOAA seeks experts to review Agency’s ecosystem research and science enterprise 38. Commerce Dept seeks nominations for the MPAs Federal Advisory Committee. 39. NOAA seeks experts to review agency’s ecosystem research and science enterprise 40. EPA, NOAA will help coastal communities with coastal growth, development issues 41. NOAA Strategic Planning Office 2005 Stakeholder Forum 42. Columbia River Basin Fish and Wildlife Program - Notice of availability 43. Board of Fisheries summary of Soldotna Public Hearing re: Upper Cook Inlet Finfish 44. UAF MAP posts USDA TAA Technical Training workshop schedule: 45. DCED posts Regional Seafood Development Association regs. 1. BOF Cook Inlet: Fish board nets mixed review As two weeks of discussions on upper Cook Inlet sport, commercial and personal-use fisheries came to a close Saturday in Anchorage, reviews decidedly were mixed among meeting participants from the Kenai Peninsula. "We feel we were totally shut out of the process," said Paul Shadura, president of the Kenai Peninsula Fisherman's Association.
http://www.peninsulaclarion.com/stories/013005/news_ New rules help fish reach river Setnetters must adhere to 36-hour weekend closures Weekend fishermen should find more salmon in the Kenai and Kasilof rivers this summer after the Alaska Board of Fisheries this week approved new rules that pull some commercial fishing nets out of Cook Inlet before each weekend begins… But the regulation change was important in other ways, according to recreational and commercial fishing interests who packed the two-week Fish Board meeting. It was part of a package crafted jointly by long-time opponents in the battle over Cook Inlet salmon -- the Kenai River Sportfishing Association and United Cook Inlet Drift Association -- that gave concessions on both sides. http://www.adn.com/front/story/6088671p-5977534c.html Kenai Peninsula Clarion: Fish board makes changes New rules affect
commercial drift, sport fishers; windows stay…
http://www.peninsulaclarion.com/stories/012705/news_ 2. Kodiak crab fishermen wait for higher price Tanner crab fishermen are still standing down 13 days after the season opened Jan. 15, citing no local processor has yet offered them a fair price. The United Salmon Association (USA) is currently holding negotiation talks, but not making any progress, fishermen said Wednesday... "(The stand down) is due to the extreme difference in price comparison between offers for Tanner crab in Kodiak and what was actually paid for Tanner crab in Dutch Harbor," the association said in a statement… http://www.kodiakdailymirror.com/?pid=19&id=1014 3. Fishing downtime leads to more safety training Tanner crab fishermen with time on their hands due to a stand-down, or “strike,” as some call it, while price negotiations are under way, took part in marine safety training Monday with the Marine Safety Detachment (MSD) at the Coast Guard Base pool… http://www.kodiakdailymirror.com/?pid=19&id=1011 4. Bering Sea crab derbies to die out with advent of quotas Federal fishery managers are poised to eliminate open derbies for Bering sea crab fisheries in an effort to create a safer industry.
http://www.alaskajournal.com/stories/012405/loc_ 5. Doomed boat overloaded, probe finds BIG VALLEY: Too much weight may have sealed crab vessel's fate, authorities say. A crab boat that sank in the Bering Sea last month, killing five crewmen, was carrying far too much weight and the captain had a history of overloading the vessel, Coast Guard investigators said Monday… http://www.adn.com/money/story/6108833p-5992666c.html 6. Crab boat used sunken vessel's pots to overfish A Seattle skipper and his crew have been charged with illegally fishing for crab with pots that belonged to the Big Valley, a crab boat that sank the day the fishery was to begin…
http://www.juneauempire.com/stories/012605/sta_ 7. Next Kodiak launch adjusted due to fishing seasons The possible date for an upcoming target missile launch from the Kodiak Launch Complex “is being adjusted to accommodate the needs of the cod and Tanner crab fishermen,” Missile Defense Agency commander Lt. Gen. Trey Obering announced Friday… http://www.kodiakdailymirror.com/?pid=19&id=1030 8. Kodiak: Cod A under way The cod A season for fixed gear in the Gulf of Alaska and the Bering Sea Aleutian Islands opened Jan 1. The boats average about 300 tons of cod a day, according to National Marine Fisheries Service officials. The cod A season for trawlers opened Thursday, Jan. 20, and some trawl fishermen are concerned that with fixed gear’s consistently good catches, they won’t get their fair share of the cod. The gear types share the same quota… http://www.kodiakdailymirror.com/?pid=19&id=989 9. Kodiak Workers at work, but still in need The cannery workers who came in on the ferry last week have started work at Western Alaska Fisheries, but are still in need of Kodiak’s charitable resources… http://www.kodiakdailymirror.com/?pid=19&id=1003 10. Discovery Channel catches Alaska crabbers Crab fishermen are the stars of "Deadliest Catch," a 10-part Discovery Channel series premiering in April that focuses on the hazardous hunt for Bering Sea king crab…
http://www.alaskajournal.com/stories/012405/loc_ 11. State contributes to Tsunami Relief efforts (Juneau) – First Lady Nancy Murkowski presented a check to the American Red Cross of Alaska on Saturday for $16,731 to assist in relief efforts following the tsunami in Southeast Asia… http://www.gov.state.ak.us/news.php?id=1506 &&& One month after the Tsunami, AK raises over $700 K
http://www.ktva.com/Stories/0,1413,163~29969~ 12. Alaska works on tsunami preparedness Report: Alaska tsunami hazard comes from waves generated by local earthquakes… The state of Alaska wants people to be more aware of the dangers of tsunamis, particularly in vulnerable populated areas such as Seward, Kodiak, Homer and Sitka.
http://www.juneauempire.com/stories/013005/sta_ &&& Alaska tsunami center gets visit from boss Scientists at the Alaska Tsunami Warning Center in Palmer had a chance Monday to take their concerns to the top. They met with the head of the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration. Vice Adm. Conrad Lautenbacher spent a few hours with the scientists, listening to their concerns and needs and discussing plans to expand the center, along with the idea of creating a worldwide warning system…
http://www.ktuu.com/CMS/templates/master.asp? &&& House Panel Hears Plans to Improve U.S. Tsunami Warning System
http://www.infozine.com/news/stories/op/storiesView/sid/ 13. NOAA Magazine: Making our coastal communities "tsunamiready" http://www.magazine.noaa.gov/stories/mag158.htm 14. Four candidates to be considered by Fish, Game boards committee Four candidates for the job of state Department of Fish and Game commissioner position will be interviewed in late February by a selection committee made up of Game Board and Fisheries Board members. The candidates are Wayne Regelin, Doug Mecum, Cal Skaugstad and Roland Maw. All but Maw work for the department. http://www.news-miner.com/Stories/0,1413,113~7244~2685527,00.html 15. Sen. Murkowski introduces rural airplane ticket, floatplane tax repeals Says those two taxes unfair to Alaskans given state’s unique transportation structure… http://murkowski.senate.gov/pressapp/record.cfm?id=230931 16. Stevens and Inouye Introduce The National Ocean Exploration Program Act Senators Ted Stevens (R-AK) and Daniel Inouye (D-HI), the Chairman and Co-Chairman of the Senate Commerce Committee, today introduced the National Ocean Exploration Program Act (copy attached), which would establish a National Ocean Exploration Program within the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) in consultation with the National Science Foundation (NSF) and other appropriate agencies.
http://stevens.senate.gov/pr/2005/January/ 17. Stevens Introduces Alaska Floodplain and Erosion Mitigation Commission Act
http://stevens.senate.gov/pr/2005/January/ 18. NPFMC votes on dragging next month - Guest Opinion by Ben Enticknap … But for all the ocean bounty we can be proud of, it’s a disgrace that fishery managers allow the continued destruction of sensitive habitats and excessive waste by fisheries that drag the seafloor with bottom trawls… http://www.kodiakdailymirror.com/?pid=19&id=1026 19. Big, Old Fish Key To Restoring Groundfish Stocks Recent studies have found that large, old and oily groundfish are significantly more important than their younger counterparts in maintaining healthy marine fish stocks – the larvae from their eggs better resist starvation and have a much greater chance of survival…
http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2005/01/ 20. Canadians set Mining sights on Alaska Peninsula Deals with two Native corporations give Full Metal Minerals right to explore more than 1 million acres… Lands part of belt that includes Pebble…
http://www.petroleumnews.com/pntruncate/ 21. Ketchikan cold storage project lacks land A refusal by the Ketchikan Gateway Borough Assembly to provide land may doom a proposed regional cold storage project. The Ketchikan Regional Cold Storage Association last week considered disbanding after a 4-2 assembly vote against providing a site for the project, which would allow storage of large volumes of fish in Ketchikan for value-added processing in nonfishing months. http://www.news-miner.com/Stories/0,1413,113~7244~2672579,00.html Murkowski: Cold storage money could go elsewhere What Ketchikan wants is Ketchikan’s business, but other communities are clamoring for state money to build cold storage projects, Gov. Frank Murkowski told the Greater Ketchikan Chamber of Commerce on Saturday…
http://www.ketchikandailynews.com/ 22. Cook Inlet Pacific cod fishery gets new look Several changes are in the works for the Cook Inlet state-waters Pacific cod fishery (within three miles of shore) that will increase the quota and fishing time for the local fleet that is fishing with pots. The Board of Fisheries has changed the quota allocation between pot and jig boats from a 50-50 split to 25 percent for jig and 75 percent for pots. Jig boats have never caught 25 percent of the Cook Inlet state-waters quota, so the change is not expected to impact their fishing time…
http://www.homernews.com/stories/012705/seawatch 23. Dutch Salmon Giant Nutreco Eyes New Fish To Fry - Farmed Cod "Demand remains strong, but it's clear that because wild stocks are so low commercial fishing of cod can't go on as it has. There needs to be an alternative. That's the potential for aquaculture."…
http://www.planetark.com/dailynewsstory.cfm/newsid/ 24. 'Environmental movement has lost its way' By Patrick Moore I am often asked why I broke ranks with Greenpeace after 15 years as a founder and full-time environmental activist. I had my personal reasons, but it was on issues of policy that I found it necessary to move on. Moore continues on positive side of genetic enhancement, salmon farms, vinyl & chlorine, wind, hydro and nuclear energy…
http://www.miami.com/mld/miamiherald/news/opinion/ 25. Fish Farming's Bounty Isn't Without Barbs Aquaculture May Change Way U.S. Eats, but Effect on Seas Is a Concern… http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/articles/A31159-2005Jan23.html 26. Disney characters soon to star on a child's dinner plate near you Mickey Mouse and other popular Disney characters will soon be tempting America's kids to eat more Alaska seafood...
http://www.alaskajournal.com/stories/012405/fis_ 27. Reviewing scientists say proposed conservation measures unlikely to help whales Ocean sanctuaries are unlikely to fully protect whales, say three independent scientists charged by the International Whaling Commission (IWC) with reviewing their sanctuary program to manage whale populations… http://www2.eurekalert.org/pub_releases/2005-01/asu-rss012805.php 28. Laine Welch's Fish Radio, sponsored by VesselConnection / Wireless Matrix Recent topics: MON 01/31/05 Roe herring harvest at Togiak down 35%; early harvest numbers for salmon FRI 01/28/05 How do you know who?s on board fishing boats? You don?t. THU 01/27/05 ADF&G seeks biggest budget hike in more than a decade WED 01/26/05 Disney characters promote Alaskan seafood TUE 01/25/05 Kodiak crabbers join United Salmon Assn to negotiate Tanner price MON 01/24/05 Halibut catch limits for 2005 set this week in B.C. http://www.vesselconnection.com/cgi-bin/fish_radio.pl Sponsored by www.vesselconnection.com (with weather and other useful links) Also see Laine's Fish factor at http://www.kinyradio.com/fishfactor.html 29. NPFMC Gulf Rationalization Community Committee Meeting January 28, Anchorage - Captain Cook Hotel, Voyager Room Agenda:
http://www.fakr.noaa.gov/npfmc/current_issues/ NPFMC draft agenda for Feb 9-15 Seattle Meeting (revised 1/24) http://www.fakr.noaa.gov/npfmc/Agendas/205Agenda.pdf Meeting materials: BSAI Pacific cod Allocations Discussion Paper & Annotated Motion, January 21, 2005 - http://www.fakr.noaa.gov/npfmc/analyses/pcod205.pdf NPFMC home page: http://www.fakr.noaa.gov/npfmc/ 30. Halibut Commission Completes 2005 Annual Meeting The International Pacific Halibut Commission completed its Eighty-first Annual Meeting in Victoria, British Columbia, with Dr. Richard J. Beamish of Nanaimo, British Columbia presiding as Chair. The Commission is recommending to the governments of Canada and the United States, catch limits for 2005 totaling 73,820,000 pounds, a 3.5% decrease from the 2004 catch limit of 76,510,000 pounds…
http://www.iphc.washington.edu/halcom/newsrel/2005/ 31. Halibut commission raises Southeast catch quota Southeast halibut fishermen will have a higher catch quota for the 2005 commercial halibut season. The International Pacific Halibut Commission raised the catch limit in Area 2C from 10.5 million pounds to 10.93 million pounds. Area 2C covers Southeast Alaska from the southern tip of the Panhandle to Cape Spencer just south of Glacier Bay National Park.
http://www.kodiakdailymirror.com/?pid=18&path=A/AK_
32. IPHC posts Technical papers on gear and bait experiments,
Statistical areas 33. Federal Subsistence Board moves on rural status, Yukon gillnet expansion Jan 31, 2005 - Federal Subsistence Board Begins Review of Rural/Nonrural Status of Alaska Communities Jan 28, 2005 Federal Subsistence Board Approves Expansion of Yukon River Drift Gillnet Fishery Jan 24, 2005 Comment Period Extended on Proposed Rule to Clarify Federal Subsistence Jurisdiction in Southwest Alaska Coastal Waters For all FSB items see http://alaska.fws.gov/asm/news.cfm?gnr=1 34. Preliminary Final EIS for Essential Fish Habitat ID and Conservation in Alaska The National Marine Fisheries Service and the North Pacific Fishery Management Council have completed the Preliminary Final Environmental Impact Statement (EIS) for Essential Fish Habitat (EFH) in Alaska. The EIS evaluates alternatives and environmental consequences for three actions: (1) describing and identifying EFH for fisheries managed by the Council; (2) adopting an approach for the Council to identify Habitat Areas of Particular Concern within EFH; and (3) minimizing to the extent practicable the adverse effects of Council-managed fishing on EFH… http://www.fakr.noaa.gov/habitat/seis/efheis.htm 35. AFSC Groundfish Observer Database Spatial Display Home Page The objective of this web site is to provide visitors a tool to better understand where groundfish are caught in the Aleutian Islands, Bering Sea and Gulf of Alaska by examining observer data. Given the incomplete nature of observer data, users must be careful when drawing conclusions from the data…
http://www.afsc.noaa.gov/refm/observers/dataspatial/ 36. NOAA Final Criteria and Data Fields for an Inventory of Existing Marine Managed Areas and Response to Comments …The MMA Inventory will provide information that will lead to the fulfillment of requirements of Executive Order (E.O.) 13158 on Marine Protected Areas (MPAs)…
http://a257.g.akamaitech.net/7/257/2422/01jan20051800/ 37. NOAA seeks experts to review Agency’s ecosystem research and science enterprise The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration seeks a team of experts to review its mix of scientific activities and organization of its ecosystem research and science. The review team will recommend steps to meet the needs of NOAA’s mandate to effectively assess and monitor large-scale ocean ecosystems… NOAA Press release: http://www.nmfs.noaa.gov/docs/05-008_NOAA_ReviewPR_01-27-05.pdf 38. Commerce Dept seeks nominations for the MPAs Federal Advisory Committee. The Department of Commerce is seeking up to three highly qualified individuals. Nominations are sought for non-federal scientists, resource managers, and persons representing other interests or organizations involved with or affected by marine conservation. Individuals seeking membership on the Committee should possess demonstrable expertise in a field related to MPAs or represent a stakeholder interest affected by MPAs. Nominees will also be evaluated based on the following factors: marine policy experience, leadership and organization skills, region of country represented, and diversity characteristics.
http://a257.g.akamaitech.net/7/257/2422/01jan20051800/ 39. NOAA seeks experts to review agency’s ecosystem research and science enterprise The National Oceanic and
Atmospheric Administration seeks a team of experts to review its mix of
scientific activities and organization of its ecosystem research and
science. The review team will recommend steps to meet the needs of NOAA’s
mandate to effectively assess and monitor large-scale ocean ecosystems…
http://www.publicaffairs.noaa.gov/releases2005/jan05/ 40. EPA, NOAA will help coastal communities with coastal growth, development issues The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency and NOAA, the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, today agreed to work together to help coastal communities grow in ways that benefit the economy, public health and the environment. The partnership was formalized with the signing of a Memorandum of Agreement…
http://www.publicaffairs.noaa.gov/releases2005/jan05/ 41. NOAA Strategic Planning Office 2005 Stakeholder Forum March 2, 2005, Washington DC… for speakers, agenda, etc see: http://www.spo.noaa.gov/dcforum2005.htm 42. Columbia River Basin Fish and Wildlife Program - Notice of availability and opportunity to comment on subbasin plan draft amendments to the Northwest Power and Conservation Council…
http://a257.g.akamaitech.net/7/257/2422/01jan20051800/ 43. Board of Fisheries summary of Soldotna Public Hearing re: Upper Cook Inlet Finfish
http://www.boards.adfg.state.ak.us/fishinfo/meetsum/ 44. UAF MAP posts USDA TAA Technical Training workshop schedule: MAP TAA home page: http://www.uaf.edu/map/taa/ 45. DCED posts Regional Seafood Development Association regs. The Department of Commerce, Community & Economic Development is announcing that the Regional Seafood Development Association regulations guiding the application process will be effective February 24, 2005. Prior to the effective date, the Department will be initiating the Application Development Period. If an organization or person is considering applying as a Regional Seafood Development Association, that organization/individual is encouraged to provide written notice of the intent. Please visit the Department web site at: http://www.commerce.state.ak.us/oed/seafood/rsda_home.htm to find out what is requested under the Application Development Period. Once the regulations are effective, the Department will be accepting applications to determine the associations. If you have any questions, email or call Glenn Haight at 907-465-5464.
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