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UFA Update February 23, 2006 UFA Board of Directors Meeting, March 1-3, Elks Lodge, Juneau. UFA Reception Thursday March 2, 6:00 – 8:00 pm, Twisted Fish Restaurant, Juneau Current members are invited to attend. Gulf of Mexico Fishermen still need your help Alaska Fishing Industry Relief Mission see – www.akgulfhelp.org . Deadline Feb 28 for submissions for Alaska’s quarter – no drawing required. To submit your idea, download the submission form at http://www.dced.state.ak.us/alaska_coin.htm Contents 1. Bristol Bay Fishermen: RSDA public info meeting- Anchorage Feb 27 2. Bristol Bay fishermen will soon vote on self-tax 3. Coast Guard searches for vessel missing near Unalaska 4. High court ruling sinks Chignik co-op 5. Gulf rationalization hot topic at fishery council meeting 6. More fishermen processing catch to premium standards - Kenai Wild going swimmingly 7. Canneries fish for workers – Kenai Area processors struggle to find new employees 8. Kenai-Soldotna Board wants study into lower fish numbers 9. Biologists expect poor UCI sockeye return in ’06 - Fish forecast flounders in 2006 10. Predicting salmon runs is tricky task - Fish forecast flounders in 2006 11. ADF&G Report: Run Forecasts and Harvest projections for 2006, Alaska Salmon Fisheries and Review of the 2005 Season. 12. Processors hope for a good sign – Salmon Product Dev. Tax Credit 13. BSAI Pcod - World first cod fishery receives MSC environmental certificate 14. Feds eye Bristol Bay energy potential 15. Comment Deadline April 11, 2006 on Draft Offshore Oil & Gas Program 16. Lawmakers seek more scrutiny for Pebble mine 17. Pebble mine supporters oppose House measure 18. Lawmakers Team Up to Maintain Safe Harbors 19. Kodiak - Cod season slower than in past years 20. LeDoux is good rep for fishery concerns – Kodiak Daily Mirror letter by Donna Jones 21. Kodiak Study seeks impact fishing has on sea lion population 22. Magnuson-Stevens: Legislation could change future of coastal fisheries 23. Board of Fisheries gives new opportunities for Taku salmon, forms work group for sport possession limits 24.Taku less likely to open this year to anglers 25. Decline in commercial salmon catches projected 26. EPA fines processors over wastewater 27. 'Guilt-free' fish farming arrives 28. Humans making wildlife sick – Sea Lice 29. Wal-Mart signs on for eco-friendly fish, with some loopholes 30. Alaska can be deadly workplace –but AK fishermen rates improved 31. Fishing industry recovers slightly in job numbers 32. Gov. wants to dredge channels in Juneau, Petersburg, Wrangell 33. Lottery could award halibut to fishing crews 34. Big catches to get smaller - Halibut commission recommends lower catch limits 35. Halibut Commission to estimate count of Eastern Bering Sea halibut 36. Voting down IFQs not without cost: Guideline harvest program would restrict halibut fishing opportunities 37. Halibut Charter IFQ: Advance notice of proposed rulemaking; control date. 38. BSAI PCOD: Advance notice of proposed rulemaking; consideration of control date. 39. 2005 Alaska Ocean Sciences Bowl Research Project: Climate Change and AK Marine 40. NOAA grants $494,591 to encourage Alaska high school students to study science 41. Community profile: Craig 42. Community profile: Eyak 43. Something’s fishy with Peggy Jo sale? 44. Bill language could benefit king crabbers 45. Ice hampers snow crab fishery 46. Study seeks impact fishing has on sea lion population 47. Knapp in Kodiak to study economic effects of crab ratz 48. Juneau Empire My Turn: Alaska needs climate change commission 49. NOAA administrator announces 2007 budget request 50. Stevens takes NOAA to task 51. US House Republicans take shots at AFMB, Salmon Jet and other projects 52. Washington Post on salmon: The True Cost Of Protection? 53. WA State Study - Toxins found in fish for sale 54. Exxon needs to be held accountable for long-term oil spill damages 55. Pacific Fishery Management Council Review of 2005 Salmon Fisheries 56. Tug requirement considered after Cook Inlet tanker grounding 57. Laine Welch's Fish Radio –Topics from this week 58. Alaska Commercial Fishermen’s Memorial in Juneau announces that applications 59. Board of Fisheries results from SE & Yakutat Finfish Jan 22-Feb 1 60. ADFG Comments on BOF proposals for all Groundfish, and SE & Yakutat Dungeness Crab, Shrimp, and Miscellaneous Shellfish. 61. ADFG SE AK Groundfish Bycatch Regulations For Halibut Taken In State Waters 62. ADF&G Summary of the Interagency Crab Research Meeting December 14-16, 2005 63. ADF&G Summary of the 2004 Mandatory Shellfish Observer Program 64. ADFG seeks longline crab-pot vessel for charter 65. NPFMC Motions from the February 06 meeting & Newsletter for February 66. North Pacific Groundfish Observer Program: Training Schedule Feb – May 2006 67. NOAA 2005 Report to Congress on Apportionment of Membership on Regional Councils 68. NOAA seeks input on Strategic priorities - comment by March 9, 2006 69. USCG posts non tank vessel discharge response plans 70. Sea Grant reopening of application period for 2006 Grants – apply by March1. 71. SEA Grant Book: Northern Harbors and Small Ports: Operation and Maintenance 72. AK Sea Grant Meeting: Fishing Communities in Alaska: Harvesting the Future 73. Fishlines: Alaska Sea Grant Newsletter for February 2006 74. Vital Choices Newsletter, Feb 20 2006 75. Rerun due to repeat requests: Processor on a quest for fishing quota by Alex Pulaski 1. Bristol Bay Fishermen: RSDA public info meeting- Anchorage Feb 27 Public Meeting, Feb 27, 2006 at 7:00pm Dimond Center Hotel, Anchorage, AK - 770-5000 Bristol Bay Drift net permit holders will vote to approve a 1% tax on their harvest to fund the RSDA. Voting deadline is May 1, 2006. For more information call (907) 677-0414 Bristol Bay Regional Seafood Development Association is online at: 2. Bristol Bay fishermen will soon vote on self-tax Organizers for a proposed regional seafood development association (RSDA) for Bristol Bay will ask salmon permit holders in late March to approve a tax on themselves to finance the organization. The ballots going out to some 1,875 drift gillnet permit holders will ask fishermen to vote on whether they want to tax themselves 1 percent of what they are paid for their fish. "That's about 3 cents a fish," said Bob Waldrop, acting executive director of the association…
http://www.alaskajournal.com/stories/021206/loc_2006 & Southeast Alaska Rainforest Wild, the SE RSDA, is also conducting a vote with deadline of May 1 – and is online at http://www.rainforestwild.org/ 3. Coast Guard searches for vessel missing near Unalaska The Coast Guard says it's searching for a vessel near Unalaska that sent out a distress signal this morning. Coast Guard aircraft, a cutter and a Good Samaritan vessel are searching for the 50-foot Northern Dawn. Two people were reported to be on board. http://www.ktva.com/local/ci_3539528 4. High court ruling sinks Chignik co-op For the second time, the Alaska Supreme Court on Thursday struck down the controversial Chignik commercial salmon fishing cooperative. The ruling is a blow to the state Board of Fisheries, which had attempted to convert the Chignik fishery from a competitive harvest to one where most of the nearly 100 permit holders could park some of their boats and work collectively to catch the fish, thus lowering costs and raising profits. The idea was born out of recent hard times in the Alaska salmon industry because of competition from foreign, farm-raised fish… http://www.adn.com/money/story/7434601p-7345481c.html & Ruling deals a fatal blow to Chignik co-op fishery Justices of the state's highest court have dealt a mortal blow to the Chignik commercial salmon fishing cooperative, leaving legislative action as the only possible saving grace…
http://www.alaskajournal.com/stories/021906/hom_2006 & Chignik processor contemplates next season Norquest Seafoods -- the only processor at Chignik Lagoon last summer -- is still digesting the meaning of a Supreme Court decision which killed the Chignik co-op. Company president John Garner says talks are beginning with the fleet about how to handle the next season. The run forecast is predicted to be 40 percent lower than the recent ten-year average. And fishermen are predicted to take less than 900 thousand sockeye… http://www.ktva.com/local/ci_3535645 Scanned Supreme Court
Order posted by ADN at
http://www.adn.com/images/pdf/02-10-2006_Chignik Look for official Grunert vs. State of Alaska Ruling to be published soon at Alaska Supreme Court at: http://www.state.ak.us/courts/sp.htm (Look under Feb 10 Rulings) 5. Gulf rationalization hot topic at fishery council meeting The North Pacific Fishery Management Council and Advisory Panel (AP) meetings in Seattle came to a close Monday. Fisheries consultant for the City of Kodiak Joe Sullivan said there was a good turnout from Kodiak with “representatives from all sectors.” “It was a pretty serious meeting,” fisherman Shawn Dochtermann said. “There was a lot of pressure there.”… “The longline and jig sectors agreed we need to be separated by sector even though we’re all fixed gear, to help deal with each one individually. It’s easier because we have different needs,” Dochtermann said… http://www.kodiakdailymirror.com/?pid=19&id=2668 6. More fishermen processing catch to premium standards - Kenai Wild going swimmingly The nation’s top cooks have awarded Cook Inlet reds the gold for being the best-tasting fresh-frozen salmon when processed by the standards of Kenai Wild…
http://www.peninsulaclarion.com/stories/021706/economy 7. Canneries fish for workers – Kenai Area processors struggle to find new employees Most Alaskans looking for work in the canneries of the fishing industry usually end up with plenty of opportunities. So do most foreign workers. As the years go by, so do the cycles of the labor force on cannery row. Entering 2006, Alaskans should find plenty of opportunities while working alongside many from foreign countries.
http://www.peninsulaclarion.com/stories/021706/economy 8. Kenai-Soldotna Board wants study into lower fish numbers Kenai-Soldotna Advisory Committee also endorses bills that fight mixing zone pollution Recently elected members peppered the Alaska Department of Fish and Game Kenai-Soldotna Advisory Committee meeting with new faces Wednesday, and some suggested the committee use advertisements or editorials to reintroduce the committee to the public and eliminate any doubts about its commitment to represent the public’s interest. “That’s our job, to promote the proposals that the people want,” said Gary Dawkins, the committee’s chair…
http://www.peninsulaclarion.com/stories/021906/news_ 9. Biologists expect poor UCI sockeye return in ’06 - Fish forecast flounders in 2006 This year likely will be a tough one for Upper Cook Inlet commercial fishermen. According to forecast models released by the Alaska Department of Fish and Game, the total sockeye return for the upper inlet is 3.6 million fish, with an estimated harvest by all user groups of roughly 2.1 million fish. That’s a far cry from last season, when commercial fishermen alone harvested 5.1 million sockeye…
http://www.peninsulaclarion.com/stories/021706/economy 10. Predicting salmon runs is tricky task - Fish forecast flounders in 2006 At the end of a winding maze of hallways deep in the heart of the Alaska Department of Fish and Game’s Soldotna offices, research biologist Mark Willette toils in relative obscurity. But although Willette may not be well known to many people outside the department, his work impacts nearly every commercial fisherman in Upper Cook Inlet…
http://www.peninsulaclarion.com/stories/021706/economy 11. ADF&G Report: Run Forecasts and Harvest projections for 2006, Alaska Salmon Fisheries and Review of the 2005 Season. http://www.sf.adfg.state.ak.us/FedAidPDFs/sp06-07.pdf ADF&G Salmon Fisheries in Alaska - Harvest & Species Information home page:
http://www.cf.adfg.state.ak.us/geninfo/finfish/salmon/salmon 12. Processors hope for a good sign – Salmon Product Dev. Tax Credit A bill headed for Gov. Frank Murkowski’s signature would extend a product development tax credit to salmon processors, including companies on the Kenai Peninsula…
http://www.peninsulaclarion.com/stories/021906/news SB 164 text: http://www.legis.state.ak.us/PDF/24/Bills/SB0164Z.PDF 13. Wal-Mart signs on for eco-friendly fish, with some loopholes The Alaska fishing industry has been abuzz since last month, when Wal-Mart, the world's largest retailer, announced it would buy a significant portion of its wild-caught seafood from eco-friendly suppliers. Some fishermen, such as Paul Southland of Southeast Alaska Rainforest Wild, a regional fish branding and marketing association based in Wrangell, are basking in the glow of a major corporation linking itself to wild fish…
http://www.juneauempire.com/stories/021906/sta_2006 13. BSAI Pcod - World first cod fishery receives MSC environmental certificate The Marine Stewardship Council (MSC) is pleased to announce (10 February 2006) that the freezer longline Pacific cod fishery in the Bering Sea and Aleutian Islands off the coast of Alaska has become the first cod fishery in the world to obtain MSC certification as a sustainable and well-managed fishery. Cod products of this fishery will now be entitled to carry the MSC eco-label on retail packaging or restaurant menus… http://www.msc.org/html/ni_205.htm 14. Feds eye Bristol Bay energy potential Mineral Management Services seeks a study of the region's offshore oil and gas possibilities. The Interior Department on Wednesday rolled out a proposed five-year offshore leasing plan that holds open the possibility of oil and gas drilling in Bristol Bay. The bay, home to the world's richest runs of sockeye salmon, has been closed to drillers since the government in 1995 bought back leases that had cost oil companies $95 million. http://www.adn.com/money/story/7431925p-7342808c.html MMS Plan: Leasing Oil and Gas Resources – Outer Continental Shelf http://www.mms.gov/ld/PDFs/GreenBook-LeasingDocument.pdf 15. Comment Deadline April 11, 2006 on Draft Offshore Oil & Gas Program Federal Register Notice:
http://a257.g.akamaitech.net/7/257/2422/01jan20061800 Draft Proposed Program - Outer Continental Shelf Oil and Gas Leasing Program 2007-2012 - February 2006: http://www.mms.gov/5-year/PDFs/DPP2007-2012.pdf 16. Lawmakers seek more scrutiny for Pebble mine Bipartisan group says project should wait for public process. A bipartisan group of House lawmakers says any development of Alaska's massive Pebble gold and copper deposit should wait until after state regulators hold a public process and prepare a management plan for the area, a move some Pebble supporters say could slow the controversial mining prospect.
http://www.adn.com/news/alaska/story/7428700p- Alaska Journal of Commerce: Resolution calls for special management plan for Pebble
http://www.alaskajournal.com/stories/021206/hom_ The bill this is
referring to is HCR 29:
http://www.legis.state.ak.us/basis/get_bill.asp?session= 17. Pebble mine supporters oppose House measure Outsiders, wealthy shouldn't have oversight, residents tell legislators. Proponents of the giant Pebble gold and copper prospect near Iliamna got a boost from supporters who dominated the testimony Monday before a state House committee… http://www.adn.com/front/story/7445641p-7356205c.html & Anchorage Daily News republished the same article the following day with a different headline: Supporters of Pebble call jobs top priority http://www.adn.com/money/story/7444239p-7354793c.html & Pogo Mine Achieves Commercial Production …By 2012, it is anticipated, 2,000 jobs will be created in the Alaska's mining industry. The average annual salary for an Alaskan hardrock miner is $81,760, according to the state's mineral development specialist… http://www.mineweb.net/sections/junior_mining/897803.htm & Northern Dynasty's Alaska Pit Mine Turns Into Political Battlefield http://www.resourceinvestor.com/pebble.asp?relid=17221 18. Lawmakers Team Up to Maintain Safe Harbors Companion Bills Create Harbor Grant Fund Sen. Bert Stedman (R - Sitka) and Rep. Bill Thomas (R - Haines) have introduced legislation in the House and Senate to establish a new Municipal Harbor Facility Grant Fund. HB 478 and SB 291 create a program to achieve capital improvements for harbor facilities through a one-time 50/50 matching grant to municipalities. The program, administered by the Department of Transportation and Public Facilities, will fund major maintenance and capital improvements of harbor facilities using a portion of the watercraft fuel tax…
http://www.akrepublicans.org/stedman/24/news/sted2006 19. Kodiak - Cod season slower than in past years The cod “A” season is proceeding much slower than in past years, with about 3,000 tons still to be harvested, National Marine Fishery Service officials said… http://www.kodiakdailymirror.com/?pid=19&id=2658 20. LeDoux is good rep for fishery concerns – Kodiak Daily Mirror letter by Donna Jones I applaud Gabrielle for hosting an informational meeting at Fishermen’s Hall, bringing together members of the Board of Fish, CFEC (SB 113 was created from a stakeholders group at the request of the Board of Fish) and the public, offering everyone a chance to ask questions and convey their concerns… I am impressed that she took the time to learn from and listen to everyone involved before deciding what position she wanted to take… If you get the chance, let her know that you appreciate her efforts on this matter. It is important that she be given credit for a job well done. Gabrielle, keep up the great work. http://www.kodiakdailymirror.com/?pid=19&id=2697 21. Kodiak Study seeks impact fishing has on sea lion population The National Marine Fisheries Service (NMFS) is studying interactions between commercial fishing activity and walleye pollock to see how commercial fishing might impact local populations of Stellar sea lions, an endangered species… http://www.kodiakdailymirror.com/?pid=19&id=2642 22. Magnuson-Stevens: Legislation could change future of coastal fisheries The reauthorization of the Magnuson-Stevens Fisheries Conservation and Management Act, the law that governs the nation's fisheries including those off the Northwest coast, is moving through Congress. Spearheaded by Senate Commerce Committee Chairman Ted Stevens (R-Alaska), co-author of the original legislation, the bill could make changes both great and small in the way America's fishing industry, including Oregon's, goes about its business. The legislation changes existing law in many ways. It would promote and provide standards for Dedicated Access Privileges (DAPs) - also known as Individual Transferable Quotas - to convert open access fisheries to ones where existing players acquire a right to a percentage of the resource. It would mandate greater efforts to end overfishing and generally faster rebuilding of weak stocks, and the registration of saltwater sport fishermen nationwide. And it would allow greater data collection, on fishing industry businesses as well as ecological information, to provide more data for fishery managers to use in assessing the socioeconomic as well as biological effects of their decisions…
http://www.newportnewstimes.com/articles/2006/02/17/ 23. Board of Fisheries gives new opportunities for Taku salmon, forms work group for sport possession limits …On the flip side, the board voted to form a work group to review the Southeast region's sport-fish possession limits. The main concern raised at the meeting was whether nonresident sport fishermen are taking more than their fair share of frozen fish out of Alaska…
http://www.juneauempire.com/stories/021206/out_2006 King run appears too weak for sport fishery "Last year was just a win, win, win," said Charlie Polk, a Juneau gillnetter. The 2005 Taku king harvest brought in nearly $1 million in profits for local gillnetters. …"It would be nice to have some fishing time on those kings, but I don't want to jeopardize the run in anyway," Polk said.
http://www.juneauempire.com/stories/021506/loc_2006 25. Decline in commercial salmon catches projected State fishery managers are projecting a significant decline in commercial salmon catches this year. The 2006 harvest for all species is pegged at 160 million fish, well below last year's record catch of 221 million salmon. That harvest topped the previous record of 218 million fish set in 1995. At a glance, look for drops in this year's pink and sockeye salmon harvests compared to the 2005 season, a slight increase for chinook, similar catches for coho salmon, and higher chum harvests due to increasing runs in Western Alaska… http://www.sitnews.us/LaineWelch/022006_fish_factor.html 26. EPA fines processors over wastewater Two Alaska seafood processors have agreed to pay fines totaling $28,000 for violations of the federal Clean Water Act, officials with the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency in Seattle said Feb. 6…. North Pacific Processors Inc. will pay fines totaling $23,000 for wastewater violations at its Cordova facility, which is currently operated by Bear & Wolf Co., and Island Seafoods Inc. will pay $5,000 for wastewater discharge violations at its Kodiak facility, the EPA said.
http://www.alaskajournal.com/stories/021906/loc_2006 27. 'Guilt-free' fish farming arrives Bainbridge Island company has stake in Hawaiian venture Thanks to Kona Blue Water Farms and Bainbridge Island-based Net Systems, the future of virtually "guilt-free" fish farming has arrived -- and in sashimi-grade style. The premium product is called Kona Kampachi, the trademarked name of the cultivated version of kahala (also known as Hawaiian yellowtail and almaco jack), or Seriola rivoliana. The clean, unfishy taste of Kona Kampachi and its crisp-yet-unctuous texture have delighted chefs from top restaurants… http://seattlepi.nwsource.com/local/260433_kampachi22.html 28. Humans making wildlife sick – Sea Lice …as often as not, it’s humans that are making the wildlife sick, often to our own detriment. It’s a 180-degree turn in perspective that Dr. Mark Lewis says is critical to our understanding of emerging infectious diseases of both wildlife and humans… Last year, in a landmark paper, he helped document how commercial salmon farms off Canada’s British Columbia coast are a breeding ground for sea lice, a parasite that then infects young wild Pacific salmon. Dr. Lewis and University of Alberta doctoral student Marty Krkosek, who led the sea lice research, are co-presenting their latest sea lice and salmon findings as part of a symposium called The Rising Tide of Ocean Plagues, February 17 at the Annual Meeting of the American Association for the Advancement of Science in St. Louis.
http://www.innovations-report.com/html/reports/environment_sciences/ 29. Wal-Mart signs on for eco-friendly fish, with some loopholes The Alaska fishing industry has been abuzz since last month, when Wal-Mart, the world's largest retailer, announced it would buy a significant portion of its wild-caught seafood from eco-friendly suppliers. Some fishermen, such as Paul Southland of Southeast Alaska Rainforest Wild, a regional fish branding and marketing association based in Wrangell, are basking in the glow of a major corporation linking itself to wild fish…
http://www.juneauempire.com/stories/021906/sta & Compass Group Announces Landmark Policy to Purchase Sustainable Seafood http://biz.yahoo.com/prnews/060213/cgm018.html?.v=41 30. Alaska can be deadly workplace –but AK fishermen rates improved In 1992, nearly 40 percent of the state’s 91 worker deaths were related to commercial fishing. Fishermen accounted for about a quarter of the nation’s workplace deaths… (AK) Fisherman in 2004 made up 20 percent, or eight, of the state’s total 40 fatalities.
http://www.peninsulaclarion.com/stories/021706/ AK Economic Trends
January 2006 issue that is basis for this article is online at
http://www.labor.state.ak.us/trends 31. Fishing industry recovers slightly in job numbers After several years of decline, Alaska's long-suffering commercial fisheries registered a modest recovery over the past two seasons, with a proportional jump in the number of fishing-industry jobs, a state study says. That assessment appears in an article in the February issue of Alaska Economic Trends, published monthly by the Alaska Department of Labor and Workforce Development. http://www.adn.com/money/story/7454921p-7365125c.html Alaska Economic Trends February 2006 issue: http://www.labor.state.ak.us/trends/feb06.pdf 32. Gov. wants to dredge channels in Juneau, Petersburg, Wrangell The governor - to the surprise of some residents, and to an extent, his own regional transportation officials - has asked the Legislature to approve spending $7 million to dredge out navigable channels in upper Gastineau Channel and in Dry Strait, between Petersburg and Wrangell…
http://www.juneauempire.com/stories/021306/loc 33. Lottery could award halibut to fishing crews Wheel of Fortune may take on a whole new meaning for Alaska fishermen. Federal managers are set to decide in April if small lots of halibut-catch shares will be made available to crew members via a lottery… http://www.adn.com/money/industries/fishing/story/7437683p-7348481c.html 34. Big catches to get smaller - Halibut commission recommends lower catch limits The International Pacific Halibut Commission has issued its recommended catch limit for 2006, a limit that dips 5.37 percent below the catch limit recommended in 2005. The total recommended catch limit for the Pacific coast, including Canadian and U.S. fisheries, is 69.86 million pounds, and for the central gulf region of Alaska 25.2 million pounds.Last year the commission recommended a catch limit of 25.47 million pounds for the central gulf region.
http://www.peninsulaclarion.com/stories/021706/ IPHC release:
http://www.iphc.washington.edu/halcom/newsrel/2006/ 35. Halibut Commission to estimate count of Eastern Bering Sea halibut The International Pacific Halibut Commission is mounting a research program to estimate the number of halibut in the Eastern Bering Sea Flats. Director Bruce Leaman says this year's program will be the first time the commission has conducted extensive long-line surveys of the region. http://www.ktva.com/local/ci_3505432 36. Voting down IFQs not without cost: Guideline harvest program would restrict halibut fishing opportunities Voices Of The Peninsula by Charter operator Perry Flotre While Mr. (Robert) Penny is spreading accolades around to those who supported the political decision to restudy the Charter Halibut IFQ Program (in a Jan. 2 opinion column), he carefully evaded telling you, the public, the actual impact it will have beginning with the 2006 season. Because the IFQ was set aside for reconsideration, which will take from three to four years to come to a conclusion, you, Mr. and Mrs. Public, are now under the Guideline Harvest Program or GHL.
http://www.peninsulaclarion.com/stories/012306/oped 37. Halibut Charter IFQ: Advance notice of proposed rulemaking; control date. (Federal Register Notice) This notice announces that anyone entering the charter sport fishery for Pacific halibut in and off Alaska after December 9, 2005 (control date) will not be assured of future access to that fishery if a management regime that limits the number of participants is developed and implemented under the authority of the Northern Pacific Halibut Act of 1982 (Halibut Act). This notice is necessary to publish the intent of the North Pacific Fishery Management Council (Council) that participation credit may not be granted for operating in the charter halibut fishery if initial entry into the fishery occurs after the control date.
http://a257.g.akamaitech.net/7/257/2422/01jan20061800 38. BSAI PCOD: Advance notice of proposed rulemaking; consideration of control date. This document announces that anyone entering the Bering Sea and Aleutian Islands (BSAI) Pacific cod fishery after December 11, 2005 (control date), will not be assured of future access to the Pacific cod resource if a management regime is developed and implemented that limits the number of participants, licenses or vessels in the fishery.
http://a257.g.akamaitech.net/7/257/2422/01jan20061800 39. 2005 Alaska Ocean Sciences Bowl Research Project: Climate Change and AK Marine Effects of climate change upon Alaska's marine ecosystems and the communities they support Papers submitted are posted online at: http://www.uaf.edu/seagrant/nosb/papers/2005/ 40. NOAA grants $494,591 to encourage Alaska high school students to study science The University of Alaska in Fairbanks received $494,591 under a new competitive grant program to encourage high school students to study science. The program was added this year to the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration’s effort to develop and enhance educational opportunities at minority-serving institutions… http://www.publicaffairs.noaa.gov/releases2006/feb06/noaa06-r907.html 41. Community profile: Craig CRAIG Population: 1,174 (2004) Location: On a small island off the west coast of Prince of Wales Island, connected to it by a short causeway; 31 road miles west of Hollis and 56 air miles northwest of Ketchikan. Description: Predominantly a fishing community -- about 200 residents hold commercial permits…
http://www.adn.com/news/alaska/story/7472999p 42. Community profile: Eyak POPULATION: 132 (2004) LOCATION: On the Copper River highway, 5.5 miles southeast of the Cordova city center, on the Malaspina Coastal Plain. DESCRIPTION: Both a federally recognized Eyak Athabascan village entity within the city of Cordova and a geographical "traditional use" area where less than 10 percent of the population is wholly or partly Alaska Native. Villagers are working to protect their traditional lands along the Copper River Delta and to revive cultural traditions. Commercial fishing and subsistence activities are central to the community's culture.
http://www.adn.com/news/alaska/story/7451375p 43. Something’s fishy with Peggy Jo sale? Kodiak Daily Mirror Letter to the editor by Joe Macinko… It only took one word for last Monday’s article “Independent Seattle processor buys historic fishing vessel Peggy Jo” to get off on the wrong foot. Is “independent” B&N owner Joe Bundrant related to the owner of the largest seafood processor in Alaska, Chuck Bundrant? Is B&N merely a shell corporation created to comply/evade American Fisheries Act consolidation limits? http://www.kodiakdailymirror.com/?pid=19&id=2653 44. Bill language could benefit king crabbers Kodiak Daily Mirror Letter to the Editor by John Finley… Bering Sea crab rationalization is of course a disaster for us, but here’s something that might be a small consolation. They goofed on the processor quotas. Whoever negotiated for the huge and mostly foreign processors who ended up with them, is probably now working the slime line somewhere above the Arctic Circle… http://www.kodiakdailymirror.com/?pid=19&id=2640 45. Ice hampers snow crab fishery Harvest of snow crab by vessels with individual fishing quotas, already hampered by low prices to fishermen, is now facing the additional stress of heavy sea ice in a critical area of the fishery. Sea ice covering the Pribilof Islands in early February, the most productive area of the fishing grounds, is having a big impact on vessels trying to bring their catch in to St. Paul Harbor, said Forrest Bowers, the state's area management biologist for shellfish at Dutch Harbor…
http://www.alaskajournal.com/stories/021906/loc_ 46. Study seeks impact fishing has on sea lion population The National Marine Fisheries Service (NMFS) is studying interactions between commercial fishing activity and walleye pollock to see how commercial fishing might impact local populations of Stellar sea lions, an endangered species… http://www.kodiakdailymirror.com/?pid=19&id=2642 47. Knapp in Kodiak to study economic effects of crab ratz University of Alaska Anchorage economics professor Gunnar Knapp was commissioned by the City of Kodiak to do a preliminary study on the effects of crab rationalization on Kodiak’s economy… http://www.kodiakdailymirror.com/?pid=19&id=2631 && Knapp prepares for crab ratz study Kodiak Daily Mirror Letter to the Editor by Gunnar Knapp “I’m doing a study for the City of Kodiak on the effects of crab rationalization on Kodiak fishing employment, earnings and spending. I’ve posted information about the study on my Web site at www.iser.uaa.alaska.edu/iser/people/knapp/kodiakstudy.htm . I’ll be talking about preliminary results of the study on March 17 at ComFish and preparing a preliminary report for the city by the end of March…” http://www.kodiakdailymirror.com/?pid=19&id=2628 48. Juneau Empire My Turn: Alaska needs climate change commission By Rick Steiner At long last, the state of Alaska may be starting to take climate change seriously. The bills introduced by Sen. Olson (SB 278) and Rep. Joule (HCR 30) to create an Alaska climate change commission and task force are one small step for the Legislature, one giant leap for all Alaskans. It's about time. Among all states in the nation, Alaska clearly has most at stake with climate change.
http://www.juneauempire.com/stories/021506/opi_ 49. NOAA administrator announces 2007 budget request Retired Navy Vice Adm. Conrad C. Lautenbacher, Ph.D., under secretary of commerce for oceans and atmosphere and NOAA administrator, outlined highlights of President Bush’s proposed 2007 budget for the Commerce Department’s National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration. Lautenbacher said NOAA’s request totals $3.68 billion, including program increases of $345 million…
http://www.publicaffairs.noaa.gov/releases2006/feb06/ 50. Stevens takes NOAA to task The administration's proposed budget for the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, which manages federal fisheries, operates weather forecasting offices and runs tsunami warning systems, would cut spending in Alaska by 50 percent, Sen. Ted Stevens said Thursday. He said he worried about his ability to restore the money if his ability to earmark money is hobbled. "The Senate is getting tired me of asking this, but are we still a state, as far as you're concerned?" Stevens asked retired Navy Vice Admiral Conrad C. Lautenbacher, Jr., who leads NOAA. "It looks like someone had sort of a heavy pencil in Alaska," he said… http://www.news-miner.com/Stories/0,1413,113~7244~3243284,00.html 51. US House Republicans take shots at AFMB, Salmon Jet and other projects http://www.house.gov/pence/rsc/doc/flyingfish.doc 52. Washington Post on salmon: The True Cost Of Protection? They are called by many names, but considering how much the government spends to protect them, their name in Alaska and some other regions -- king salmon -- seems most apt. In 2004, federal and state governments spent more than $160 million to preserve that salmon species, commonly known as chinook -- listed by the federal government as endangered in the early 1990s. And that doesn't include the millions spent on other kinds of salmon, such as sockeye, coho and chum…
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wpdyn/content/article 53. WA State Study - Toxins found in fish for sale …And chinook salmon topped the list for the most PCBs, or polychlorinated biphenyls, a long-banned chemical suspected of causing cancer and impairing brain development. But the results have experts divided on the dangers. Health Department officials say the PCB levels in the salmon are too low to put people at risk unless they eat unusually large amounts of the fish. But some environmentalists point out that EPA guidelines say eating chinook salmon with that much PCB more than once a month could increase the risk of cancer…
http://seattletimes.nwsource.com/html/fishing/ 54. Exxon needs to be held accountable for long-term oil spill damages Kodiak Daily Mirror Guest Opinion by Stacy Studebaker Citizens from around the state and country, including scientists, fishermen, conservationists, and Native and non-Native residents, want Gov. Murkowski and President Bush to hold ExxonMobil Corporation accountable for longterm harm and unanticipated injury from the 1989 Exxon Valdez Oil Spill (EVOS)… http://www.kodiakdailymirror.com/?pid=19&id=2659 & SF 9th Circuit: Sierra Club to demand ExxonMobile pay Valdez damages
http://www.sanfranciscosentinel.com/news_in_brief/ 55. Pacific Fishery Management Council Review of 2005 Salmon Fisheries (322 ppg, ) http://www.pcouncil.org/salmon/salsafe05/salsafe05.pdf 56. Tug requirement considered after Cook Inlet tanker grounding The grounding of an oil tanker in Cook Inlet on Feb. 2 has renewed attention on tanker safety improvements, particular the proposal to require tugboat assists for tankers, but some have said safety recommendations are misguided. Paul Shadura, a commercial fisherman and executive director of the Kenai Peninsula Fishermen’s Association, said marine pilots’ self-confidence is endangering the inlet. “I think that they think they are so good they don’t need anybody else,” Shadura said. “No one person is supposed to be responsible for an oil accident in Alaska. There’s supposed to be checks and balances to prevent that from happening.”…
http://www.peninsulaclarion.com/stories/021406/ 57. Laine Welch's Fish Radio –Topics from this week Monday 2/20/06 2006 salmon harvest projected to be down significantly Friday 2/17/06 Smart Gear Contest: one month left for entries; again, none from AK Thursday 2/16/06 More mega-corporations will source seafood only from well managed fisheries Wednesday 2/15/06 Giant king crabs invade Norway, 22 lbs and 5 feet wide! Eat everything in their path. Tuesday 2/14/06 Halibut quota lottery bonus: documentation for deckhands See: http://www.marineconservationalliance.org/fishradio.htm & also see Laine Welch's Fish Factor Radio at http://www.kinyradio.com/fishfactor.html 58. Alaska Commercial Fishermen’s Memorial in Juneau announces that applications for engraving names of commercial fishermen and women on the Memorial are now available. The Memorial must receive applications and full payment by April 10, 2006. The names will be engraved on the Memorial just before this year's Blessing of the Fleet and Dedication of Names, which will be on Saturday May 6, 2006 at 10:00 a.m. For more information, call Bruce Weyhrauch at 907-463-5566. or Tom Gemmell at 907-523-0731 or tomgemmellmca@ak.net 59. Board of Fisheries results from SE & Yakutat Finfish Jan 22-Feb 1
http://www.boards.adfg.state.ak.us/fishinfo/meetinfo/ BOF Meetings & Results page: http://www.boards.adfg.state.ak.us/fishinfo/meetinfo/fcal.php 60. ADFG Comments on BOF Regulatory proposals for all Groundfish, and Southeast & Yakutat Dungeness Crab, Shrimp, and Miscellaneous Shellfish.
http://www.boards.adfg.state.ak.us/fishinfo/meetinfo 61. ADFG SE AK Groundfish Bycatch Regulations For Halibut Taken In State Waters
http://documents.cf1.adfg.state.ak.us/AdfgDocument 62. ADF&G Summary of the Interagency Crab Research Meeting December 14-16, 2005 http://www.sf.adfg.state.ak.us/FedAidPDFs/sp06-08.pdf 63. ADF&G Summary of the 2004 Mandatory Shellfish Observer Program Database for the General and CDQ Fisheries. http://www.sf.adfg.state.ak.us/FedAidPDFs/fds06-03.pdf 64. ADFG seeks longline crab-pot vessel for charter
http://www.cf.adfg.state.ak.us/region4/news/ 65. NPFMC Motions from the February 06 meeting & Newsletter for February Observer Motion, Observer Advisory Committee Report 1/06
http://www.fakr.noaa.gov/npfmc/current_issues/observer/ P.cod alternatives
http://www.fakr.noaa.gov/npfmc/current_issues/motions/ P.cod Motion
http://www.fakr.noaa.gov/npfmc/current_issues/motions/ IRIU Amendment 80 Motion
http://www.fakr.noaa.gov/npfmc/current_issues/ GOA Groundfish Rationalization Council Motion,
http://www.fakr.noaa.gov/npfmc/current_issues/ Full marked up motion
http://www.fakr.noaa.gov/npfmc/current_issues/ & February NPFMC Newsletter (with 2/22 correction to AIS article) http://www.fakr.noaa.gov/npfmc/newsletters/NEWS206.pdf 66. North Pacific Groundfish Observer Program: Training Schedule Feb – May 2006
http://www.afsc.noaa.gov/refm/observers/ 67. NOAA 2005 Report to Congress on Apportionment of Membership on the Regional Fishery Management Councils
http://www.nmfs.noaa.gov/sfa/reg_svcs/Council_Report 68. NOAA seeks input on Strategic priorities - comment by March 9, 2006 The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, (NOAA) is seeking input on priorities for its next five-year planning cycle. Annually, NOAA collects views on emerging programmatic and managerial trends and alternative solutions as we seek to achieve NOAA's strategic goals. Stakeholder views and comments will be summarized and used by NOAA Leadership in the development of its priorities for planning years 2009-2013. NOAA encourages stakeholders and users to review its present priorities and provide comments and recommendations that reflect your vision of the future, as it relates to NOAA's mission. … Federal Register Notice:
http://a257.g.akamaitech.net/7/257/2422/01jan20061800 NOAA's current strategic priorities are at http://www.ppi.noaa.gov/AGM_FY08.pdf 69. USCG posts non tank vessel discharge response plans The Coast Guard announces the availability of a document that provides revised interim guidelines for the development and review of plans for responding to a discharge, or threat of a discharge, of oil from nontank vessels.
http://a257.g.akamaitech.net/7/257/2422/01jan20061800 70. Sea Grant reopening of application period for 2006 Grants – apply by March1. Availability of Grants Funds for Fiscal Year 2006; Regional Research, Information Planning and Coordination… submission deadline is 5 p.m. e.s.t. on March 1, 2006.
http://a257.g.akamaitech.net/7/257/2422/01jan20061800 71. SEA Grant Book: Northern Harbors and Small Ports: Operation and Maintenance Author: Alan Sorum, Valdez Port Director http://www.uaf.edu/seagrant/bookstore/pubs/MAB-56.html 72. AK Sea Grant Meeting: Fishing Communities in Alaska: Harvesting the Future Hilton Hotel, Anchorage, Alaska, September 21–22, 2006 Contact: Sherri Pristash, 907-474-6701 This conference is a forum for coastal residents, fishermen and seafood processors, and federal, state, municipal, and tribal representatives to work together in support of Alaska's coastal fishing economy. http://www.uaf.edu/seagrant/conferences/fish-com-II/ 73. Fishlines: Alaska Sea Grant Newsletter for February 2006 Topics include: Seafood Processing Leadership Institute Sea Grant Joins SWAMC Crab Enhancement Meeting – Kodiak March 14-16 Research/Outreach Review Knauss Fellowship Marine Research Plan Revitalizing Sea Week http://www.uaf.edu/seagrant/Fishlines/2006/feb06.html 74. Vital Choices Newsletter, Feb 20 2006 This issue’s topics: Women’s Heart Problems Found Distinct from Men’s Wild Salmon Excels for Sports and Fitness Recipe: Braised Ivory King Salmon with Cilantro; Smoked Salmon Souffle Tart; Sautéed Sablefish with Spicy Lemon-Walnut Butter Sauce http://newsletter.vitalchoice.com/ 75. Rerun due to repeat requests: Processor on a quest for fishing quota by Alex Pulaski Whiting - Pacific Seafood Group plies the political waters as it presses for a perpetual share of the catch…
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