UFA Update
June 15, 2009
UFA At-large election results: Thank you for the high voter turnout by UFA individual and lifetime members.- UFA’s at-large representatives are Bruce Schactler, Bruce Wallace, Cheryl Sutton and Gerry Merrigan, effective June 15, 2009 – 2011.Also effective today are committee chairmanships elected by the UFA Board in March – Paul Shadura is UFA Membership chair and Bob Thorstenson Jr. is new UFA Marketing chair. Tomorrow (June 16th) is deadline for Southeast Alaska gillnet ballots for Regional Seafood development assessment election - see item #2 below. The Halibut Coalition needs your financial support for their fees in intervention proceedings in the ongoing lawsuit against the guided halibut bag limit reduction. To donate by credit card ($200 minimum) see: http://www.halibutcoalition.org/docs/Donation%20Form
%20HC%2012Jul08.pdf
Table of Contents
1. 9th Circuit Court: Exxon To Pay Interest, Own Legal Fees In Valdez Case
2. My turn: Rainforest Wild benefits all Southeast fishermen (Waldrop and Poole)
3. Judge upholds one-fish limit for Southeast halibut charters
4. Charter Lawsuit Ignores Halibut Conservation Concerns
5. Southeast Alaska Dungeness crab fishery set to open Monday
6. Inside look at fisheries meetings, By Howard Delo
7. Bankrupt mine company ordered to clean up acid (Tulsequah / Taku River)
8. Murkowski and Begich Introduce Prince William Sound Escort Vessels Legislation
9. Obama sets National Policy for the Oceans, Coasts, and Great Lakes
10. Obama declares June National Oceans Month - 6 things you can do (Daily Green)
11. Senator Begich Supports Development of National Ocean Policy
12. Public asked to weigh in on commercial fishing in the Arctic – by July 27
13. Alaska, Mass. fishing experts up for top job (Fuglvog or Rothschild)
14. Deadline July 31 for USDA Rural Energy for America Program grants to producers
15. Columbia Salmon recovery plan needs work, judge Redden says
16. House Transportation Committee markup on Vessel Safety bill HR 2652
17. NY Times Editorial Of Fish and Flexibility (June 12, 2009)
18. Crab fishery regs garner support, criticism at federal council meeting
19. Critical snow crab count begins in the Bering Sea
20. NPFMC Items From the June Meeting:
21. Washington State Commission adopts ballast water rules
22. Invasive species are greatest threat to Northwest salmon, report says
23. Illegal fishing vessel fined USD 500K
24. Chile fish farm troubles: Marine Harvest refutes further layoffs
25. NOAA Opens 60-Day Public Comment Period for Gulf of Mexico Aquaculture
26. Oysters in deep trouble: Is Pacific Ocean's chemistry killing sea life?
27. $50M in stimulus will help fish farmers buy feed
28. Laine Welch's Fish Radio –topics from this week
29. MMPA 2010 List of fisheries posted – SE Seine reclassified to Category 3
30. The Whale Rescuers: NMFS disentanglement workshops
31. MMRC research: Cutting the Costs of Foraging
32. ESA Short Tailed Albatross - Initiation of 5-Year Status Review; Final Recovery Plan
33. Deadline July 20 for comment on VMS data collection paperwork
34. USCG warns of radio interference with Compact Fluorescent Lights
35. IPHC 2009 Halibut Landing Report No. 2
36. IPHC Requests Vessel Bids for Archival Tagging Charter (deadline July 3)
37. Comment deadline June 22 on ADF&G Aquatic Farming changes
38. Sea Grant Marine Advisory Program Salmon Quality videos available
39. Information Circular 58, Alaska’s Mineral Industry 2008: A Summary
40. USFWS extends comment period on Sea Otter ESA Critical Habitat to July 9
1. 9th Circuit Court: Exxon To Pay Interest, Own Legal Fees In Valdez Case
HOUSTON (Dow Jones)--A federal court ruled Monday that Exxon Mobil Corp. (XOM) owes $507.5 million, plus 5.9% annual interest accrued since 1996, in punitive damages to plaintiffs affected by the Exxon Valdez oil spill. In a divided opinion, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit determined that the Irving, Texas-based company and the plaintiffs would have to pay for their own legal costs and court fees. Exxon's legal fees approach $70 million, according to court filings. The ruling follows a decision by the U.S. Supreme Court last year to limit the punitive damages awarded the commercial fishermen and other plaintiffs who sued Exxon over the Valdez spill to about a tenth of the $5 billion awarded by a jury in September 1996. Interest payments, however, amount to hundreds of millions of dollars, according to the latest opinion. The company has already paid plaintiffs about $383.4 million, a spokesman said. ExxonMobil, the world's largest publicly-traded oil company, insisted that the interest should run from the 2008 date of the Supreme Court decision. The company also wanted the plaintiffs to pay for at least 90% of the litigation costs…
http://online.wsj.com/article/BT-CO-20090615-715593.html
Decision:
http://www.ca9.uscourts.gov/datastore/opinions/2009/06/15/04-35182.pdf
2. My turn: Rainforest Wild benefits all Southeast fishermen (Bob Waldrop and Beth Poole)
By voting to pass a 1 percent assessment to fund Rainforest Wild, Southeast's Regional Seafood Development Association, Southeast fishermen have an opportunity to not only tell their story to the marketplace but also realize infrastructure and quality improvements, and conduct education and training programs for new products and methods. Doing so will also allow Southeast's RSDA to seek outside state and federal funds and funnel those dollars directly to member fishermen…
http://juneauempire.com/stories/061209/opi_450230907.shtmlSE Gillnetters – remember to mail your ballot by the deadline tomorrow June 16.
3. Judge upholds one-fish limit for Southeast halibut charters
By ERIKA BOLSTAD, Anchorage Daily News
WASHINGTON -- Anglers who go out on charter-fishing boats in Southeast Alaska will be limited to taking just one halibut a day, a federal judge ruled today. Charter-boat owners and operators had asked U.S. District Judge Rosemary Collyer for an emergency injunction to stop the rule from taking effect on Friday, but she denied their motion. However, Collyer said, the charters may still go forward with their lawsuit challenging the rule that cuts the daily catch limit from two to one, Collyer said. Charter operators last year successfully blocked the federal government's efforts to impose a one-fish limit.
http://www.adn.com/outdoors/fishing/story/819623.html
&
Federal judge puts limit on Southeast halibut charters (AK Journal of Commerce)
http://www.alaskajournal.com/stories/061209/fis_13_001.shtml
&
Charter operators sue over one-halibut limit – KFSK audio by Ed Schoenfeld
http://kfsk.org/modules/local_news/index.php?op=
sideBlock&syndicated=true&ID=678
4. Charter Lawsuit Ignores Halibut Conservation Concerns
Learning Friday that charter boat operators will sue in an attempt to overturn the new one halibut per day rule, the Juneau-based Halibut Coalition's position was one of disappointment. In a new rule announced on May 6, 2009, NOAA's Fisheries Service reduced the number of halibut that charter vessel anglers in southeast Alaska can keep each day from two to one to protect the halibut stock…
http://www.sitnews.us/0509news/052309/052309_halibut.html
5. Southeast Alaska Dungeness crab fishery set to open Monday
KETCHIKAN, Alaska - A controversial new commercial fishery for Dungeness crab in Southeast Alaska is set to start Monday after a judge denied a request to block it.Superior Court Judge David George in Sitka made the decision Friday, setting the fishery opening in the Ketchikan and southeast Prince of Wales Island areas.In response, attorneys for the Organized Village of Kasaan - the tribal government for the small Haida village on east Prince of Wales Island - are seeking a preliminary injunction against the fishery with Ketchikan Superior Court Judge William Carey…
http://newsminer.com/news/2009/jun/13/southeast-alaska-
crab-fishery-set-open-monday/
6. Inside look at fisheries meetings, By Howard Delo
Last week, the Mat-Su Blue Ribbon Sportsmen’s Committee hosted a public meeting with the Alaska Department of Fish and Game. The Blue Ribbon Committee had asked ADF&G to explain how they planned to manage the Cook Inlet salmon fisheries for this 2009 season and how their management approach would impact sports fisheries in the Northern District specifically. It was an interesting meeting!
… A questioner asked the CFD how they planned to restrict the commercial king set net fishery in light of the Sustainable Salmon Fisheries Policy and these SFD concerns. The biologist answered that the commercial fisheries do not share in the burden of conservation.
That statement was very disturbing to Northern District folks!
…At meeting’s end, the four legislators were given the chance to make closing comments. Each legislator “warned” the two division directors that they should start listening to folks’ concerns about how the fisheries are being managed in Cook Inlet. Rep. Stoltz asked the two directors if they understood the message sent by the failure of Brent Johnson, a Cook Inlet commercial fisherman, being confirmed to a seat on the BOF. He was met with total silence.According to Stoltz, the message sent was that many legislators are unhappy with the way Cook Inlet fisheries are currently being managed and that the management approach must change. Stoltz suggested that if this message was not being received by ADF&G, then perhaps a blunter action by the legislature might be necessary for the message to register!
http://www.frontiersman.com/articles/2009/05/27/sports/mat
_su-outdoors/doc4a1b7b4635e51988217027.txt
7. Bankrupt mine company ordered to clean up acid (Tulsequah / Taku River)
Vancouver-based Redcorp to ask court for bankruptcy extension
By Kate Golden | JUNEAU EMPIRE
Redcorp Ventures Ltd. and subsidiary Redfern Resources was planning to clean up the acid leaking out of the old 1950s Tulsequah Chief mine as it redeveloped the site. But now that the company is insolvent and the project is halted, Canadian regulators have ordered Redcorp to clean up the acid. Canadian federal regulators have known since 1990 that water samples from the old mine's drainage were "acutely toxic" to fish. Vancouver-based Redfern installed a pilot water treatment plant, but acid is still flowing into the Tulsequah River. It's 45 miles northeast of Juneau and just upstream of the Taku River and its rich fisheries. Geophysicist David Chambers, at the Center for Science in Public Participation, estimated from the 2003 flow data that the old mine was leaking 23,861 pounds of zinc, 5,099 pounds of copper, 122 pounds of lead, 97 pounds of cadmium and 49 pounds of arsenic a year into the watershed. In court documents the company said its environmental obligations would cost $6.1 million…
http://www.juneauempire.com/stories/052709/loc_
444272440.shtml
8. Sens. Murkowski and Begich Introduce Prince William Sound Escort Vessels Legislation
WASHINGTON, D.C. – U.S. Sens. Lisa Murkowski, R-Alaska, and Mark Begich, D-Alaska, today introduced legislation that would require all tankers transporting oil in Prince William Sound be escorted by at least two towing vessels, as has been the practice for the past 20 years.The current tanker safety system was authorized in the Oil Spill Pollution Act of 1990 (OPA90) and currently applies to single hulled oil tankers only. The last single hulled tanker in the Prince William Fleet is expected to be retired from service by August 2012. The legislation would require dual escort vessels for double hulled tankers as well.There have been a number of marine incidents and near misses in the 20 years since the Exxon Valdez Oil Spill in 1989. But through the work of the U.S. Coast Guard, the industry, the State of Alaska and the Prince William Sound Regional Citizen Advisory Council to implement the requirements of OPA90, there have been no major oil spills.
http://murkowski.senate.gov/public/index.cfm?FuseAction=
PressOffice.PressReleases&ContentRecord_id=40023996-af
9f-4007-e457-1e08a20d4b1e&Region_id=&Issue_id
9. Obama sets National Policy for the Oceans, Coasts, and Great Lakes
Memorandum for the heads of executive departments and agencies
“…To succeed in protecting the oceans, coasts, and Great Lakes, the United States needs to act within a unifying framework under a clear national policy, including a comprehensive, ecosystem-based framework for the longterm conservation and use of our resources.In order to better meet our Nation's stewardship responsibilities for the oceans, coasts, and Great Lakes, there is established an Interagency Ocean Policy Task Force (Task Force), to be led by the Chair of the Council on Environmental Quality. The Task Force shall be composed of senior policy-level officials from the executive departments, agencies, and offices represented on the Committee on Ocean Policy established by section 3 of Executive Order 13366 of December 17, 2004. This Task Force is not meant to duplicate that structure, but rather is intended to be a temporary entity with the following responsibilities:1. Within 90 days from the date of this memorandum, the Task Force shall develop recommendations that include…Read the Presidential memorandum online at:
http://www.whitehouse.gov/the_press_office/Presidential-
Proclamation-National-Oceans-Month-and-Memorandum-
regarding-national-policy-for-the-oceans/
10. Obama declares June National Oceans Month - 6 things you can do (Daily Green)
Amid the applause for a new federal oceans policy, scientists and advocates warn of our ocean’s downward spiral. Try these 6 things you can do to protect the oceans…
http://www.thedailygreen.com/environmental-news/latest/
obama-oceans-47061501
11. Senator Begich Supports Development of National Ocean Policy
U.S. Senator Mark Begich issued the following statement after President Obama ordered the development of a national ocean policy. The president's memorandum calls for a new interagency task force to write recommendations and to develop a framework for allocating and mapping marine resources:
"As the state with the most coastline and most ocean area within our extensive 200-mile limit, I welcome President Obama's announcement of forging a new national policy for oceans and coasts.
"Oceans play a crucial role in Alaska's economy. The oceans sustain Alaska's commercial fisheries which provide over 60% of the nation's total catch. Rural Alaskans depend on the ocean to sustain fisheries resources that meet their subsistence needs, while urban Alaskans enjoy some of best recreational fishing in the world. Millions of visitors are drawn north to view our spectacular shoreline and the North Pacific is a major transportation corridor for international commerce…”
http://begich.senate.gov/public/index.cfm?p=PressReleases&
ContentRecord_id=b7d2b10a-9960-46a2-8d27-e961ef3f246
6&ContentType_id=ef710aa3-7e29-440a-b9de-316ee20df1b5
12. Public asked to weigh in on commercial fishing in the Arctic – by July 27
By Laine Welch | Fish Factor
A plan by Alaska fishery "overseers" aims to put the brakes on commercial fishing in the Arctic until more is known about the region's fish stocks and marine environment. Now it's time for the public to weigh in…After two years of tinkering, the North Pacific Fishery Management Council has given its unanimous stamp of approval to adopt a plan that strictly defines parameters before any fishing occurs in U.S. portions of the Arctic. The plan governs all fish and shellfish stocks federal waters, meaning from three to 200 miles offshore. It does not affect Arctic subsistence fishing or hunting…The public has until July 27 to comment on the Arctic fishing plan, before it heads to the Secretary of Commerce for approval…
http://www.capitalcityweekly.com/stories/060309/
bus_446660226.shtml
NOAA Arctic Fisheries home page:
http://alaskafisheries.noaa.gov/sustainablefisheries/arctic/ .
Federal Register Notice May 26:
http://edocket.access.gpo.gov/2009/E9-12151.htm
Federal register Notice June 10 – Proposed rule, also for comment by July 27.
http://edocket.access.gpo.gov/2009/E9-13314.htm
13. Alaska, Mass. fishing experts up for top job (Fuglvog or Rothschild)
President Barack Obama needed less time making a nomination to the U.S. Supreme Court than oceans and fisheries administrator Jane Lubchenco has already used mulling which of two candidates she will appoint to head the National Marine Fisheries Service.But the pivotal choice has emerged between Arne Fuglvog, 45, an Alaskan fisherman, businessman and former appointed fisheries council member turned senatorial aide, and Brian Rothschild, an academic at the University of Massachusetts at Dartmouth.
http://www.gloucestertimes.com/punews/local
_story_153224159.html
14. Deadline July 31 for USDA Rural Energy for America Program grants to producers
This notice announces that Rural Business-Cooperative Service is accepting applications for fiscal year (FY) 2009 to purchase renewable energy systems and make energy efficiency improvements and to conduct feasibility studies for renewable energy systems for agriculture producers and rural small businesses in eligible rural areas.Alaska contact: Dean Stewart, USDA Rural Development, 800 West Evergreen, Suite 201, Palmer, AK 99645-6539, (907) 761-7722. dean.stewart@ak.usda.gov .
http://www.rurdev.usda.gov/ak/ USDA Rural Development Alaska home page: http://www.rurdev.usda.gov/ak/
15. Columbia Salmon-recovery plan needs work, judge Redden says
PORTLAND — A judge is telling federal agencies they need to do more to help Columbia Basin salmon survive, or he will find the latest restoration plan in violation of the Endangered Species Act.A Monday letter from U.S. District Judge James Redden to lawyers for all sides in a long-running court battle says he continues to have "serious reservations" because the standard for success is not strong enough.Redden also wants a contingency plan that would include funding, congressional approvals and other steps needed to breach the lower Snake Rivers dams in the event other measures fail to restore salmon runs…
http://seattletimes.nwsource.com/html/localnews/
2009235669_salmon19m.html
ESAblawg: http://www.esablawg.com/esalaw/ESBlawg.nsf/
D6Plinks/KRII-7S8N8F
LA Times: Judge doesn't rule out breaching Snake River dams to save salmon
http://www.latimes.com/news/nationworld/nation/la-na-
salmon20-2009may20,0,1510925.story
16. House Transportation Committee markup on Vessel Safety bill HR 2652
At the markup (June 5), the committee also addressed safety concerns in the maritime industry. According to the Bureau of Labor Statistics, commercial fishing is the most hazardous occupation in the United States. The death rate in this industry is 118 per 100,000 workers. A study published by the Coast Guard in 2006 found that between 1994 and 2004, even as overall commercial fishing levels declined, 1,398 commercial fishing vessels were lost, resulting in 641 deaths.H.R. 2652, the Maritime Safety Act, establishes significant new standards to improve the safety of work and recreation on the water, and particularly in the fishing industry. Specifically, the bill requires safety equipment standards for all commercial fishing, fish tender, and fish processing vessels operating beyond three nautical miles of the coast, and it establishes design and construction standards for new vessels or existing vessels that undergo major conversions…House T&I press release – Scroll down to HR 2652: http://transportation.house.gov/News/PRArticle.aspx?NewsID=934
To find the text of the bill go to http://thomas.loc.gov/ then select to search by bill number and enter HR 2652. (or contact the UFA office at 907-586-2820 or to this email)*
17. NY Times Editorial Of Fish and Flexibility (June 12, 2009)
Senator Charles Schumer has introduced a bill called The Flexibility in Rebuilding American Fisheries Act. Flexibility, in this case, means bending to the will of fishermen who want to keep vacuuming up depleted fish populations before they have a chance to recover… http://www.nytimes.com/2009/06/13/opinion/
13sat3.html?ref=opinion &&
U.S. Senator Schumer pursuing flexibility in fed fishing rules (April 20)
In a move hailed by Long Island commercial fishing interests, U.S. Sen. Chuck Schumer said Wednesday that he will introduce a bill this week to add "flexibility" to a federal fishery management law that he said is "decimating" the local fleet.The bill, called The Flexibility in Rebuilding American Fisheries Act of 2009, would provide a series of exceptions to hard-and-fast federal rules aimed at restoring species deemed as over fished.Long Island fishermen by and large question the science and data collection that are behind federal fishing quotas, while environmental groups say the quotas are badly needed…
http://www.newsday.com/news/local/politics/ny-
lifish1212868880jun11,0,5723594.story
Senator Schumer Press Release: http://schumer.senate.gov/new_website/record.cfm?id=311945
For the text of S.1255 : “A bill to amend the Magnuson-Stevens Fishery Conservation and Management Act to extend the authorized time period for rebuilding of certain overfished fisheries, and for other purposes.”
Go to http://thomas.loc.gov/ then select to search by bill number and enter S.1255.
(Text should be available in a few days
18. Crab fishery regs garner support, criticism at federal council meeting
A federal council edging toward a five-year review of the controversial plan that privatized the multi-million dollar crab fisheries gathered additional testimony June 6-7 in Anchorage in support of and opposition to the program…
http://www.alaskajournal.com/stories/061209/fis_13_002.shtml
19. Critical snow crab count begins in the Bering Sea
The summer survey of Bering Sea crab stocks just got underway - and a lot is riding on the results. Notably, the data collected over the next two months will dictate if Alaska's snow crab catch will be slashed this winter.
Federal fishery scientists have recommended a snow crab harvest limit at 16 million pounds, down from nearly 60 million pounds last year. Industry stakeholders had hoped for a similar catch level for the 2009-10 season…
http://www.alaskajournal.com/stories/061209
/fis_img14_001.shtml
20. NPFMC Items From the June Meeting:
Council motion on BSAI Crab issues http://www.fakr.noaa.gov/npfmc/current_issues/c
rab/609motion.pdf
Rockfish Program motion http://www.fakr.noaa.gov/npfmc/current_issues/groundfish/
Rockfish_motion609.pdf
GOA Pcod split motion http://www.fakr.noaa.gov/npfmc/current_issues/pcod/
GOAPcodMotion609.pdf
Salmon Bycatch Data Collection motion http://www.fakr.noaa.gov/npfmc/current
_issues/bycatch/SBCdatacollectionMotion609.pdf
Pcod Parallel Waters motion
http://www.fakr.noaa.gov/npfmc/current_issues/pcod/
ParallelwatersMotion609.pdf
June 2009 Newsletter: http://www.fakr.noaa.gov/npfmc/newsletters/news609.pdf
NPFMC home page: http://www.fakr.noaa.gov/npfmc/
21. Washington State Commission adopts ballast water rules
New ballast-water management rules aimed at preventing the spread of invasive species in state waters were adopted by the Washington Fish and Wildlife Commission during a meeting here June 5-6.
The commission, which sets policy for the Washington Department of Fish and Wildlife (WDFW), approved updates to state regulations governing the discharge of ballast water from ships coming into Washington ports, an activity that potentially can introduce harmful, non-native species into state waters…
http://wdfw.wa.gov/do/newreal/release.php?id=jun0909a
Washington State Ballast Water home page: http://wdfw.wa.gov/fish/ballast/ballast.htm (scroll down to the April 2009 New Ballast Water Rule Making
22. Invasive species are greatest threat to Northwest salmon, report says
Most discussions about the causes of declining salmon runs focus on the four H's: habitat, hatcheries, harvest and hydropower. But the most important factor may be an I, as in invasive species.
That's the conclusion of a new report from the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration's Northwest Fisheries Science Center in Seattle…The study, which was published in the journal Bioscience, is sure to be controversial because much of the Northwest's multi-billion dollar salmon recovery work is centered on improving habitat, mitigating the damage of power-producing dams and curtailing commercial or recreational fishing. This report argues the greatest threat to fish are non-native species like crappie or bass that can eat up juvenile salmon as the make their way downstream from their birthplace to the ocean…
http://www.oregonlive.com/environment/index.ssf/2009
/03/invasive_species_are_greatest.html
Report: Nonindigenous Species of the Pacific Northwest: An Over looked Risk to Endangered Salmon?
http://blog.oregonlive.com/environment_impact/2009
/03/Invasive%20species_1.pdf
Yes, but eradicating commercial fishermen from Cook Inlet seems easier than stopping people from planting pike, and eradicating pike.
23. Illegal fishing vessel fined USD 500K
The owner of a foreign vessel caught fishing illegally within protected US waters in the central Pacific three years ago paid a fine of USD 500,000 earlier this month, jointly announced the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration’s (NOAA) Office of Law Enforcement, the US Coast Guard and the US Attorney’s Office, District of Guam, last week.
http://www.fis.com/fis/worldnews/worldnews.asp?monthyear=
6-2009&day=12&id=32683&l=e&country=&special=&ndb=1&df=0
24. Chile fish farm troubles: Marine Harvest refutes further layoffs
Salmon firm Marine Harvest announced it will centralise processing operations in its Tepual plant in an effort to “optimise the efficiency of its facilities and reduce processing costs.”
http://www.fis.com/fis/worldnews/worldnews.asp?l=e&country
=&special=&monthyear=&day=&id=32675&ndb=1&df=0
Bank will not waive AquaChile’s debt (June 10)
Financial institutions have denied AquaChile the possibility of reducing a percentage of its liabilities, which altogether exceed USD 382 million. Meanwhile, 20 national salmon firms are expected to reach agreements with the bank sector on refinancing their debts…
http://www.fis.com/fis/worldnews/worldnews.asp?l=e&country
=&special=&monthyear=&day=&id=32653&ndb=1&df=0
&
AquaChile lays off 180 plant workers from Port Montt (June 3)
Salmon farming giant AquaChile SA dismissed 180 employees Monday – including managers, office staff and workers – from their plant located in the Cardonal sector of Port Montt, Region of Los Lagos. These personnel firings come on the heels of others made by the company in mid April, when it laid off 450 workers from its main processing plant. At that time, AquaChile ejecutives explained theirs was a decision based on the dual impact of the salmon infectious anemia (ISA) virus, and the global credit squeeze…
http://www.fis.com/fis/worldnews/worldnews.asp?l=e&country
=&special=&monthyear=&day=&id=32561&ndb=1&df=0
25. NOAA Opens 60-Day Public Comment Period for Gulf of Mexico Aquaculture
On June 4, 2009, NOAA opened a 60-day public comment period for the Fishery Management Plan for Regulating Offshore Marine Aquaculture in the Gulf of Mexico. This plan will be available for public review and comment through August 3, 2009.
NOAA Aquaculture announcement http://aquaculture.noaa.gov/news/welcome.html#60
Federal Register Notice: http://edocket.access.gpo.gov/2009/E9-13090.htm
26. Oysters in deep trouble: Is Pacific Ocean's chemistry killing sea life?
By Craig Welch Seattle Times environment reporter
WILLAPA BAY, Pacific County —
The collapse began rather unspectacularly. In 2005, when most of the millions of Pacific oysters in this tree-lined estuary failed to reproduce, Washington's shellfish growers largely shrugged it off. In a region that provides one-sixth of the nation's oysters — the epicenter of the West Coast's $111 million oyster industry — everyone knows nature can be fickle...
Now, as the oyster industry heads into the fifth summer of its most unnerving crisis in decades, scientists are pondering a disturbing theory. They suspect water that rises from deep in the Pacific Ocean — icy seawater that surges into Willapa Bay and gets pumped into seaside hatcheries — may be corrosive enough to kill baby oysters…
http://seattletimes.nwsource.com/html/localnews/
2009336458_oysters14m.html
27. $50M in stimulus will help fish farmers buy feed
OSAGE BEACH, Mo. - The United States is about to spend $50 million on fish food.
The money included in the federal stimulus package is intended to help keep afloat an aquaculture industry already struggling from foreign competition after feed prices jumped 50 percent last year.It could provide algae to feed clam and oyster larvae along the Pacific coast, fill the bellies of tilapia in Arizona and feed catfish, trout and gamefish in the Midwest and South. Supporters say it will help keep fish farms going in tough times and preserve jobs in areas that have been hit by the recession and lack other industries…
http://www.cnbc.com/id/31331618
28. Laine Welch's Fish Radio –topics from this week
Monday 6/15/09 Fish Employment
Friday 6/12/09 - Consumers prefer Alaska seafood
Thursday 6/11/09 - Fish Price Drivers
Wednesday 6/10/09 - Deadline nears for Southeast salmon RSDA votes
Tuesday 6/9/09 - Kodiak salmon season starts today
Monday 6/8/09 - Snow crab riding on results of Bering Sea crab surveyListen Online at: http://www.marineconservationalliance.org/fishradio.htm
& also see Laine Welch's Fish Factor at http://www.kinyradio.com/fishfactor.html
29. MMPA 2010 List of fisheries posted – SE Seine reclassified to Category 3
The National Marine Fisheries Service (NMFS) publishes its proposed List of Fisheries (LOF) for 2010, as required by the Marine Mammal Protection Act (MMPA). The proposed LOF for 2010 reflects new information on interactions between commercial fisheries and marine mammals. NMFS must categorize each commercial fishery on the LOF into one of three categories under the MMPA based upon the level of serious
injury and mortality of marine mammals that occurs incidental to each fishery…Alaska change for 2010: NMFS proposes to reclassify the ``AK southeast salmon purse seine'' fishery from Category II to Category III. The current Category II classification is based on one permit holder self-report of an incidental mortality of a humpback whale (Central North Pacific) in this fishery in 1996. There are no further self-reports, known entanglements, or anecdotal information of any humpback whales or other marine mammals injured or killed in this fishery since 1996…
http://edocket.access.gpo.gov/2009/E9-13714.htm
NOAA List of Fisheries home page: http://www.nmfs.noaa.gov/pr/interactions/lof/
30. The Whale Rescuers: National Marine Fisheries Service offers disentanglement workshops
JUNEAU - With the Pacific population of humpback whales growing at seven percent annually, mariners can expect more encounters with the giant mammals. To reduce injury to the federally protected creatures and gear loss to harvesters, the National Marine Fisheries Service (NMFS) is recruiting volunteers to join a response network to assist the few federal personnel who are authorized to disentangle whales
31. MMRC research: Cutting the Costs of Foraging
Consortium researchers studying the costs of foraging in Steller sea lions recently discovered that the animals spend less energy during longer series of continuous dives than shorter ones. Intrigued, they focused on how sea lions manage their oxygen while foraging and came to an interesting conclusion…
http://www.marinemammal.org/2009/fahlman.php
Marine Mammal Research Consortium home page: http://www.marinemammal.org/
32. ESA Short Tailed Albatross - Initiation of 5-Year Status Review; Availability of Final Recovery Plan
SUMMARY: We, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (Service), announce the availability of our final recovery plan for and the initiation of a 5-year status review for the short-tailed albatross (Phoebastria albatrus), a bird species listed as endangered under the Endangered Species Act of 1973, as amended (Act). Our recovery plan describes the status, current management, recovery objectives and criteria, and specific actions needed to enable us to reclassify the short-tailed albatross from endangered to threatened, or from threatened to delisted. It also includes criteria that would justify reclassifying the species from threatened back to endangered…
Federal register notice: http://edocket.access.gpo.gov/2009/E9-11700.htm
USFWS Short Tailed Albatross home page: http://ecos.fws.gov/speciesProfile/profile/speciesProfile.
action?spcode=B00Y
33. Deadline July 20 for comment on VMS data collection paperwork
The Department of Commerce, as part of its continuing effort to reduce paperwork and respondent burden, invites the general public and other Federal agencies to take this opportunity to comment on proposed and/or continuing information collections, as required by the Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995…
National Marine Fisheries Service (NMFS), Alaska Region, directs a satellite-based vessel monitoring program to locate fishing vessels and monitor compliance with area restrictions in the Gulf of Alaska, Bering Sea, and Aleutian Islands. The Vessel Monitoring System (VMS) allows the NMFS Office for Law Enforcement to monitor and survey vessels over vast expanses of open-water while maintaining the confidentiality of fishing positions…
Comments are invited on: (a) Whether the proposed collection of information is necessary for the proper performance of the functions of the agency, including whether the information shall have practical utility; (b) the accuracy of the agency's estimate of the burden (including hours and cost) of the proposed collection of information; (c) ways to enhance the quality, utility, and clarity of the information to be collected; and (d) ways to minimize the burden of the collection of information on respondents, including through the use of automated collection techniques or other forms of information
technology.DATES: Written comments must be submitted on or before July 20, 2009.Federal Register Notice: http://edocket.access.gpo.gov/2009/E9-11566.htm
34. USCG warns of radio interference with Compact Fluorescent Lights
This Safety Alert serves to inform the maritime industry that energy saving Compact Fluorescent Lights (CFL) or lighting, sometimes known as radio frequency (RF) lighting devices may interfere with certain communications equipment. CFLs employ a RF lighting device to excite a gas inside a bulb in order to produce light. The Federal Communications Commission (FCC) recognized the need for and adopted rules to
control the harmful interference to radio communications services from these devices. During the rulemaking process the Coast Guard provided comments and recommended an advisory label for CFLs / RF lighting devices warning users about potential interference to communication services and particularly with respect to devices capable of producing emissions in the 0.45-30 MHz band. As aresult, the FCC required manufacturers of CFLs to provide an advisory statement, either on theproduct packaging or with other user documentation, similar to the following: "This product may cause
interference to radio communications and should not be installed near maritime safety communications equipment or other critical navigation or communication equipment operating between 0.45-30 MHz."
http://homeport.uscg.mil/cgi-bin/st/portal/uscg_docs/MyCG/
Editorial/20090608/0209.pdf
?id=5b06b26afcf49bf87919b510ae01a52e914f8e6
35. IPHC 2009 Halibut Landing Report No. 2
Non-treaty Commercial Fishing Period Limits in Area 2A for June 24 Fishery
http://www.iphc.washington.edu/halcom/newsrel/
2009/nr20090602.htm
36. IPHC Charter Announcement: Requests Vessel Bids for Archival Tagging Charter in Alaskan Waters (deadline July 3)
The International Pacific Halibut Commission (IPHC) is requesting bids from commercial longline vessels to perform a tagging charter during the summer of 2009. The charter will be conducted in one of the following areas: 1) the Ommaney Ground…
2) inner Spencer Spit… 3)Trinity Ground..
The charter must take place between August 10 and September 25, 2009…
http://www.iphc.washington.edu/halcom/newsrel
/2009/nr20090520.htm
37. Comment deadline June 22 on ADF&G Aquatic Farming changes
http://notes5.state.ak.us/pn/pubnotic.nsf/cc52605f7c156e7a8
925672a0060a91b/da30996fd70fe1b8892575b80001
1886?OpenDocument
38. Sea Grant Marine Advisory Program Salmon Quality videos available
To help both veteran fishermen and greenhorns alike, the Alaska Sea Grant Marine Advisory Program has released a series of nine videos on improving salmon quality. The videos were produced with gillnet fishermen in mind, but much of the information will be valuable to all gear types.The videos cover topics including quality, boat setup, fishing practices, product handling, chilling, dressing and pressure bleeding, unloading product, and cleaning and sanitizing.All of the videos are available free online at: http://seagrant.uaf.edu/map/fisheries/salmonquality
/videos/index.html
. Single copies of the videos on DVD are free for as long as the supply lasts. For more information, contact the Marine Advisory Program at 907-274-9691, or visit MAP online.
-from Paula Cullenberg, Interim Director, Alaska Sea Grant
39. Information Circular 58, Alaska’s Mineral Industry 2008: A Summary, is now available from the Department of Natural Resources. This summary and the data contained within it will be superseded by the final report, Alaska’s Mineral Industry 2008 (Special Report 63), to be published later in 2009, following final compilation of information, particularly for placer mining and industrial minerals. The mineral industry summary and other reports can be inspected at and obtained from DGGS, 3354 College Road, Fairbanks, Alaska 99709-3707 (907-451-5020) and beginning June 1, 2009, from the DNR Public Information Center, 550 West 7th Avenue, Suite 1260, Anchorage, Alaska (907-269-8400). Send mail orders to the Fairbanks DGGS office (fax 907-451-5050; mailing address above). The summary is available in Adobe Acrobat PDF format through the DGGS website: http://www.dggs.dnr.state.ak.us/pubs/pubs?r
eqtype=citation&ID=19601
40. USFWS extends comment period on Sea Otter ESA Critical Habitat to July 9
Federal Register Notice: http://edocket.access.gpo.gov/2009/E9-13314.htm
Previous post: USFS reopens comment period on Sea Otter ESA Critical habitat – Deadline July 1, Public meeting June 18, Anchorage
USFWS Press release: http://www.fws.gov/news/NewsReleases/showNews.
cfm?newsId=2114BB58-959A-D6E2-E727330BCAEC1CEC
May 8, 2009 Federal Register Notice: http://edocket.access.gpo.gov/2009/E9-10715.htm
Maps of areas proposed as critical habitat and other pertinent info are available for viewing at the USFWS Sea Otter ESA home page:
http://alaska.fws.gov/fisheries/mmm/seaotters/criticalhabitat.htm
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