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Opinion. Can Alaska's biggest fisheries withstand climate change? (1/24)
Begich Places Juneau Resident On Staff (1/25)
Salmon populations may be under threat from ocean acidification (APRN Audio) (1/23)
The 30 year forecast for Alaska: colder (KUAC Audio) (1/23)
Coast Guard assisting grounded fishing vessel near Kodiak Island (1/24)
NOAA. 2008 Status of U.S. Fisheries, 4th Quarter Update
NPFMC. Items for the February Meeting
STATE
Wrangell Seafoods seeks Chapter 11 status (1/24)
Yukon River salmon run faces grim predictions (1/25)
KIB pushes for ADF&G building (1/23)
New bills introduced to protect fish spawning areas (1/22)
Dip-netters sue for subsistence designation (1/24)
MISC
Russian fishing fleet faces challenges (1/23)
FEDERAL
Opinion. Can Alaska's biggest fisheries withstand climate change? (1/24). Are we witnessing the collapse of Alaska's great fisheries?
The sharp decreases of Bering Sea pollock stocks (Daily News, Nov. 14, 2008) raise the question of whether Alaska's sustainable fisheries are a myth.
Fisheries are generally classified as a sustainable resource on the assumption that they can be maintained for future generations. However, studies have demonstrated man's ability to deplete major fisheries since the Middle Ages.
A recent book, "The Unnatural History of the Sea" by Callum Roberts, traces the destruction of fish populations from the estuaries of England after 1000 AD to the most recent demise of orange roughly off New Zealand. It has been estimated that 90 percent of large fish have now been depleted.
Will the Bering Sea pollock fishery continue to decline? Is it already too late? More
Begich Places Juneau Resident On Staff (1/25). JUNEAU -Sen. Mark Begich has hired Juneau resident Bob King as a member of his staff for fisheries, Coast Guard, Arctic policy and other issues under the jurisdiction of the Commerce, Science and Transportation Committee.
King is a 31-year Alaska resident, and best known as press secretary for former Gov. Tony Knowles. He worked as a radio reporter for many years in Bristol Bay covering fishery issues.
King most recently coordinated marine debris cleanup efforts in Alaska for the non-profit Marine Conservation Alliance Foundation and has also written extensively on fisheries history and policy issues for trade publications and other outlets.
Salmon populations may be under threat from ocean acidification (APRN Audio) (1/23). A lot of money is being spent researching ecological changes in the Bering Sea, buy only one instrument - miles to the south - is currently measuring the acidity of Alaska waters. Researchers hope that will be changing soon. Ocean acidity could have major implications for the health of the salmon population.
The 30 year forecast for Alaska: colder (KUAC Audio) (1/23). Cooler drier weather may be the long range forecast for Alaska. A climate pattern called the Pacific Decadal Oscillation, or PDO, is showing signs of going into a cold phase for the North Pacific. That was the word from Fairbanks based National Weather Service meteorologist Rick Thoman during a presentation yesterday. Thoman said falling mean temperatures in the North Pacific indicate a change in the general air flow over Alaska.
Coast Guard assisting grounded fishing vessel near Kodiak Island (1/24). KODIAK, Alaska - The 42-foot fishing vessel Currency ran aground in Muskomee Bay on the north end of Raspberry Strait near Kodiak Island at 11:33 a.m. Saturday.
The crew of the Currency notified the Coast Guard that they had run hard aground and were taking on water in the engine room. They requested a dewatering pump.
The boat, based out of Homer, is approximately 20 feet from shore. No pollution has been reported. Approximately 200 to 300 gallons of diesel has been reported aboard but is not currently at risk of release.
The crew has sustained no injuries and all three crewmembers are in survival suits as a precaution but do not plan on leaving the vessel.
An MH-60 Jayhawk helicopter from Air Station Kodiak was diverted from a training mission at 11:55 a.m. and located the vessel within 20 minutes.
The air crew passed two dewatering pumps and a radio to the vessel in two separate trips.
The fishing vessel's crew reported that they have the flooding under control and are awaiting high tide to patch the vessel. They will then dewater the boat completely and re-float it.
The vessel remains on a one hour communications schedule with the Coast Guard Sector Anchorage command center watch.
The vessel has been directed to proceed to Kodiak by the Captain of the Port Western Alaska upon effecting repairs. Personnel from Marine Safety Detachment Kodiak will inspect the damage and the subsequent repairs.
The cause of the grounding is under investigation by the Coast Guard. Link
NOAA. 2008 Status of U.S. Fisheries, 4th Quarter Update. Changes: Norton Sound red king crab, souterh bering Sea tanner crab, roughefye rockfish BSAI, rex sole GOA
Chinook Salmon Bycatch in the Bering Sea Pollock Fishery PPT
Wrangell Seafoods seeks Chapter 11 status (1/24). A Southeast Alaska seafood processor has filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection. Wrangell Seafoods, which operates a plant in Wrangell, filed in U.S. Bankruptcy Court in Anchorage and acknowledged owing millions of dollars.
Company president Douglas Roberts signed the documents but did not respond to phone calls seeking comment by the Alaska Journal of Commerce.
The processor was a major employer in Wrangell, hiring up to 130 people at the peak of the season and buying from 200 fishing vessels.
An official with the city of Wrangell said two bad fishing seasons likely were a major part of the problem. The city is among dozens of creditors.
The Bankruptcy Court is expected to schedule hearings after required paperwork is filed before the end of January. More
Yukon River salmon run faces grim predictions (1/25). FAIRBANKS — Alaska fish managers are telling villagers along the Yukon River to brace for another poor king salmon run this year and are fishing for ideas on how to get more fish across the Canadian border.
“We are projecting a below average to poor chinook run in 2009,” Steve Hayes, Yukon area biologist for the Alaska Department of Fish and Game, reported in a teleconference with fishermen on the upper Yukon River on Thursday. “There is unlikely to be any directed commercial chinook harvest in the main stem Yukon, and we believe subsistence fishing will need to be reduced at the beginning of the season.”
Just how drastic conservation measures will be taken in the state’s’ largest subsistence fishery remains to be seen. Managers on both sides of the border are still in the process of formulating a management strategy for the upcoming season, Hayes said.
Thursday’s teleconference was one of three sponsored by the Yukon River Drainage Fisheries Association to break the bad news to fishermen and ask for ideas how to handle the expected crisis. Teleconferences with residents on the lower and middle Yukon were held earlier in the week.
Some subsistence fishermen on the upper Yukon River are suggesting the closure of all king salmon fishing this season, as well as in future years, to help rebuild what they say is a dwindling king run.
“We need to lay off kings up and down the river both commercially and for subsistence,” Andy Bassich, a subsistence fishermen in the village of Eagle, said. “Every fish counts right now.” More
KIB pushes for ADF&G building (1/23). The Borough Assembly adopted a resolution designating the borough’s top six federal legislative capital improvement project priorities for fiscal years 2009-2013.
Mel Stephens urged the assembly to amend the resolution to delete the Kodiak-Near Island ADF&G Research and Administration Facility from the list, maintaining it was not properly a borough project.
“It makes no more sense than to build a post office and rent it to the postal service,” Stephens said. “Borough money should be spent in more appropriate ways.”
Borough Assembly members disagreed.
“Kodiak can be a hub for fishery research,” Louise Stutes said. “Fishing is Kodiak’s backbone.”
Sue Jeffery echoed those sentiments.
“There is a need for fishery research,” she said, “so we have an understanding not only of the fish we harvest, but of the marine mammals and the entire marine ecosystem.” More
New bills introduced to protect fish spawning areas (1/22). Rep. Paul Seaton has pre-filed five bills at the start of the 26th Legislature to promote healthy fisheries, institute a modern tax regime for mining operations and provide public participation in wastewater discharge permitting and heighten legal protection for the state in oil and gas lease disputes.
“I look forward to a productive discussion of these issues during the upcoming session,” Seaton said. “These pieces of legislation are aimed at maintaining the vitality of Alaska fisheries; expanding economic opportunities; and ensuring reasonable revenues from extraction of our nonrenewable resources. Taken as a whole, these bills represent a proactive approach to keeping Alaska sustainable as we head into our next 50 years.”
House Bill 46, an omnibus water quality and public right to know bill, prohibits the Department of Environmental Conservation from permitting wastewater discharges into freshwater fish spawning areas. Under current regulation, wastewater discharge into freshwater spawning areas may be permitted if salmon are not actively spawning at the time. HB 46 gives the public access to the annual amount of pollution discharged by permit into public waters and also allows the public opportunities to comment on expansions of commercial sewage lagoons.
Under current regulation, public comment is only offered at initial permitting of the facility and subsequent expansions do not require public comment.
House Bill 43 allows for the expansion of Geoduck clam mariculture in Alaska. Mariculture has the potential to diversify the economic base of coastal communities impacted by the changing dynamics of the fishing industry. HB 43 helps this clean water industry by allowing Geoducks to be farmed below the low tide line along the Gulf of Alaska if wild Geoducks are not present. More
Dip-netters sue for subsistence designation (1/24). FAIRBANKS — Frustrated by inaction from the state Board of Fisheries, the Chitina Dipnetters Association is taking its case to court.
The Fairbanks-based association, with financial support from the Alaska Outdoor Council, has filed a lawsuit against the state Board of Fisheries and Alaska Department of Fish and Game to get the Chitina dip net fishery on the Copper River designated as a subsistence, rather than personal use, fishery.
The fish board has rejected proposals to switch dip-netters from personal use to subsistence three times in the last five years, most recently at a meeting last month in Cordova.
“This is our last resort,” Mark Hem of the Chitina Dipnetters Association said of the lawsuit, which was filed in Fairbanks Superior Court on Jan. 9.
Dip netting in the Copper River at Chitina is widely popular among thousands of residents in Fairbanks, Anchorage and the Mat-Su Valley. Each summer, the Department of Fish and Game issues approximately 8,000 personal-use dip net permits for Chitina and dip-netters scoop up between 100,000 to 150,000 Copper River salmon. More
MISC
Russian Fishing fleet faces challenges (1/23) VLADIVOSTOK- Russia's fishing industry is currently experiencing several serious challenges. These include a obsolete fleet, confusing regulations, lack of processing facilities, and dwindling fisheries.
The situation has resulted in a decline in total official catch for Russian boats of 56 percent over the two past decades. Despite these hurdles, many of the more sophisticated traders say they remain optimistic. They believe recent government reforms, particularly 10-year vs. five-year quota allocations, will help revive the industry.
And the forecast for 2009 is optimistic. Many observers now believe prices will remain strong and demand will continue to grow in Russia and overseas.
Russia's fishing fleet is woefully outdated. In the next decade, the situation will be critical when approximately 90 percent of vessels will be over 20 years old and not equipped with modern navigation and tracking technologies, and will be unable to fish extensively in international waters.
Most banks are unwilling to finance fleet modernization, as they consider the industry too big a financial risk. In addition, the old fleet results in increased fuel consumption. Fishermen report that fuel now amounts to 30 percent of the cost of their catch, and Russia's ability to supply Pollack could not exceed 40,000 tons of fillets, due to a lack in capacity.
The government has acknowledged the challenges and credit problems, but it has so far taken no action to provide alternative funding sources. Still, industry is hopeful that the new quota system with longer-term allocations will increase certainty and help ensure credit. More
