Alaska Fish Notes

April 10, 2009

Disclaimer:  Inclusion of a news article, report, or other document in this email does not imply MCA support or endorsement of the information or opinion expressed in the document.

The Alaska Fisheries Report with Jay Barrett Apr 9

17th District Notice to Mariners (4/7) 

Fish Radio (Laine Welch) Broadcast Daily. http://www.marineconservationalliance.org/ 

Fish Calendar

New Alaska Fish Related Blogs

Unbiased Alaska by Mike Mason

Deck Boss by Wesley Loy

FEDERAL

1. Massive pollock industry is capped in order to limit salmon bycatch (4/7)
2. Fisheries Council Sets Chinook Bycatch Limit (KUCB Audio) (4/7)
3. Yukon salmon group protests bycatch quotas (4/10)
4. The science of salmon bycatch (KUCB Audio) (4/8)
5. Federal council caps salmon bycatch in pollock fishery (4/10)
6. Nome Nugget. Council caps Chinook bycatch at 60,000 fish (4/9)
7. NPFMC. Items from the April Meeting
8. Evaluating the performance of Gulf of Alaska walleye pollock (Theragra chalcogramma) recruitment forecasting models using a Monte Carlo resampling strategy (3/1)
9. Public trust doctrine could aid management of US oceans (4/9)
10. USCG - credentialing changes (4/8)
11. Coast Guard crew terminates two fishing vessels for safety violations (4/9)
12. Lawsuit pending against NOAA over ribbon seal protection (4/10)
13. NOAA's Fisheries Service Office for Law Enforcement Starts Re-accreditation Process (4/10)
14. NOAA Administrator Renews America's Commitment to Science (4/9)
15. Wrestling with fishery limits (4/9)
16. Fishermen still dealing with the aftermath of the Exxon spill (4/10)

STATE

17. Longtime Kodiak council member, cannery manager Woodruff dies in Anchorage (4/8)
18. Blue king crabs hatched from Little Diomede Island travel to Juneau for AKCRRAB research
19. Alaska SeaGrant Fishlines (April 2009)
20. State rejects endangered-species listing for seabird (4/10)
21. ADFG Publications
22. Board of Fisheries Appointee Faces Opposition (APRN Audio)(4/9)
23. Wrangell Seafoods sells to Trident (4/9)

MISC

24. USA Today. Many commercial fishermen are hanging up their nets (4/9)

FEDERAL

1. Massive pollock industry is capped in order to limit salmon bycatch (4/7)
VANCOUVER, B.C. - For the first time ever, the world's largest fishery will have a hard cap limiting its accidental catch of salmon - about half of which are Canadian salmon.

Beginning in 2011, fishermen in the massive Bering Sea pollock fishery off the coast of Alaska will have to stop fishing when they reach the cap set this week by the North Pacific Fishery Management Council.

"Ultimately I think it's a step in the right direction," Craig McKinnon, vice-chairman of the Yukon Salmon Committee, said in a telephone interview Tuesday.

While the salmon bycatch is only about one per cent of the massive fishery, the accidental catch has a large impact on salmon fishermen in both American and Canadian waters.

In 2007, Bering Sea pollock fishermen accidentally caught 130,000 prized chinook, considered the giants of the salmon world.

The salmon are swept up along with pollock in the football field-sized nets, but because the fishermen aren't allowed to sell the salmon, they are either dumped overboard or donated to food banks.

The bycatch has been gradually growing over the years, from an average of about 32,000 fish in the 1990s to the 130,000 high in 2007.

That type of salmon catch in the Yukon River would be unheard of, and a return of 130,000 spawning chinook would be an all-time high, said McKinnon. More

2. NPFMC. Items from the April Meeting.
Fixed Gear Recency Motion 4/09
Salmon Bycatch Motion 4/09

3. Yukon salmon group protests bycatch quotas (4/10).
The commercial Bering Sea pollock fishery should be shut down if even one Yukon River chinook salmon is scooped up by its nets, the Yukon salmon sub-committee chair says.

Earlier this week, the North Pacific Fishery Management Council met in Alaska and voted to limit the annual salmon bycatch by the pollock fishery to 60,000.

Although that's more than the 10-year average, it's less than the 120,000 chinook killed by the pollock fishery in 2007.

Carl Sidney, who chairs the Yukon group established under the land claim agreement to conserve declining salmon stocks, said if even one salmon is killed the pollock fishery should be shut down.

"It should be at zero - absolutely no bycatch," Sidney told CBC News this week. More

4. The science of salmon bycatch (KUCB Audio) (4/8).
Would reducing salmon bycatch in the pollock industry really impact salmon returns to Western Alaska? Well, it's complicated... KUCB's Anne Hillman found out more.

5. Federal council caps salmon bycatch in pollock fishery (4/10).
A federal fisheries council voted April 6 to make an unprecedented cap of 60,000 king salmon the maximum allowed in a Bering Sea pollock fishery that harvests millions of pounds of the groundfish annually.

Fish and Game Commissioner Denby Lloyd, a state representative on the North Pacific Fishery Management Council, had initially proposed a cap of over 68,000, but the council ultimately lowered that cap to 60,000 kings.

The plan, which now goes to the federal Department of Commerce, includes an industry incentive program aimed at keeping the actual incidental catch in the pollock fishery below 47,591 kings. Should the industry exceed that incidental harvest in any three of seven years, that cap would drop to 47,591 kings.

Lloyd said he felt that would be a substantial check on the industry, and another council member, Duncan Fields, said he also felt that the industry incentive plan would change the behavior of the pollock fleet, resulting in fewer kings being caught.

Council chairman Eric Olson of Kwit'Pak Fisheries expressed mixed emotions. More

6. Nome Nugget. Council caps Chinook bycatch at 60,000 fish (4/9).
By Laurie McNicholas
The North Pacific Fisheries Management Council unanimously decided Monday night to cap the number of Chinook salmon the rich Bering Sea pollock fishery can catch at 60,000 fish annually beginning in 2011.

If the bycatch cap is reached, the fishery will cease. The action was continued on page 4

7. Fisheries Council Sets Chinook Bycatch Limit (KUCB Audio) (4/7).
The North Pacific Fisheries Management Council has taken action to limit Chinook bycatch by the pollock fleet in the Bering Sea. In an attempt to increase Chinook returns to Western Alaska rivers, the council unanimously voted to put in place a 60 thousand fish cap with an incentive program that would aim for a limit of around 47 thousand Chinook.

8. Evaluating the performance of Gulf of Alaska walleye pollock (Theragra chalcogramma) recruitment forecasting models using a Monte Carlo resampling strategy (3/1).

Abstract: Multiple linear regressions (MLRs), generalized additive models (GAMs), and artificial neural networks (ANNs) were compared as methods to forecast recruitment of Gulf of Alaska walleye pollock (Theragra chalcogramma). Each model, based on a conceptual model, was applied to a 41-year time series of recruitment, spawner biomass, and environmental covariates. A subset of the available time series, an in-sample data set consisting of 35 of the 41 data points, was used to fit an environment-dependent recruitment model. Influential covariates were identified through statistical variable selection methods to build the best explanatory recruitment model. An out-of-sample set of six data points was retained for model validation. We tested each model's ability to forecast recruitment by applying them to an out-of-sample data set. For a more robust evaluation of forecast accuracy, models were tested with Monte Carlo resampling trials. The ANNs outperformed the other techniques during the model fitting process. For forecasting, the ANNs were not statistically different from MLRs or GAMs. The results indicated that more complex models tend to be more susceptible to an overparameterization problem. The procedures described in this study show promise for building and testing recruitment forecasting models for other fish species. Link

9. Public trust doctrine could aid management of US oceans (4/9).
DURHAM, N.C. -- Since Congress lifted a moratorium on offshore drilling last year, federal lawmakers have grappled with the issue of how best to regulate U.S. ocean waters to allow oil, wave and wind energy development, while sustainably managing critical fisheries and marine animal habitats.

A new policy paper, published April 10 in Science by a team of Duke University experts, argues that establishing a public trust doctrine for federal waters could be an effective and ethical solution to this and similar conflicts.

"The public trust doctrine could provide a practical legal framework for restructuring the way we regulate and manage our oceans. It would support ocean-based commerce while protecting marine species and habitats," says lead author Mary Turnipseed, a PhD student at Duke's Nicholas School of the Environment.

The public trust doctrine is "a simple but powerful legal concept," Turnipseed says, that obliges governments to manage certain natural resources in the best interests of their citizens, without sacrificing the needs of future generations. More

10. USCG - credentialing changes (4/8).
The US Coast Guard National Maritime Center (NMC) issued a series of Announcements reminding US merchant mariners of changes to the credentialing process taking effect on April 15, including the requirement for each mariner to have a valid Transportation Worker Identification Credential (TWIC).

11. Coast Guard crew terminates two fishing vessels for safety violations (4/9).
JUNEAU, Alaska - The Coast Guard terminated the voyages of two 37-foot commercial fishing vessels within the last two days in Icy Straight near Hoonah, Alaska.

A boarding team from the Coast Guard Cutter Liberty terminated the voyage of one of the fishing vessels Tuesday at 4:07 p.m. due to an expired life raft, expired life raft hydrostatic release and an unserviceable immersion suit. The vessel also had an unserviceable type four throwable device.

Life rafts aboard commercial fishing vessels need to be repacked annually and the one on board hadn't been serviced since 1993. The hydrostatic release needs to be replaced or serviced in the required time frame depending on the type. Type four throwable devices must be in serviceable condition.

The other vessel, which had just one person aboard, had their voyage terminated Wednesday at 6:09 a.m. due to an expired life raft and hydrostatic release. Also, there was no personal marker light on the immersion suit on board, the flares on board were past the expiration date and the type four throwable device was unserviceable.

"Life rafts and immersion suits have made the difference between life and death many times in Alaska," Said Capt. Michael Inman, commander Sector Juneau. "We take the requirement to have them on board seriously."

Both vessels were escorted by the Liberty to Hoonah. The vessels must clear the terminable offenses prior to getting underway and have a compliance option available to them.

The compliance option is the following:

- If the vessels successfully complete a full voluntary dockside examination, they will be issued a warning from the Coast Guard in lieu of a monetary fine. More

12. Lawsuit pending against NOAA over ribbon seal protection (4/10).
Officials with the National Oceanographic and Atmospheric Administration have received a formal notice from two conservation groups regarding intent to sue over the agency's alleged failure to protect ribbon seals under the Endangered Species Act.

NOAA attorneys are now studying the notice, to which they must respond with 60 days, but had no immediate comment, said spokeswoman Sheela McLean.

The Center for Biological Diversity and Greenpeace filed March 31 against NOAA, asking the federal agency to review a decision regarding the ribbon seals made in the closing days of the Bush administration. More

13. NOAA's Fisheries Service Office for Law Enforcement Starts Re-accreditation Process (4/10).
NOAA's Fisheries Service Office for Law Enforcement will begin a formal review on April 26 to retain its accreditation with the International Commission on Accreditation for Law Enforcement Agencies.

Accreditation is a voluntary process for law enforcement agencies to demonstrate their compliance with national standards. The purpose of the accreditation program is to improve the delivery of law enforcement services. The accreditation process will also provide Office for Law Enforcement managers with assurance that the agency is meeting its internal policies and procedures, as well as facilitate a review of the office's status and readiness. Approximately 3.5 percent of federal, state and local law enforcement agencies are accredited. The standards cover Office for Law Enforcement's management, organization, administration, communications, property and evidence control, and relationships with other law enforcement agencies. More

14. NOAA Administrator Renews America's Commitment to Science (4/9).
Vice President Joe Biden today presided over a ceremonial swearing-in ceremony of Jane Lubchenco, Ph.D., under secretary of commerce for oceans and atmosphere and NOAA administrator, in recognition of the agency's role in providing sound and open science as the foundation for environmental and economic strength. John Holdren, Ph.D., was also sworn in as the director of the Office of Science and Technology Policy.

"Jane Lubchenco and John Holdren have blazed trails in the world of science, and we expect them to do the same here," said Vice President Biden. "Our ability to compete in a 21st century economy hinges on our ability to innovate. I am confident Doctors Lubchenco and Holdren will work daily to ensure the economic policies we set inspire scientific progress as well."

"Scientific knowledge should inform decision-making. Scientists have an obligation to communicate their knowledge in a clear, credible, relevant and useable fashion, and that management and policy decisions should focus on the common good and the long-term," said Lubchenco. More

15. Wrestling with fishery limits (4/9).
It was like slogging through mudflats at extreme low tide. The issues were many and so contested that the sheer weight of the handouts could suck you under.

Throw in global warming that some believe is driving ground fish, like halibut, to lower depths or that salmon that end up as bycatch move in irregular patterns and you have a council, an industry, local fishers and subsistence villagers scrambling to make sense of it all at the annual North Pacific Fisheries Management Council meeting in Anchorage, held March 30 to April 7. As of deadline for this issue, the meeting and action on the issues were far from over.

"The city stays out of fish-catch battles," said Unalaska Mayor Shirley Marquardt, who attended the meeting with several council members. "Our tax revenues are 50/50 from the shore-side processor plants and catcher vessels."

Taxes are what keep the city afloat. A whopping 80 percent of the city's property taxes are paid for by shore-side processors. State taxes on the shore-side plants returns approximately $3 million to $4 million to Unalaska.

Without that economic support, Marquardt said Unalaska would be in rough waters.

"We were the No. 1 fuel seller in the state in 2007, and we get $3 (million) to $4 million off of that," she said. More

16. Fishermen still dealing with the aftermath of the Exxon spill (4/10).
Cordova fisherman R.J. Kopchak was standing in a marine shop in Seattle when he first heard about the grounding of the Exxon Valdez in Prince William Sound.

"The guy at the counter said, 'Did you hear about the oil spill in Alaska?'" Kopchak said. "I left without concluding my purchases."

It was Good Friday, March 24, 1989.

Two days later, Kopchak, then vice mayor of Cordova, was in Juneau, meeting with staff of then-Gov. Steve Cowper, telling them how important it was going to be for them to set up a response office in Cordova.

Two decades after the Exxon Valdez spill caused an environmental disaster in Prince William Sound, fishermen like Kopchak say they are still trying to deal with the aftermath of the spill.

"Recovery?" said Kopchak, now the development director for the Prince William Sound Science Center in Cordova. "There is no recovery from that kind of a massive oil spill, at least the way I imagine recovery would be. It fundamentally erases the way a biosphere would work. You've wiped out all kinds of things that are interdependent. As the system attains a new biosphere balance, it will not look the way it did prior to the spill." More

STATE

17. Longtime Kodiak council member, cannery manager Woodruff dies in Anchorage (4/8).
Longtime local industry and civic leader Dave Woodruff died Monday in Anchorage.

"He served many years on the City Council and worked hard for the community. If you needed anything, whether it was seafood or money for some function, Dave always came through. He was a community person," City Mayor Carolyn Floyd said.

Woodruff was vice president and part owner of Alaska Fresh Seafoods. His civic involvement included membership in the Lions, Elks and American Legion, as well as multiple terms on the Kodiak City Council from the 1980s until his departure for health reasons in 2007. He represented Kodiak on the Southwest Alaska Municipal League.

At its last regular meeting March 26, the Kodiak City Council honored its former member with a special certificate of appreciation. His colleagues praised Woodruff's devotion to the community and long history of generous seafood donations to charitable causes.

Woodruff had a large role in bringing the Kodiak Launch Complex to its site at Narrow Cape and he served on the Alaska Aerospace Development Corporation board of directors.

"He was a big man and leaves a big void. He had a big heart. He was stubborn at times, but he had a big soft spot. His passion for fishing was strong, and he got a lot of pleasure from that. He was a unique individual and loved the community," Alaska Pacific Seafoods plant manager Matt Moir said. Link

18. Blue king crabs hatched from Little Diomede Island travel to Juneau for AKCRRAB research.
About 800 nine-month-old juvenile blue king crabs were sent from the Alutiiq Pride Shellfish Hatchery in Seward to the University of Alaska Southeast (UAS) in Juneau for research led by Dr. Sherry Tamone of UAS and Dr. Ginny Eckert of the University of Alaska Fairbanks School of Fisheries and Ocean Sciences, Juneau Center. The tiny crabs, from 2 to 7 mm, will be studied by scientists and graduate students in Juneau to better understand growth and molting dynamics and to develop methods to tag them. The juveniles were hatched from crabs collected off Little Diomede Island and cultured at the hatchery. Heidi Herter, Alaska Sea Grant Marine Advisory agent, and Little Diomede resident Opik Ahkinga, spent two weeks in April 2008 fishing for the crabs through the ice. The blue king crab collection effort was also supported by Norton Sound Economic Development Corporation and Central Bering Sea Fishermen's Association partners. More

19. Alaska SeaGrant Fishlines (April 2009)

20. State rejects endangered-species listing for seabird (4/10).
JUNEAU -- The Palin administration has rejected a request to list an Alaska seabird as a state endangered species. Fish and Game Commissioner Denby Lloyd said by letter Thursday it would be premature to list Kittlitz's murrelets because there is insufficient information to determine that their numbers have decreased so much that their existence is threatened, the requirement for listing under Alaska law.

Center for Biological Diversity biologist Shay Wolfe said the decision ignores surveys that have documented heavy declines of 80 to 90 percent of Kittlitz's murrelets in core areas of their range. The decision defies science, reason and the law, she said today by phone from San Francisco.

"For the Palin administration to claim that there is 'insufficient information' to conclude that the Kittlitz's murrelet is declining is equivalent to saying there is insufficient information to conclude the earth is round," Wolf said. More

21. ADFG Publications

Bristol Bay Sockeye Salmon Inriver Test Fishing, 2007. Fishery Data Series No. 09-19. West, F.W. 2009. Large PDF file * (3,398KB)

Kodiak Management Area Herring Sac Roe Fishery Harvest Strategy for the 2009 Season. Fishery Management Report No. 09-12. Spalinger, G. and Wadle, J. 2009. PDF file * (404KB)

Southeast Alaska Tanner Crab 2006 Stock Assessment and Recommendations for the 2007 Commercial Fishery. Fishery Data Series No. 09-18. Siddon, C., Bednarski, J., and Bishop, G. 2009. PDF file * (675KB)

22. Board of Fisheries Appointee Faces Opposition (APRN Audio) (4/9).
The confirmation of one of Governor Palin's appointees to the Board of Fisheries is getting a lot of opposition from legislators and the public. Hearing Audio -Look on Calendar for April 9, 10:15AM

23. Wrangell Seafoods sells to Trident (4/9).
WRANGELL - After Trident rescinded its offer to purchase Wrangell Seafoods Inc, (WSI) it was unclear as to what the future would hold for Wrangell, or the processing plant employees.

The deal was initially called off, according to a letter from Trident President Paul Padgett to Doug Roberts, due to a failure to disclose that the United Industrial, Service, Transportation, Professional and Government Worker's Alaska Fisheries Division indicated that WSI had violated a National Labor Relations Act measure, failed to respond in a timely manner, and that that complaint could be passed on to Trident after the sale.

Though the initial purchase price of $4.35 million was maintained in bankruptcy court, Alaska Growth Capital has agreed to pay $700,000 to Trident Seafoods in order to address issues arising from the inability of WSI to close the sale.

According to current court documents the WSI facilities will begin operation by Trident in June. Had the agreement not taken place, it would appear that WSI would not have been able to operate in 2009 without outside financing.

WSI had filed for bankruptcy last January, and many had hoped that the Chapter 11 reorganization would be completed by March 20 in order that the summer season could take place with little to no interruption. Link

MISC

24. USA Today. Many commercial fishermen are hanging up their nets (4/9).
GLOUCESTER, Mass. - At America's oldest seaport, few new boats have entered the commercial fishing business in decades, and few young people are entering the profession.

Veteran fishermen - including many following the trade of fathers and grandfathers - are unhappy and angry. They say they're not catching enough fish, they're not getting paid enough for what they catch, and they blame government restrictions for destroying their livelihood.

"The fishermen don't want to see their kids on the boats," says Angela Sanfilippo, president of the Gloucester Fishermen's Wives Association. "There is no future for them in the business."

PHOTOS: Tough times for commercial fishermen

The sentiment is similar in other U.S. ports. The nation's commercial fishermen have been hit by limits on their catches, lower prices for their haul and higher prices for fuel. Combined with a recession and the danger of working in the country's least-safe industry, the situation is prompting more fishermen, most of whom are small, independent operators, to hang up their nets. More