Monday, June 3, 2013
CAL FISHERMEN MAKING BIG BUCKS
Some commercial salmon skippers have been making $10,000 a day.
– San Francisco Chronicle
More: blog.sfgate.com
Gold vs. salmon
An Alaska mining proposal that hasn’t even gotten off the drawing board is inspiring a ferocious lobbying campaign on Capitol Hill.
– Politico, Washington, D.C.
More: politico.com
Editorial: No on Pebble
Protect a valuable resource from an avoidable and artificial hazard.
– Seattle Times
More: seattletimes.com
Frankenfish interbreed with trout
A new study, published in Proceedings of the Royal Society, found that genetically engineered AquaBounty AquaAdvantage salmon can successfully cross-breed with brown trout, a closely related species.
– eNews Park Forest
More: enewspf.com
Shipping lines move off coast
By moving vessels away from whale feeding and migration areas, the new routes will potentially reduce the risk of such strikes.
– MarineLink.com
More: marinelink.com
Check your Bay tide table
The two different versions of tide books freely available around Dillingham have different times and heights for the predicted tides of the Nushagak district.
– KDLG, Dillingham
More: kdlg.org
NMFS to check scales
The National Marine Fisheries Service is planning to tighten regulations on scales used to weigh catches aboard factory fishing vessels operating off Alaska.
– Pacific Fishing columnist Wesley Loy, reporting on his blog: Deckboss
More: deckboss.blogspot.com
Feds fine $2.7 million
Federal authorities are seeking fines of more than $2.7 million against Seattle-based American Seafoods, saying the company underreported its catch by doctoring the scales on its vessels.
– Daily Astorian
More: dailyastorian.com
Bristol Bay opens
The 2013 commercial salmon fishery in Bristol Bay officially opens up this morning at 9am in the eastside districts.
– KDLG, Dillingham
More: kdlg.org
Albacore groups to cooperate
American Albacore Fishing Association (AAFA) and Western Fishboat Owners Association (WFOA) representing the vast majority of the U.S. west coast albacore landings are pleased to announce, going into the 2013 albacore season, the two organizations are involved in ongoing productive discussions on issues relevant to both groups.
– Joint press release
Tuesday, June 4, 2013
INVEST IN COOK INLET KINGS
While $10 million is a lot of money, when you consider the scope of the issue, and the potential economic impacts of closing fisheries, not only is research funding a prudent investment, the proposed budget is arguably not enough.
– Kenai Peninsula Clarion
More: peninsulaclarion.com
Chinook bycatch rules
As fisheries managers throughout Alaska prepare for low king salmon returns, federal regulators are considering new limits on king bycatch in the Gulf of Alaska.
– Peninsula Clarion
More: peninsulaclarion.com
New mesh on Bristol Bay
One of the changes could result in fishermen in the Nushagak District being forced to change their gear at some point during the season.
– KDLG, Dillingham
More: kdlg.org
Stiff fine for charter operator
An Anchorage resident who took customers fishing without the required halibut charter permit will pay a $15,000 fine to settle an enforcement action.
– Pacific Fishing columnist Wesley Loy, reporting on his blog: Deckboss
More: deckboss.blogspot.com
Murkowski waits for Pebble plan
"The best thing Pebble could do is lay it on the table so we have something real to deal with."
– Pacific Fishing columnist Laine Welch, writing in SitNews, Ketchikan
More: sitnews.us
New Klamath plan OK'd
A new plan for balancing scarce water in the Klamath Basin between fish and farms won't harm salmon or other fish protected by the Endangered Species Act.
– The Oregonian
More: oregonlive.com
Agreement on beluga count
Native and environmental groups took issue with some of the math the agency used in calculating how many Cook Inlet Beluga whales would be affected by seismic testing for oil and gas.
– KDLL, Kenai
More: alaskapublic.org
Fishing slavery
Thailand's multibillion-dollar fishing industry is facing allegations of using slave labor, following the publication of an investigation into the exploitation of migrant workers on shrimping ships.
– Alaska Dispatch
More: alaskadispatch.com
Wednesday, June 5, 2013
WARRENTON PROCESSOR BURNS
It's a sad day for more than 130 employees of the Pacific Coast Seafood plant on Northeast Skipanon Drive, who watched their livelihoods go up in flames in a fire that destroyed the facility.
– Daily Astorian
More: dailyastorian.com
Trident thieves sentenced
A 31-year-old Kodiak man and a 35-year-old Texas woman were sentenced by Chief U.S. District Court Judge Ralph Beistline for their role in embezzling over a half-million dollars from the seafood company.
– KMXT, Kodiak
More: kmxt.org
Boat off at high tide
The Coast Guard says a 97-foot fishing boat that ran aground in Puget Sound on the west side of Whidbey Island was refloated on Tuesday afternoon's high tide with the help of a tug.
– The Oregonian
More: oregonlive.com
Work on Bristol Bay
I've done good for myself and for my family through fishing, much like our generations past.
– Juneau Empire
More: juneauempire.com
Blood on the Fraser
The federal government risks a bloody summer of discontent on the Fraser River
– Vancouver Sun
More: vancouversun.com
Oil oozing on Valdez ship
The Coast Guard continues to monitor the cargo ship BBC Arizona at the Valdez Container Terminal following discovery of oil leaking from multiple containers onboard the ship.
– Coast Guard
More: piersystem.com
Volcano reborn
After a week-long respite, Pavlof Volcano on the Alaska Peninsula has sent up another ash plume.
– Alaska Public Media
More: alaskapublic.org
Tracking fish with temperature
Sockeye salmon are at home in water from 3 to 6 degrees Celsius. Pacific Hake are happiest at 13 degrees Celsius.
– KDLG, Dillingham
More: kdlg.org
Thursday, June 6, 2013
PEBBLE MINERS IRRITATED
Northern Dynasty Minerals Ltd. has filed a 205-page submission with the Environmental Protection Agency in response to its call for public comments on the revised draft Bristol Bay Watershed Assessment (BBWA), calling the draft report and process to complete it "biased, manipulative and contrary to EPA's own guidelines."
– SitNews, Ketchikan
More: sitnews.us
Earth to Pebble: Huh?
What's astonishing about Pebble's report is that it purports to estimate the number of jobs and revenue generated from Pebble Mine when the mining companies have repeatedly said that they do not yet have a specific mining plan.
– Natural Resources Defense Council
More: switchboard.nrdc.org
Lisa won't see felon
A former fisheries aide to Murkowski, Arne Fuglvog, has started work as a lobbyist for commercial fishing interests after serving time in prison for falsifying his fishing records.
– Anchorage Daily News
More: adn.com
Warrenton processor update
"We're a fishing community. We have a fleet that primarily delivers to Pacific Seafood. It's not just the 130 or 200 employees, it's the fishermen, it's the businesses that are around the marina, and around the city that are going to be impacted by this."
– Oregon Public Broadcasting
More: opb.org
Unified command for Valdez mess
Under the Unified Command, various governmental agencies and non-governmental responders may blend together throughout the operation to create an integrated response team.
– Coast Guard
More: piersystem.com
Talking Chinook bycatch
The North Pacific Fishery Management Council is meeting this week in Juneau, and Chinook bycatch is heading the agenda.
– Pacific Fishing columnist Wesley Loy, reporting on his blog: Deckboss
More: deckboss.blogspot.com
B.C. oil pipeline
The CEO of Enbridge Inc. said he's willing to work with the B.C. government to allay doubts it has about the safety of the proposed $6-billion Northern Gateway pipeline.
– Victoria Times Colonist
Oregon downsizes hatcheries
Oregon Department of Fish & Wildlife has decided to downsize salmon hatchery programs in Oregon.
– Coos Bay World
More: theworldlink.com
Friday, June 7, 2013
NOT JUST HIPPIES HERE
In one corner is the granola-eating, Birkenstock-wearing, tree-hugging hippie, and in the other corner is Exxon Mobil.
– Natural Resources Defense Council
More: switchboard.nrdc.org
Good news from Astoria
The company is continuing to provide full pay and benefits to team members. Those team members will be given assignments to help with the cleanup and other preparations for continued seafood processing in the area. Pacific Seafood will lease a temporary facility in Astoria to continue processing. The temporary facility is expected to be up and running on June 15.
– Pacific Seafood
More: pacseafood.com
Russia looking for salmon recertification
Russia's first fishery to be MSC certified, the Iturup pink salmon and chum salmon fishery, has commenced the re-assessment process.
– FishNewsEU
More: fishnewseu.com
Kodiak sockeye strong
The sockeye salmon run is coming back pretty strong in several river systems around the Kodiak Archipelago, and as a result, Fish and Game is opening commercial fishing a couple days early, according to James Jackson, the area management biologist.
– KXMT, Kodiak
More: kmxt.org
Alaska Fisheries Report
Coming up this week, herring fishing continues up the west coast, we get an update about what's going on out in Adak, and Senator Murkowski breaks her silence on Arne Fuglvog's new career, and some good king crab news.
More: kmxt.org
Aleutian ash plume stops flights
Its ash cloud stretches about 25 miles to the west of the volcano. Pilots estimated the cloud to be between 14,000 and 18,000 feet, which is where Pen Air flies.
– KDLG, Dillingham
More: kdlg.org
Dry year for Klamath
The U.S. Bureau of Reclamation released its operations plan for the project, which straddles the Oregon-California border south of Klamath Falls.
– Daily Astorian
More: dailyastorian.com
Farms proclaimed disease free
The study was conducted after concerns were raised about ISA possibly appearing in Washington waters and potentially impacting Washington's salmon.
– FishNewsEU
More: fishnewseu.com
