Monday, July 14, 2014
NEW SPECIES IN CRAB FISHERY
The crab is a Hanasaki king crab, otherwise known as a "spiny" king crab, and fishermen in the Bering Strait Region are harvesting it as a commercial product for the first time this year.
– Knom
More:knom.org
Yukon king crash a mystery
What makes the closure so frustrating is that researchers don't know why the region's chinook have vanished, or how to bring them back.
– Alaska Dispatch
More:adn.com
West Coast salmon fishery reopened
The commercial salmon fishery from the U.S./Canada border to Cape Falcon is reopened from now through Tuesday, with open period landing and possession limits of 35 chinook salmon, and 60 adipose fin-clipped coho salmon south of the Queets River, or 35 chinook salmon and 40 adipose fin-clipped coho salmon from north of the Queets River.
– Chinook Observer
More:chinookobserver.com
Togiak River escapement lags
It looks like the Ugashik River will eventually get to the lower end of the goal but the fate of the Togiak River is still in doubt.
– KDLG
More:kdlg.org
27 million and counting
The Bristol Bay sockeye catch now stands at almost 27 million fish, or about 10 million more than state biologists expected for the season.
– Pacific Fishing columnist Wesley Loy, writing in his blog: Deckboss
More:deckboss.blogspot.com
Herring abundance's former glory
Southeast Alaska's Pacific herring populations seem to be on the rebound, but even in fisheries regarded as healthy, some contend herring are significantly depleted from historical levels indicated by archaeological records and cultural memory.
– Juneau Empire
More:juneauempire.com
Salmon's value to Alaskans
Nearly every Alaskan has a personal stake in the well-being of the resource, which puts the state's commercial industry in a unique place — allocation and management decisions in Alaska aren't just of interest to the industry, but to the people of our state as a whole.
– The Delta Discovery
More:deltadiscovery.com
Wave gliders track PWS acidification
Ocean chemists are calling it "revolutionary technology" as unmanned gliders track how melting glaciers may be intensifying corrosive waters in Prince William Sound.
– Sitnews
More:sitnews.us
Canada focuses on seafood successes
Studying the approaches used in Norway and Iceland to generate maximum returns from cod and other groundfish resources was the primary focus for Keith Hutchings, Minister of Fisheries and Aquaculture, during a recent trip to both countries.
– The Fish Site
More:thefishsite.com
Bleak future for Mediterranean fish
The future of Mediterranean fish populations looks bleaker every year, according to a newly published report.
– i24news
More:i24news.tv
Tuesday, July 15, 2014
SOCKEYE CAM'S BACK
The world famous underwater camera is again providing the perspective of salmon and other fish in Steep Creek, near the Mendenhall Glacier. Sockeye, in their full spawning colors, arrived a few days ago.
– Sitnews
More:sitnews.us
Fish cam:youtube.com
Whale dies in boat collision
Federal law enforcement officials are investigating after a 48-foot female whale well-known in the waters of southeast Alaska was killed in a collision with a boat.
– Juneau Empire
More:juneauempire.com
Kenai patrol boat launched
With boat traffic around the mouth of the Kenai River nearing its summer peak, the City of Kenai has obtained a new rescue patrol boat that will prove to be a valuable addition to its arsenal.
– Peninsula Clarion
More:peninsulaclarion.com
Bristol Bay Fisheries Report
The Bristol Bay Fisheries Report for Sunday July 13 includes an update from the Togiak District and the latest total run projection from the organization that runs the Port Moller Test Fishery. They are predicting the run will top 40-million sockeye.
– KDLG
More:kdlg.org
On board USCG vessel Sycamore
Sycamore's responsibilities include ATON (aids to navigation), maintaining the federal floating and fixed navigation aids in the Prince William Sound and the Gulf of Alaska, Maritime Law Enforcement and Maritime Environmental Protection.
– Cordova Times
More:thecordovatimes.com
Every boat has a story
Behind nearly every boat currently in dry dock at the Port of Ilwaco's boatyard, there is someone anxious to get back on the water.
– Daily Astorian
More:dailyastorian.com
Report: Delta smelt near extinction
The minnow-like fish, which lives only in the waters of the Sacramento-San Joaquin Delta, is on the precipice of extinction, says a report Monday from the California Sportfishing Protection Alliance.
– Central Valley Business Times
More:centralvalleybusinesstimes.com
Adrift buoy redeployed
The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration is expecting to redeploy by mid-August a buoy that many local commercial and recreational fishermen depend on for specific and up-to-date weather information.
– Times-Standard
More:times-standard.com
Strong opposition to NorCal drilling
The people of Del Norte and their representatives have spoken and the resounding consensus is a firm "no" to drilling in the watershed of the North Fork Smith River.
– Del Norte Triplicate
More:triplicate.com
Opinion: Susitna dam a salmon threat
We know that the downstream impacts on salmon from large dams are just as bad, if not worse, than upstream, as we've seen from drastic salmon losses in the Lower 48.
– Fairbanks News-Miner
More:newsminer.com
Wednesday, July 16, 2014
SUBPAR BRISTOL BAY PRICES
We now hear that one major Bristol Bay salmon processor, Alaska General Seafoods, is paying a base price of $1.20 per pound plus 15 cents for chilled fish. Other major processors are likely to match
– Pacific Fishing columnist Wesley Loy, writing in his blog: Deckboss
More:deckboss.blogspot.com
B.C. river's water crisis
The Cowichan River is getting so low there's talk of pumping water over the weir at Cowichan Lake just to keep enough water downstream for spawning salmon, industry and a myriad of water users.
– Times-Colonist
More:timescolonist.com
Studying the next generation
Kodiak is known worldwide as a fishing hub and in recent years has made a name for itself in the world of academic research. This summer the two are combining as one local grad student takes a closer look at the next generation of fishermen
– KMXT
More:kmxt.org
Cook Inlet payment order vacated
The Cook Inlet Fisherman's Fund will not have to repay the state Department of Law for costs associated with the lawsuit about 2013 management of Cook Inlet salmon fisheries at this time.
– Peninsula Clarion
More:peninsulaclarion.com
Fraser flood threat rising
A massive flood of the Fraser River has the potential to be the most expensive natural disaster in Canada, affecting more than 300,000 people, $50 billion worth of infrastructure and the B.C. economy.
– Vancouver Sun
More:vancouversun.com
Slow going on Cook Inlet
In the Southern District, the Port Graham Subdistrict opened July 14 to commercial set gillnetting for the first time this season. Returns haven't been especially high, so that fishery has been closed so far.
– Alaska Public Media
More:alaskapublic.org
Tuna fleet loses Pacific access
American treaty negotiations with the Pacific Island Nations concluded Saturday in Auckland, New Zealand, with a "No Deal" conclusion, leaving the United States Tuna Fleet without fishing access to the Pacific Ocean in 2015.
– SFGate
More:sfgate.com
Gearing up for WA tuna season
As prices for salmon performed their annual plummet at the beginning of July, many Washington-based commercial fishermen readied their boats for what they hope will be a good tuna season.
– Chinook Observer
More:chinookobserver.com
Media introduced to Copper River
To know Alaska, you have to go to Alaska and with that in mind, the Copper River/Prince William Sound Marketing Association is pleased to announce that they will be hosting their annual media tour. Held from July 15-20, the tour will take place at the height of the Copper River salmon fishery season.
– SFGate
More:sfgate.com
Opinion: Restoring salmon crucial for WA
Our family and friends can come home every day at the end of a hard, honest day's work harvesting the surplus from Puget Sound and the Strait of Georgia rather than missing their children grow up while fishing in the rough seas of Alaska.
– The Bellingham Herald
More:bellinghamherald.com
Thursday, July 17, 2014
'PERFECT STORM' OF COMPETITION
A scenario that area management biologists were hoping to avoid is playing out between the Kenai king and Kasilof sockeye salmon fisheries this week.
– Peninsula Clarion
More: peninsulaclarion.com
Disappointing Bristol Bay price
The base Bristol Bay sockeye price has been set and it's a bit of a disappointment to many commercial fishermen. KDLG's Mike Mason has the details.
– KDLG
More: kdlg.org
Counting Copper River fish
These counts are incredibly important to the local commercial fishing fleet because they determine when the commercial season begins for each of the different salmon runs.
– Fishery Nation
More: fisherynation.com
Shrimp prices on the rise
Rob Reierson provides an update on the East and West coast shrimp market.
– The Fish Site
More: thefishsite.com
Change of plans for Astoria processor
The Commission opted instead to have staff negotiate moving Da Yang's site to the west side of Pier 2, south of its existing seafood processing warehouse and off the newly improved dock its members want to keep open for any oceangoing cargo, including Da Yang's.
– Daily Astorian
More: dailyastorian.com
CA highway's impacts revisited
In a lawsuit settlement reached last week, Caltrans has agreed to reassess the impacts a highway widening and straightening project on highways 199 and 197 could have on federally protected coho salmon in the Smith River.
– Del Norte Triplicate
More: triplicate.com
Price William Sound's seafood pride
The Prince William Sound sockeye and keta harvest is in full swing right now and the region's independent all-American fishermen are working diligently to harvest and handle it according to the highest standards.
– SFGate
More: sfgate.com
San Diego to open fish market
With a picturesque waterfront already in place, San Diego will soon have its very own open-air fish market reminiscent of other similar markets around the U.S., including Seattle's Pike Place Market.
– 7 San Diego
More: nbcsandiego.com
Lingcod catch increase debated
A recent decision to increase the legal harvest limit of lingcod, a popular West Coast fish species, has sparked debate and some disagreement among fishermen and scientists.
– East Bay Express
More: eastbayexpress.com
Culvert removal opens habitat
Fish rely not only on the 8.6 miles of Soldotna Creek itself, but also the eight major lakes that feed into the creek, which is why an old culvert less than a half mile from the stream's confluence with the Kenai was removed recently.
– Homer Tribune
More: homertribune.com
Friday, July 18, 2014
EPA SEEKS PEBBLE CLAMPDOWN
Saying that even a smaller mine than the proposed Pebble Mine “would have significant, unacceptable impacts to downstream salmon-rearing areas” the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency Friday announced proposed restrictions that would sharply curtail or halt mining at the site.
– Alaska Dispatch
More:www.adn.com
Harvest cut impacts setnet fishery
The announcement of a catch-and-release fishery for Kenai River king salmon — a severe reduction in harvest opportunity for sport anglers — triggered an equally severe restriction on hours in the East Side Setnet Fishery, one of the two commercial fishing groups in the Cook Inlet tasked with harvesting sockeye, or red salmon.
– Peninsula Clarion
More:peninsulaclarion.com
B.C. grounding highlights spill risks
A 750-foot bulk carrier ran aground outside Prince Rupert in British Columbia Monday. It didn’t cause a fuel spill, but critics of a proposed pipeline in the region say it underscores the risks of increasing tanker traffic.
– KUCB
More:kucb.org
Aleutian herring season’s kick-off
Three purse seiners have been working near North Head, on the northern side of Akutan Island. Just like last year, Westward, Trident, and Peter Pan Seafoods each sent a vessel.
– Pacific Fishing columnist Lauren Rosenthal, reporting for KUCB.
More:kucb.org
Alaska Fisheries Report
Coming up this week, it looks like king salmon on the Yukon have returned in slightly better numbers than expected, a form of whale repellant is being tested by fishermen in Southeast, and Ketchikan doubles-down on shellfish production.
– KMXT
More:www.kmxt.org
Can SE herring be restored?
Though the Alaska Department of Fish and Game says its data don’t support either conclusion, a new program at the Sealaska Heritage Institute intends to restore herring to areas where they proliferated.
– Juneau Empire
More:juneauempire.com
Study: Atlantic salmon can handle climate change
Populations of Atlantic salmon have a surprisingly good capacity to adjust to warmer temperatures that are being seen with climate change, a group of scientists at the University of Oslo and University of British Columbia have discovered.
– Fish Information Services
More:www.fis.com
Steady use of Ketchikan’s drive-down float
The City of Ketchikan’s new drive-down float at Bar Harbor has seen steady use since opening on June 17.
– Alaska Journal of Commerce
More:www.alaskajournal.com
Fish benefit from groupthink
Researchers found that when 2 fish swim together, they make better decisions than when 2 fish are swimming alone.
– NPR
More:www.npr.org
Alaska’s volatile revenues
A new study says that Alaska has the most volatile state revenues in the nation, with income fluctuating more than twice as much as that of its nearest rivals — which are often also resource states.
– Alaska Dispatch News
More:www.adn.com
