Monday, July 15, 2013

CHUM BYCATCH LIMITS POLLOCK FLEET

They're avoiding areas that have produced the largest amount of chum salmon so far.

– Pacific Fishing columnist Lauren Rosenthal on KUCB, Unalaska

More: kucb.org

Bristol Bay price: $1.50

As large portions of the fleet pull their boats and book flights out of the Bay, the processors have started posting prices.

– Mike Mason on KDLG, Dillingam

More: kdlg.org

NW trawl buyback refinancing

Legislation aimed at alleviating the financial hardship of a federal loan that has been weighing on Pacific Coast groundfish fisherman for nearly a decade has moved one step closer to passing.

– Eureka Times Standard

More: times-standard.com

Omega 3 not panacea

What's good for the heart may not be so healthy for other organs says the latest study that links omega-3 fatty acids to an elevated risk of prostate cancer.

– Time

More: healthland.time.com

Bristol Bay Fisheries Report

The Bristol Bay Fisheries Report for Sunday includes the latest information on the prices being offered by the major processors and an update on the response to the sunken tender Lone Star. We also tour the Icicle Wood River plant and hear about a new vessel that will be entering the Bering Sea long-line fleet.

– Mike Mason on KDLG, Dillingham

More: kdlg.org

Wal-Mart shuns Alaskan salmon

The nation's largest retailer has said it will not sell Alaska seafood if it is not labelled as "sustainably managed" by the London-based Marine Stewardship Council.

– Pacific Fishing columnist Laine Welch writing Fish Factor

More: thefishsite.com

Don't trust Pebble plutocrats

As has been the case for years with Pebble and its promoters, too often they talk out of both sides of their mouth, especially when it comes to the commercial fishing industry.

– Robin Samuelsen, writing in the Anchorage Daily News

More: adn.com

Another voice against Pebble

We shouldn't threaten that investment by building a mine that could wipe out an entire salmon fishery.

– Rep. Rick Larsen in the Bellingham Herald

More: bellinghamherald

Bristol Bay passes 15 million

Commercial fishermen in Bristol Bay hauled in another 268,000 sockeye on Friday to push the season total to just over 15 million fish.

– Mike Mason on KDLG, Dillingham

More: kdlg.org

Medevac near Juneau

A Coast Guard Station Juneau 45-foot Response Boat-Medium crew medevaced an ailing mariner from a fishing vessel south of Juneau Sunday.

– Coast Guard

More: piersystem.com

Klamath: Running on empty

The Klamath Basin straddles Oregon and California and comprises an area larger than nine American states.
 
– The Oregonian

More: oregonlive.com

 

Tuesday, July 16, 2013

WHO GETS THE CHINOOK?

The commercial fishermen donate heavily and lobby extensively to maintain control over our fish, while we continue to sit quietly on the shore, watching the last few kings swim up the river.

– Fairbanks News Miner

More: newsminer.com

Fraser Panel plans

The Fraser River Panel of the Pacific Salmon Commission has developed management plans for 2013 Fraser River sockeye and pink salmon fisheries in Panel Area waters.

– Pacific Salmon Commission

More: psc.org

Adak oil spill a crime

The state of Alaska has filed criminal charges against Aleut Enterprise, a subsidiary of the Aleut Corp., over a fuel spill in Adak.

– Stephanie Joyce, KUCB, Unalaska

More: alaskapublic.org

Catcher-freezer in Kodiak

The U.S. Intrepid is one of two catcher/processor vessels owned by Fishermen's Finest, an independent American fishing company with offices in Seattle. 

– Brianna Gibbs, KMXT, Kodiak

More: kmxt.org

Studying Gulf of Alaska

More than 40 scientists from 11 institutions are searching for answers as part of a five-year study of the gulf's vast ecosystem.

– Ed Schoenfeld, KTOO, Juneau

More: ktoo.org

Coast Guard to Kotzebue

The Coast Guard opened its seasonal forward operating location in Kotzebue in preparation for the anticipated increase of maritime activities in Western Alaska and the Bering Strait.

– Coast Guard

More: piersystem.com

Golden king quota

The state announced Aleutian Islands golden king crab quotas.

– Pacific Fishing columnist Wesley Loy, writing in his blog, Deckboss

More: deckboss.blogspot.com

Raising Dillingham wreck

A unified effort has begun to remove a sunken fishing vessel loaded with 35,000 pounds of salmon from the Igushik River near Dillingham.

– Cordova Times

More: thecordovatimes.com

Hatchery fish kill

Many young salmon and steelhead — about half of the fish that were to be released next spring — were killed when a pump failed at the Lower Elwha Klallam fish hatchery.

– Seattle Times

More: seattletimes.com

Fraser Native fishery ends

The early Stuart run is quite threatened.

– The Progress, Chilliwack, B.C.

More: theprogress.com

 

Wednesday, July 17, 2013

BRISTOL BAY STRAGGLERS

Another 94,000 sockeye were harvested Monday in Bristol Bay as large portions of the setnet and driftnet fleets have wrapped up their effort for the season.

– Mike Mason reporting on KDLG, Dillingham

More: kdlg.org

CG rescues stroke victim

The Jayhawk crew safely hoisted the 61-year-old man, reportedly suffering from stroke-like symptoms, from the 273-foot fishing vessel Island Enterprise.

– Anchorage Daily News

More: adn.com

MSC changes buying patterns

Whether buying a tin of tuna or a Michelin-starred meal, shoppers choosing MSC-labeled seafood are helping to create a wave of sustainable fishing practices around the world.

– MSC

More: msc.org

Farmers like minister pick

Gail Shea has returned as Canada's Minister of Fisheries and Oceans after Keith Ashfield stepped down from the position due to illness, and it's an appointment that has been welcomed by the B.C. Salmon Farmers Association.

– FishNewsEU

More: fishnewseu.com

Judge OKs Klamath shutoffs

A Klamath County judge denied requests Tuesday to stop the enforcement of water rights in the area.

– Oregon Public Broadcasting

More: opb.org

Fraser update

The Fraser River Panel met Tuesday to receive an update on the migration of Fraser sockeye and review the status of migration conditions in the Fraser River watershed.

– Fraser Panel

More: psc.org

Chefs warned of Pebble Mine

The Bristol Bay Regional Seafood Development Association (BBRSDA) has partnered with leading national retailers and chefs to raise awareness about Bristol Bay sockeye, about the commercial fishing families who harvest the world largest salmon run, and about the threat to their businesses posed by the proposed Pebble Mine.

– BBRSDA

More: Bristol Bay Report

Another proposed Alaska mine

Most rare elements come from China, but a new mine in Alaska could shift the balance.

– Public Radio International

More: pri.org

Don't scrap endangered act

Then the Endangered Species Act is a necessary tool – all too often, the only tool – for repairing 150 years of damage done to salmon-producing watersheds.

– The Oregonian

More: oregonlive.com

Alaska seafood spokesman

The Alaska Seafood Marketing Institute proudly announces its partnership with Nordic skiing World Champion Kikkan Randall. ASMI and Randall will work together to promote the health and fitness benefits of Alaska seafood.

– ASMI

More: pressroom.alaskaseafood.org

 

Thursday, July 18, 2013

B.C. BLAMES ALASKAN FISHERMEN

A near record-low sockeye salmon run for Skeena River fisheries has cut off the catch in B.C., but conservation groups say Alaskan fishermen are not pulling in their nets, making the problem worse.

– CBC

More: cbc.ca

What happened to Skeena fish?

Skeena River sockeye salmon are returning in desperately low numbers this summer, causing concern among conservationists for the future of one of BC's largest and most diverse salmon runs.

– Marketwire

More: marketwire.com

Boat fire kills

Fire investigators still don't know exactly what started a fire on a fishing vessel that killed a Kipnuk fisherman and badly burned his two brothers.
 
– Ben Matheson, KDLG, Dillingham

More: kdlg.org

Aleutian bait herring open

Three seiners are participating this year, one each for Trident, Westward, and Peter Pan.

– Audrey Carlsen, KUCB, Unalaska

More: kucb.org

Drones over the Pacific

"They're wonderful tools. They have the potential to change the way scientists do marine monitoring."

– The Oregonian

More: oregonlive.com

'Are we going to die today?'

Tragedy and Courage on the Bering Sea, the gripping story of the fire and explosion that destroyed the 190-foot fishing vessel Galaxy on Oct. 20, 2002, and the heroic rescue efforts that saved 23 of 26 men and women on board that day will be screened on Alaska public television on Wednesday, July 24, at 8 p.m. and 11 p.m., Thursday, July 25, at 11 a.m. and 5 p.m., and Sunday, July 28, at 7 p.m.

More: 360north.org

Farmed salmon to China

Scottish farmed salmon has proved very appealing to the Chinese market, with sales of £9m in the first year alone.

– FishNewsEU

More: fishnewseu.com

Verdict for marbled murrelets

Judge Heller of the King County Superior Court ruled that the Washington State Department of Natural Resources violated the State Environmental Policy Act by prematurely attempting to allow logging on lands that have been protected for consideration in a long term conservation plan.

– Seattle Audubon Society

More: seattleaudubon.org

Two weeks to defuel tender

The effort to remove the fuel from the sunken fishing tender Lone Star was scheduled to begin Wednesday afternoon.

– Mike Mason, KDLG, Dillingham

More: kdlg.org

 

Friday, July 19, 2013

SALMON PRICE BALLOONS

Alaska seafood processors saw a substantial rise in average wholesale prices for pink, chum, and coho salmon roe prices in the first four months of 2013, a state Department of Revenue report confirms.

– Margaret Bauman, writing in the Cordova Times

More: thecordovatimes.com

Cause of processor fire

Investigators say that routine maintenance done on the roof of the Pacific Coast Seafood plant in Warrenton was responsible for a massive fire there in early June.

– Oregon Public Radio

More: opb.org

Bristol Bay fishermen pleased

A sharp rise in the price that fish processors pay for red salmon helped turn a so-so season on Alaska's productive Bristol Bay into a profitable one.

– Margaret Bauman, writing in Alaska Dispatch

More: alaskadispatch.com

Cook Inlet lawsuit

A coalition of commercial fishermen have sued the Alaska Department of Fish and Game over its management of the 2013 sockeye run and requested that the court compel the fish and game commissioner to allow up to 51 hours of extra fishing periods for Upper Cook Inlet setnetters.

– Rashah McChesney, writing in the Peninsula Clarion

More: peninsulaclarion.com

CG drag fishing boat home

Two U.S. Coast Guard motor lifeboats partnered with the cutter Fir to assist a drifting fishing vessel with a jammed rudder 10 miles West of Copalis Beach, Wash.

– The Daily Astorian

More: dailyastorian.com

Bristol Bay scratch fishing

Commercial fishermen in Bristol Bay hauled in another 53,000 sockeye on Wednesday to push the season total to above 15.5-million fish.

– Mike Mason, reporting for KDLG, Dillingham

More: kdlg.org

Salmon fishermen relief nearer

Relief funds for last summer’s king salmon fisheries disasters on the Kuskokwim and Yukon Rivers has taken one step closer to reaching fishermen in the region.

– Angela Denning-Barnes, reporting for KYUK, Bethel

More: alaskapublic.org

Alaska Fisheries Report

Coming up this week: Chum bycatch is high early in the Bering sea; In Bristol Bay, even though the run didn’t meet expectations, prices are up for sockeye; a whole bunch of scientists put their minds to work on the Gulf of Alaska, and a commentary – yes, we have those – from Brian Lynch of the Petersburg Vessel Owners Association.

– Jay Barrett of KMXT, with help from Lauren Rosenthal in Unalaska, Coast Alaska’s Ed Schoenfeld in Juneau and KDLG’s Mike Mason in Dillingham

More: kmxt.org

Bristol Bay marketer

Recently the organization made up of all the driftnet permit holders in Bristol Bay hired someone specifically focused on marketing the bay’s sockeye. (PS: It’s Beth Poole, who moves from Copper River-Prince William Sound. She’ll continue writing an occasional column for Pacific Fishing.)

– Mike Mason, reporting for KDLG, Dillingham

More: kdlg.org

Comment on halibut plan

The National Marine Fisheries Service is taking public comment until Aug. 12 on the proposed halibut catch sharing plan.

– Pacific Fishing columnist Wesley Loy, writing in his blog, Deckboss

More: deckboss.blogspot.com


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