Monday, July 23, 2012

HOWLS OVER CHINESE XTRATUF

Those accustomed to XTRATUF boots, and they are numerous around here, might have noticed a change in quality lately. If you bought your boots after Christmas, chances are that your previously U.S.-made boots are now a product of China.

– Cordova Times

More:thecordovatimes.com

Kotzebue chum strong

Fishermen in the Kotzebue Sound region may well feel like Christmas came in July this summer because the commercial salmon fishery in the area has been producing strong returns.

– Alaska Dispatch

More:alaskadispatch.com

Pacific Seafood sues lawyer

Pacific earlier this year sued Mayer Brown, its Washington D.C. law firm, claiming it "grossly mismanaged" the case and charged two to three times more than what was justified.

– The Oregonian

More:oregonlive.com

Alaska kings disappearing

Alaskans again this summer are wondering: Where are the king salmon?

– Seattle Times

More:seattletimes.nwsource.com

Alaska leaders discuss kings

Here are a few quotes from Friday's press conference with Gov. Sean Parnell and Fish and Game Commissioner Cora Campbell.

– Pacific Fishing columnist Wesley Loy, reporting on his blog: Deckboss

More:deckboss.blogspot.com

Saga of Cook Inlet management

“As it becomes more political and more polarized and less looking out for what’s the benefit for Alaskans in total, you get user groups going back and forth for an advantage.”

– Kenai Peninsula Clarion

More:peninsulaclarion.com

Rally over Cook Inlet closures

Nearly 200 commercial set net fishermen from the east side of Cook Inlet gathered Friday with their families to rally support for a change in the policies that have allowed just three days of fishing so far this year.

– AlaskaPublic.org

More:alaskapublic.org

Bristol Bay report

Here is an update for fishing on Bristol Bay by  KDLG, Dillingham:kdlg.org

Skipper tells of sinking

The Scandia, a wooden boat built in 1949, had been overhauled during the winter, and the boat seemed like it was bound for success this summer.

– Anchorage Daily News

More:adn.com

 

Tuesday, July 24, 2012

MORE ON B.C. OIL PORT

It's true that the Northern Gateway scheme is in the national interest – of China.

– Victoria Times Colonist

More:timescolonist.com

Bristol Bay on TV tonight

Frontline probes the fault lines of a growing battle in the Bristol Bay region of Alaska, home to the world's last great wild sockeye salmon fishery – and enormous mineral deposits.

– PBS

More:pbs.org

Criminalizing fishermen

The regional tribal government in Southwest Alaska says the state has turned a group of fishermen, who were only trying to feed their families, into criminals.

– Anchorage Daily News

More:www.adn.com

Alaska oysters hatch

The OceansAlaska Marine Science Center has barely opened its doors and tiny oysters are already growing out at the new floating facility at George Inlet in Ketchikan.

– Pacific Fishing columnist Laine Welch, writing for SitNews, Ketchikan

More:sitnews.us

End to Cal water war?

On Wednesday, Gov. Jerry Brown and Interior Secretary Ken Salazar are expected to announce a multi-billion dollar plan designed to fix California's longstanding water war in the Sacramento-San Joaquin Delta.

– KQED, San Francisco

More:blogs.kqed.org

Alaska salmon to keep MSC certification

Alaska's commercial salmon harvest will likely retain its Marine Stewardship Council seal of approval past this year, if it can pass another round of showing it is well-managed and sustainable.

– KMXT, Kodiak

More:kmxt.org

Sockeye spawning weaker

A new study published in a Canadian fisheries journal says the number of adult sockeye salmon produced per spawner has decreased over the last decade or more, from Washington state, through British Columbia and Southeast Alaska.

– Cordova Times

More:thecordovatimes.com

Editorial: Trawl ratz is looking good

All in all, catch shares are looking very good so far.

– The Daily Astorian

More:dailyastorian.com

Banker says ratz is good for you

The capital investment required to support this fleet is tremendous, and it has been supported through the privatization of fishing rights.

– Cordova Times

More:thecordovatimes.com

Cleaning up Newport oil

The U.S. Coast Guard says the 48-foot vessel Two Mikes ran aground Sunday night on the north jetty at the entrance to Yaquina Bay.

– Coos Bay World

More:theworldlink.com

 

Wednesday, July 25, 2012

HUMPIES HITTING KODIAK

The surge of pink salmon to rivers around Kodiak Island has picked up. A week ago the harvest was just 2,200 humpies and yesterday it was just under 300,000.

– KMXT, Kodiak

More:kmxt.org

Sticking around for Nushagak pinks

Hundreds of commercial fishermen are hoping to improve their season by catching pink salmon in the Nushagak District.

– KDLG, Dillingham

More:kdlg.org

Togiak sockeye strong

The ongoing sockeye fishery in the Togiak District is on track to possibly exceed the preseason forecast.

– KDLG, Dillingham

More:kdlg.org

Pebble: Swimming upstream

The lucrative mine is swimming upstream against a powerful environmental lobby that believes it would endanger the sockeye salmon habitat, wipe out entire streams, pollute other waterways, and carve a maze of roads stretching hundreds of square miles.

– Fox News

More:foxnews.com

Famous fisherman and teevee

The former governor of Alaska was easily the biggest draw Tuesday evening at an NBC cocktail party to promote several of its new shows, including "Stars Earn Stripes," the "reality" competition in which her husband, Todd, will appear starting Aug. 13.

– philly.com

More:philly.com 

Greenpeace 1, Shell 0

Those words are definitely not Shell's, and neither is the billboard. It belongs to Greenpeace.

– KUCB, Unalaska

More:kucb.org

Paul McCartney in oil fight

Paul McCartney has announced on Huffington Post that he is joining Greenpeace's campaign to create a legally protected sanctuary in the Arctic where oil rigs and commercial fishing vessels cannot venture.

– Alaska Dispatch

More:alaskadispatch.com

Tropical creatures in Arctic

For the first time, scientists have identified tropical and subtropical species of marine protozoa living in the Arctic Ocean.

– Science Blog

More:scienceblog.com

Japan eel shortage?

The U.S. government is considering restricting trade of American eel and other eel species by listing them as endangered under an international treaty, a move that could cause eel prices in Japan to rise.

– Japan Times

More:japantimes.co.jp

 

Thursday, July 26, 2012

KENAI RIVER SOCKEYE SHOWING UP

The Alaska Department of Fish and Game announced that the final run of sockeye on the Kenai River is expected to exceed 4.6 million fish, triggering changes in the way the drift fleet is fished for the last part of the season.

– Kenai Peninsula Clarion

More:peninsulaclarion.com

Cook Inlet fishermen demonstrate

The parking lot was filled, and there was a long line of cars parked on the road.  The meeting room inside was overflowing.  People stood on the steps and outside the building.
 
– KTUU, Anchorage

More:articles.ktuu.com

Emergency Cook Inlet meeting

The Alaska Board of Fisheries will hold an emergency teleconference to consider a petition regarding Upper Cook Inlet salmon setnetters.

– Pacific Fishing columnist Wesley Loy, reporting on his blog: Deckboss

More:deckboss.blogspot.com

Latest plan for Sacramento delta

Gov. Jerry Brown's administration said that it is pushing ahead with a $23 billion proposal intended to improve water deliveries to the San Joaquin Valley and Southern California and stop the ecological free fall of the Sacramento-San Joaquin Delta.

– L.A. Times

More:latimes.com

Bill would fight fish fraud

The fish industry would have to publicly track fish from the boat to the plate under a sweeping new seafood fraud bill introduced by U.S. Reps. Edward Markey and Barney Frank that imposes hefty fines for violators.

– Boston Globe

More:bostonglobe.com 

Fish fraud is lucrative

The ol' fish switcheroo is nothing new, and the profits it generates keep the cycle going.

– Miami New Times

More:blogs.miaminewtimes.com

Canadian Natives worry about Yukon

"We're thinking if we don't do something, then we won't see [salmon] again next year."

– CBC

More:cbc.ca

'Safe' B.C. oil port

On the night of Sept. 25, 2009, the bulk carrier M/V Petersfield pulled out of Kitimat bound for Crofton – and ran smack into the side of Douglas Channel, smashing its front end.

– Victoria Times Colonist

More:timescolonist.com

Plastic pollution of Northwest

Seabirds eat everything from twine, candy wrappers and Styrofoam, and their stomach contents show there's been a dramatic increase in plastic pollution off the Pacific Northwest coast in the last four decades.

– Victoria Times Colonist

More:timescolonist.com

 

Friday, July 27, 2012

DEADLIEST CATCH LESS DEADLY

The nation's most dangerous job, fishing for Alaskan king crab, has not only gotten safer but it's gotten more profitable, too.

– CNN

More:money.cnn.com

Setnetters missing sockeye

Fortune has frowned on Cook Inlet set netters operating near the Kenai River, where dismal king salmon returns have triggered state conservation efforts this season.

– Alaska Dispatch

More:alaskadispatch.com

Climate change and pollock

Here's an intriguing article from NOAA examining the effects of a warming climate on Alaska's huge Bering Sea pollock fishery.

– Pacific Fishing columnist Wesley Loy, reporting on his blog: Deckboss

More:deckboss.blogspot.com

Port Orford dredging plan

The Port of Port Orford is unique in that it has no harbor so it is directly exposed to the Pacific Ocean.

– Coos Bay World

More:theworldlink.com

Oregon wave power future

The pending ruling pits marine power companies that have already invested millions in wave energy against Oregon's $130 million commercial fishing industry.

– Sustainable Business Oregon, Portland

More:sustainablebusinessoregon.com

A good Alaska king run

As king salmon runs across the state continue to lag there is at least one success story.

– KDLG, Dillingham

More:kdlg.org

Alaska Fisheries Report

Coming up this week, free salmon nets proved controversial on the Kuskokwim, they're incubating salmon eggs in Norton Sound, while two Southeast communities would like to see more fish hatcheries in their region. All that and setnetters on the Kenai want their fair share of Cook Inlet salmon.

– KMXT, Kodiak

More:kmxt.org

Fish farm standards set

After eight years of spirited debate and delicate diplomacy, a consortium of environmental organizations, commercial fishing executives, scientists and government officials has developed the first comprehensive global standards for salmon farming.

– New York Times

More:dinersjournal.blogs.nytimes.com

Declining Columbia sturgeon stocks

Eliminating sturgeon retention in both the sport and commercial fisheries got widespread support at a public meeting in Portland last week, one of six sessions to gather opinion on future management of the declining population.

– Longview Daily News

More:tdn.com


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