Monday, October 31, 2011
ANOTHER SALMON ISA INFECTED
An adult coho salmon supplied by salmon advocates to a prominent laboratory showed signs of carrying the disease. That fish was reported to have been found in a tributary of the Fraser River, a critical salmon run for fishermen in Canada and the United States.
– New York Times
More:www.nytimes.com
Editorial: A shadow on salmon
Facing pollution, predators, dams, drought, climate change and relentless fishing, the last thing Pacific salmon need is yet another threat to their very existence.
– The Oregonian
More:www.oregonlive.com
What is B.C. doing about disease?
While fishermen are alarmed to learn about the discovery of a European virus in wild British Columbia salmon, the news comes as no great surprise.
– Vancouver Sun
More:www.vancouversun.com
Worries about Cherry Point herring
Concern for survival of a once-great herring stock has halted industrial schemes at Cherry Point before. Will it happen again, with the proposed coal-shipping terminal?
– Crosscut.com, Seattle
More:crosscut.com
Weak Alaska pink year in 2012
The projected harvest of 17 million pink salmon would be far below the recent 10-year average of 40 million.
– Pacific Fishing columnist Wesley Loy, writing in his blog: Deckboss
More:deckboss.blogspot.com
Better air service to Unalaska
On the heels of a month of flight delays and cancellations, Alaska Airlines temporarily suspended the program that guarantees locals a seat on flights in and out of Unalaska. Now it’s back.
– Pacific Fishing columnist Alexandra Gutierrez, reporting for KUCB, Unalaska
More:www.kucb.org
Pacific Seafood anti-trust argument
Attorneys for the nation’s largest seafood company did their best to convince a federal judge that the antitrust lawsuit filed against Clackamas fish buyer Frank Dulcich’s Pacific Seafood Group doesn’t merit class action status.
– Eugene Register Guard
More:www.registerguard.com
Killer whales have taste for Chinook
Huge Chinook salmon are the most prized catch on the Pacific coast for fishermen on both sides of the Canada-U.S. border, but they may soon have to share the bounty if a scientific panel links Chinook and the survival of endangered southern resident killer whales.
– CTV, Canada
More:www.ctv.ca
Perfect Storm 20 years old
Roberta Tyne Smith, now 60, recalls hearing the phone ring 20 years ago this weekend — at 5 p.m. on Halloween in 1991.
– Goucester Times
More:www.gloucestertimes.com
Council seeks millions for observers
The North Pacific Fishery Management Council is asking the Obama administration to provide $3.8 million to launch an expanded fisheries observer program.
– Pacific Fishing columnist Wesley Loy, writing in his blog: Deckboss
More:deckboss.blogspot.com
Tuesday, November 1, 2011
EDITORIAL: NO TO PACIFIC SEAFOOD'S FARM
Puget Sound does not need another giant fish farm to produce Atlantic salmon as the region nurtures the return of wild salmon and worries about a nascent salmon virus.
– Seattle Times
More:seattletimes.nwsource.com
SE red king crab open
It's a fairly big deal, as this will be the first opener in six years for this fishery. The quota is a modest 201,000 pounds.
– Pacific Fishing columnist Wesley Loy, writing in his blog: Deckboss
More:deckboss.blogspot.com
Worry over new disease report
Wild-salmon advocates fear that tests showing a serious virus in one Fraser River coho and two wild sockeye salmon mean the European strain of infectious salmon anemia (ISA) could be spreading through B.C.'s wild-salmon runs.
– Vancouver Sun
More:www.vancouversun.com
Fish farmers counsel patience
B.C. Salmon Farmers Association spokeswoman Mary Ellen Walling said the positive laboratory tests at the Atlantic Veterinary College have yet to be confirmed by the Canadian Food Inspection Agency.
– Victoria Times Colonist
More:www.timescolonist.com
Pesticide near salmon streams banned
A federal judge upheld new rules designed to protect West Coast salmon and steelhead from three widely used farm pesticides.
– The Oregonian
More:www.oregonlive.com
High court won't hear irrigator's plea
The U.S. Supreme Court denied an appeal by Central California farmers who claimed the federal government lacks constitutional authority to protect the imperiled delta smelt by limiting north-to-south water shipments.
– San Francisco Chronicle
More:www.sfgate.com
Forecasting pink salmon
Pink salmon returns are notoriously difficult to forecast because their 2-year life history cycle only involves one ocean winter and precludes the use of younger returning age classes to predict cohort abundance.
– Alaska Fisheries Science Center
More:www.afsc.noaa.gov
Grocer promises sustainable fish
As part of a series of moves aimed at seafood sustainability, Kroger Co. announced it is committed to sourcing 100 percent of the top 20 wild-caught species from fisheries that are Marine Stewardship Council-certified, in MSC full assessment, or engaged in a World Wildlife Fund fishery improvement project by the year 2015.
– Supermarket News
More:supermarketnews.com
Learn about acidification
Ocean acidification is making life difficult for shell-forming creatures like bivalves and krill. Are the fish that eat them next? Three ways to find out next week: Tune in to KUOW's Weekday with Steve Scher show at 10 a.m. on Nov. 8. Attend Dissolving Before Our Eyes: The Acidification of Our Oceans, and Why It Matters To All Of U at Town Hall Seattle, Nov. 8th. Tickets:www.brownpapertickets.com Attend the Washington Sea Grant Symposium on Ocean Acidification Nov. 9th at the University of Washington:www.wsg.washington.edu.
Another Alaska refrigeration workshop
MAP and Integrated Marine Systems will bring their popular training workshop to Kodiak Nov. 29, beginning at 8:30 a.m. at the UAF Fisheries Industrial Technology Center across the bridge on Near Island. The cost of the workshop is $200, and includes a refrigeration manual. Pre-registration is required by Nov. 22, and space is limited. To register, please visit www.marineadvisory.org. For questions, contact Julie Matweyou, Alaska Sea Grant Marine Advisory Program in Kodiak,julie.matweyou@alaska.edu or 907-486-1514 or toll-free at 888-788-6333.
More:seagrant.uaf.edu
Wednesday, November 2, 2011
SALMON FARMERS TOLD TO TALK
A new discussion paper from Sustainable Fisheries Partnership challenges the salmon aquaculture sector to be more proactive in publicly disclosing information about environmental impacts and to create a model for industry-wide best practice.
– FishNewsEU
More:www.fishnewseu.com
Tour fish pirate boat
You can take a video tour of Bangun Perkasa, the pirate fishing vessel seized by the U.S. Coast Guard in September. The video shows a pan of the vessel exterior, and cuts to video of the freezer area, where you can see blocks of frozen squid as well as shark carcasses that have been headed, gutted, finned, and tailed. To view the video, click:vimeo.com/31153682 The password is "bangunperkasa."
Alaska coast program I
Back in February, the Parnell administration told a judge that Cook Inlet beluga whales didn't need the protection of the federal Endangered Species Act because the state was perfectly capable of protecting them itself, in part because of the Alaska Coastal Management Program.
– Anchorage Daily News
More:www.adn.com
Alaska coast program II
The state's foremost organization of Alaska Natives has stepped forward at its recent annual convention to support a ballot initiative to form a coastal management program.
– SitNews, Ketchikan
More:www.sitnews.us
Investigating NOAA enforcement
The Commerce Department's inspector general is turning a critical eye again to the federal government's regulation of commercial fishing, based on complaints emanating from industry and a request by Massachusetts' congressmen.
– Gloucester Times
More:www.gloucestertimes.com
Alaska fishermen share stories
Alaska's fishermen might tell a good yarn at seaside bars and cafes, but some might think their literary talents end there.
– Fairbanks News Miner
More:newsminer.com
Frankenfish eggs worry enviros
Environmentalists are alarmed that a U.S.-based company with a plant in Prince Edward Island plans to sell its genetically modified salmon eggs to any approved fish farmer if the company gets U.S. Food and Drug Administration approval.
– CBC
More:www.cbc.ca
Guessing Kenai R. escapement
As many as 51,900 late-run Kenai River king salmon may have made it to the spawning grounds in 2011. Or it could have been as few as 16,100.
– Alaska Journal of Commerce
More:www.alaskajournal.com
Thursday, November 3, 2011
MORE SALMON FARM DISEASE FOUND
We see from this report that a Chinook salmon and a chum salmon also tested positive.
– Alexandra Morton
More:dissidentvoice.org
U.S. tests of diseased salmon
Sens. Maria Cantwell (D-WA), Lisa Murkowski (R-AK), and Mark Begich (D-AK) sent a letter to key Senate appropriators calling for the federal government to independently test samples of a recently detected salmon virus, rather than relying on Canadian scientists.
– Pacific Fishing columnist Wesley Loy, writing in his blog: Deckboss
More:deckboss.blogspot.com
Is one halibut worth $2,000?
A question for the Homer Chamber of Commerce to think about when voting on issues pertaining to commercial fishing vs. charter fishing.
– Homer News
More:homernews.com
Columbia sturgeon dwindle
The sturgeon population in the lower Columbia River continues to dwindle, and state officials have started talks on how to tweak back sport-fishing seasons for 2012.
– Longview (Wash.) Columbian
More:www.columbian.com
Alaska fishermen:
Restore coastal management
The United Fishermen of Alaska has offered its support for restoration of a Coastal Management program for the state, but stopped short of endorsing the initiative process in which local communities hope to force the creation of a new program.
– Juneau Empire
More:juneauempire.com
Enviros want sardine limits
Environmentalists are again hoping federal regulators place new limits on one of Monterey Bay's top fisheries: sardines.
– Santa Cruz Sentinel
More:www.santacruzsentinel.com
Chum in Puget Sound
It's November, which means chum salmon are returning to South Puget Sound streams to spawn.
– Seattle Times
More:seattletimes.nwsource.com
Protecting baitfish
West Coast fishery managers are considering adding dozens of forage fish species, including smelt, croakers, silversides and shad, to the list of fish protected from harvesting.
– Seattle Weekly
More:blogs.seattleweekly.com
Salmon return to befouled B.C. river
The nailbiting wait for fish to arrive in the Goldstream River ended this week with the arrival of 9,000 spawning chum salmon.
– Victoria Times Colonist
More:www.timescolonist.com
Crew tells of fire at sea
When a building catches fire, the situation is scary enough. The stakes are even higher on a boat, where there's nowhere to go and no one to fight the fire but the people on board.
– Pacific Fishing columnist Alexandra Gutierrez, reporting for KUCB, Unalaska
More:www.kucb.org
Friday, November 4, 2011
CANADA SAYS DISEASE NOT CONFIRMED
The Canadian Food Inspection Agency document goes on to say the positive ISAV detection is not confirmed and is "suspect" because of "chain of custody" issues.
– B.C.LocalNews
More:www.bclocalnews.com
Disease found in four wild species
A lethal virus that could pose a new threat to British Columbia's prized Pacific salmon has now been detected in four wild species, prompting fears about its effect on the multi-billion-dollar fishery.
– Victoria Times Colonist
More:www.timescolonist.com
Disease should be no surprise
While fishermen are alarmed to learn about the discovery of a European virus in wild British Columbia salmon, the news comes as no great surprise. Infectious salmon anemia (ISA) has erupted in every country that farms salmon. Why would anyone think Canada is immune?
– Victoria Times Colonist
More:www.timescolonist.com
Fish farmer lays off Canadians
Marine Harvest recently announced a reduction of 60 people in its B.C. aquaculture operations in response to a jump in a global supply that has depressed the price of farm-raised Atlantic salmon.
– North Island Gazette, British Columbia
More:www.northislandgazette.com
More money for observers
NOAA Associate Administrator for Fisheries Eric Schwaab provided welcome testimony at a meeting of the Pacific Fishery Management Council. Acknowledging the difficulty that many West Coast trawl fishermen face in absorbing new costs associated with 100 percent observer coverage, Schwaab's remarks indicated a commitment on the part of NOAA to help fishermen as they approach their second season under catch shares.
– West Coast Trawlers' Network
More:www.westcoasttrawlers.net
Pebble mine foes blasted
An ordinance that could halt development of the Pebble gold and copper mine stems from "unconstitutional efforts of narrow self- interests" seeking to restrict development, a mining company official said.
– Anchorage Daily News
More:www.adn.com
Fish fraud with hake in Spain
Scientists from the Marine Genetic Resources Group (Rexenmar) at the University of Vigo found that about 6 per cent of products made with hake that are sold in supermarkets are usually different as to quality – lower in general – from the one indicated on their labels.
– FIS
More:www.fis.com
Cal water wars: Farmers fight
California's long-running water wars typically pit farmers against environmentalists, but this time the state's growers are facing off against each other about plans to build a massive water system in the Sacramento-San Joaquin River Delta.
– San Francisco Chronicle
More:www.sfgate.com
Alaska Fisheries Report
Coming up this week on the Alaska Fisheries Report: The Senate passes a spending bill that includes a call for a rapid response to the salmon virus; the governor touts Alaska seafood in England; and Senator Mark Begich scares his colleagues on Halloween. Also, the drama of firefighting on the high seas.
– KMXT, Kodiak
More:www.kmxt.org
A real smart skipper
Cusick forcibly assaulted, sexually harassed, impeded, interfered with, and intimidated a female federal at-sea monitor who was working on the vessel Sea Farmer II out of Gloucester.
– Gloucester (Mass.) Times
More:www.gloucestertimes.com
