UFA Update: November 16, 2014

From the Executive Director: 

Welcome new UFA business member Seattle Marine and Fisheries Supply

Join us at Pacific Marine Expo BOOTH #513 – Nov 19-21, Seattle – CenturyLink Field Event Center.

Pacific Marine Expo, November 19th-21st – For those of you attending Expo this year, we look forward to seeing you in the Alaska Pavilion at booth #513! New this year- we are pleased to offer UFA sweatshirts and Flexfit hats at Expo. All UFA sweatshirts are limited edition and we continue to offer a new design every year. Show your support for the seafood industry and pick up a few extras for your friends and family! See our UFA Facebook page for pictures. Join UFA at Expo to receive free subscriptions to National Fisherman and Pacific Fishing magazines just in time for 2015.

 

Expo Conference Sessions– Please take a look at the conference sessions this year, we have a little bit of a different lineup and we will be looking for your feedback to better inform the PME team for next year. Expo conference session schedule can be found HERE. Be sure to attend the “Energy Analysis Tool” session to help fishermen make decisions about improving energy efficiency onboard, Thursday, Nov. 20th, 1:30-2:30pm.

 

ASMI Upcoming Events at ExpoQuestions? Email ASMI. The ASMI RFM Committee will be held November 20, 2014 at the Washington Athletic Club at 1325 6th Ave in Seattle WA (90101), beginning at 8:00 AM. Final agenda can be downloaded here. ASMI Salmon Committee will be held November 21, 2014 at CenturyLink Field Event Center at Pacific Marine Expo in Seattle WA, beginning at 11:00 AM. A copy of the draft agenda can be downloaded here.

 

UFA General Election Update – Although absentee and other ballots are still coming in, most races are unofficially over. More ballots will be counted on Monday and Tuesday, approximately 12,000 ballots remain to be counted. Absentee ballots will still be counted if received by Friday, November 14th for those mailed within the United States and Wednesday, November 19th from abroad. To see the most recent General Election results and full candidate list click HERE

 

Election statistics as of November 14th

Registered Alaska Voters: 509,011

Ballots Cast: 274, 857

Percentage of registered voters who voted: 54.0%

 

 

Unofficial results of close races below:

 

UNITED STATES SENATOR

Begich, Mark (D) Incumbent, 120,471 votes, 45.47%

Sullivan, Dan (R) 131,375 votes, 48.31%*

*This race is being called for Sullivan. 

 

GOVERNOR/LT GOVERNOR

Parnell/Sullivan (R) Incumbent, 124,463 votes, 46.14%

Walker/Mallott (NA) 129,097 votes, 47.86%*

 

*At this time, Parnell is trailing Walker by 4,634 votes, or 1.72%. In a statement issued November 15th, Parnell conceded to Walker in order to begin coordinating transition activities (see news story HERE).In a statement issued Tuesday, Walker said while thousands of votes remain to be counted, he is undertaking preliminary steps to be ready for the constitutionally mandated Dec. 1 swearing-in. Walker announced that Rick Halford and Ana Hoffman will be the co-chairs of his transition team on Wednesday. Rick Halford is a former Republican Senate President and currently lives in Dillingham. Ana Hoffman is the co-chair of the Alaska Federation of Natives board of directors and CEO of Bethel Native Corp. On Wednesday, Walker announced that there would be 17 transition team sub-committees, including one for fisheries (see press release HERE). 

 

House District 21, West Anchorage 

Dubey, Anand (R) 3,756 votes, 49.22%

Claman, Matt (D) 3,847 votes, 50.41%*

*This race is being called for Claman. 

 

House District 36, Ketchikan 

Ortiz, Daniel H. “Dan” (NA) 3,527 votes, 50.57%

Klein, Chere L. (R) 3,425 votes, 49.11%*

*This ever-changing race is being called for Ortiz. 

 

2014 General Election Summary: After the General Election on November 4th, Alaska had over 53,000 early, absentee, and questioned ballots to count. Besides the race between Senate candidates Begich and Sullivan and the close race between Governor candidates Parnell and Walker, there were two State House races that had yet to be determined. As for legislative races, all incumbents (including the two legislators moving from the House to the Senate) were re-elected with the exception of Pete Higgins (R- Fairbanks), whose seat will go to Adam Wool (D). UFA sends our sincere congratulations to newly elected candidates. UFA also thanks outgoing candidates for their dedicated service to the State of Alaska. 

 

Alaskans also voted “YES” on all three ballot measures.

Ballot Measure 2Marijuana legalization

YES 142,552 52.87%

NO 127,084 47.13%

Ballot Measure 3Minimum wage increase

YES 186,885 69.15%

NO 83,392 30.85%

Ballot Measure 4- Require the legislature to approve Pebble Mine development, on top of the existing regulatory process.

YES 173,079 65.66%

NO 90,531 34.34%

 

Alaska Legislature- LEADERSHIP and organization news:

 

In the Senate, Kevin Meyer (R- Anchorage) will be taking over as Senate President from Charlie Huggins (R- Wasilla) who will serve as Rules Chair (formerly held by Lesil McGuire (R- Anchorage)). John Coghill (R-Fairbanks) is staying on as Majority leader. Dennis Egan (D- Juneau), has moved back to the Minority Caucus after joining the Majority last session. Senator Donny Olson (D- Golovin) has also moved back to the Minority. Senator Lyman Hoffman (D- Bethel) has moved from the Minority to the Majority and will be keeping his Senate Finance seat.

 

Senate Majority/Republican Caucus committee assignments:

Senate President: Senator Kevin Meyer (R-Anchorage)

Senate Majority Leader: Senator John Coghill (R-North Pole)

Senate Rules Chair: Senator Charlie Huggins (R-Wasilla)

Senate Finance Co-Chair- Senator Pete Kelly (R-Fairbanks)

Senate Finance Co-Chair – Senator Anna Fairclough (R-Eagle River/East Anchorage)

Senate Majority press release can be found HERE.

 

Senate Minority/Democratic Caucus committee assignments:

Senator Berta Gardner: Minority Leader, Education, Rules

Senator Dennis Egan: Transportation, Legislative Council

Senator Johnny Ellis: Health and Social Services, Labor and Commerce

Senator Donny Olson: Finance, Community and Regional Affairs

Senator Bill Wielechowski: Judiciary, Resources, State Affairs

Senate Minority press release can be found HERE.

 

In the House, congratulations to Mike Chenault (R-Nikiski) who has been chosen for record 4th straight term to serve as Speaker of the House. Charisse Millett (R-Anchorage) will take over as Majority Leader, the position formerly held by Lance Pruitt (R-Anchorage). Craig Johnson, (R-Anchorage) will stay on as Rules Chair with Democrat Bob Herron (D-Bethel) taking over as Majority Whip from the retiring Peggy Wilson (R-Wrangell). House Finance will receive two new co-chairs, with Mark Neuman (R-Su-Valley) running the Operating Budget and Steve Thompson (R-Fairbanks) running the Capital Budget.

 

House Majority/Republican Caucus committee assignments:

Speaker – Mike Chenault R-Nikiski (chosen for record 4th straight term)

Majority Leader – Charisse Millett, R-Anchorage

Rules Chair – Craig Johnson, R-Anchorage

Finance Co-Chair – Mark Neuman, R-Su-Valley (Operating Budget)

Finance Co-Chair – Steve Thompson, R-Fairbanks (Capital Budget)

Majority Whip – Bob Herron, D-Bethel

House Majority press release can be found HERE.

 

House Minority/Democratic Caucus:

Minority Leader – Rep. Chris Tuck, Anchorage (continuing)

Minority Whip – Max Gruenberg, Anchorage (continuing)

House Democratic Floor Leader – Geran Tarr, Anchorage

Member of Finance Committee – David Guttenberg, Fairbanks (continuing)

Member of Finance Committee – Scott Kawasaki, Fairbanks (continuing)

Member of Finance Committee –. Les Gara, Anchorage (continuing)

House Minority press release can be found HERE

 

To see the most recent General Election results and full candidate list click HERE.

 

As always, feel free to contact us with any questions you may have. Thank you for your time, and for your support of the seafood industry. 

 

Julianne Curry

Executive Director

United Fishermen of Alaska

Cell: 907.957.4747

Office: 907.586.2820

www.ufafish.org *NEW*

jcurry@ufa-fish.org

 

UFA MISSION: To promote and protect the common interest of Alaska’s commercial fishing industry, as a vital component of Alaska’s social and economic well-being.

Support UFA’s business members: Please visit our NEW UFA website www.ufafish.org and also our Business Member page which was created to show our thanks to UFA’s supporting business members. 

Save the dates! For upcoming fisheries meetings, visit or bookmark the “UFA Fish Calendar” at https://www.ufafish.org/calendar/.

Help support Alaska’s #1 private sector employer and protect your fishing business by joining UFA today! Visit ‘Become a Member’ on our NEW website to see the various membership levels and benefits.  UFA members receive free subscriptions to National Fisherman and Pacific Fishing magazines.

CONTENTS

 

Statewide

1. Alaska Governor Parnell concedes election to challenger Bill Walker
2. Walker-Mallott campaign names bipartisan team Rick Halford & Ana Hoffman to lead transition
3. Sullivan win over Begich adds to party’s US Senate sweep
4. Murkowski readies for role as Energy Committee chair
5. DCCED Report: Trends and Opportunities in the Alaska Maritime Industrial Support Sector
6. Department of Labor report: Developing Alaska’s Maritime Workforce
7. AK Dept. of Labor November Trends magazine features Seafood Harvesting Jobs
8. Fish Factor: Fishing adds jobs, salmon moves to second for US consumers…
9. Maritime industry sees plan to strengthen
10. Even after restrictions, charter halibut catch exceeds limits
11. Fishermen get hands-on with marketing their harvest
12. Researchers look at port, mining impacts on Norton Sound crab
13. State Submits Comments Opposing EPA Control
14. Board of Fisheries meets in Cordova, Dec 3–8, 2PWS and Upper Copper and Upper Susitna
15. Alaska Board of Fisheries  2014 – 2015 Meeting Cycle & Proposal Book
16. Items added to Alaska Board of Fisheries agendae…
17. Alaska Board of Fisheries date change for the 2015 Bristol Bay finfish meeting
18. Salmon Surge – Strong runs forecasts for Bristol Bay, Southeast Alaska
19. Alaskans Appointed to North Pacific Anadromous Fish Commission
20. U. of Georgia researcher to study declining Chinook salmon in Alaska
21. Fish & Game Revising Wildlife Habitat Management Plans
22. Tidal power research underway at False Pass
23. Alaska Sustainable Salmon Fund Panel Meetings January 20, 29, 30 various locations
24. Alaska Young Fishermen’s Summit – January 26–28, 2016, in Juneau.

National

25. Healthcare.gov  – enrollment open as of November 15
26. NPFMC meets December 8-16 in Anchorage
27. NOAA Fisheries annual report finds 2013 U.S. seafood landings and value increased
28. Americans ate more salmon than tuna last year
29. Sea lions may be killing more Columbia River salmon than estimated, NOAA study says
30. NMFS posts final rule on Amendment 96 CQE quota transfer
31. Sign up for Endangered Species law and policy Enews
32. Comment by Dec. 15 on NOAA RESTORE Act Science Program Draft Science Plan
33.  Four New Committee Members named to MAFAC
34. NOAA posts revisions to permit regs for federal fisheries and processor permits in AK.
35. Comment deadline December 26 on updated Marine Protected Areas Framework
36. Supreme Court Considers Whether Tossing Out Fish Destroyed Records
37. Calm Weather Takes a Toll on Gulf Waters
38. Comment on Commercial Operator’s Annual Report (COAR) info collection by 12/22
39. Comment deadline November 24 on NOAA Alaska Chinook Salmon Economic Data Report
40. Comment by November 24 on Round Island and Cape Pierce Walrus Protection Areas
41. Small Vessel General Permit effective December 19…

Fish Farm & Environmental

42. Controversial Canadian KSM mine gets key govt. permits
43. BC official says mine concerns heard, critics disagree
44. Alaska, B.C. cooperate quietly on transboundary issues
45. It’s back to barging for Chieftain Metals’ Tulsequah project
46. BC: Mount Polley expert panel calls for public submissions into dam collapse
47. NMFS comments on Susitna salmon studies
48. Tongass Advisory Committee meeting – November 19,20,& 21 in Sitka
49. Inletkeeper testing shows no Fukushima radiation in Cook Inlet
50. AK Board of Forestry to meet by teleconference / webinar December 9.
51. Comment deadline November 17 on DEC Log Transfer APDES general permit
52. EPA EIS available for comment – Greater Mooses Tooth One & Chuchki Sea O&G sale 193
53. Comment extended to November 26 on NOAA Gulf of Mexico Aquaculture plan
54. Ocean Acidification in Alaska workshop December 2

Marketing

55. AFDF Announces New Category for the Alaska Symphony of Seafood
56. ASMI calling all fishermen to be ambassadors for wild Alaska seafood – sign up today

Enhancement 

57. Crystal lake hatchery rebuild progressing, minimal impact anticipated
58. 170,000 fish in hand – A look inside DIPAC’s coho, Chinook tagging process

Subsistence

59. New federal rural determination regulations to favor subsistence users, rural residents
60. Kuskokwim Subsistence Salmon Panel meets January 15 & 16 in Bethel
61. BOF proposed corrections & clarifications to Subsistence, C&T
62. Comment by Dec. 22 on Subsistence salmon non-economic values info collection
63. Federal Subsistence Winter Advisory Committee Calendar
64. Deadline Jan. 23 for Subsistence Regional Advisory Council nominations

Other

65. NPRB Request for Proposals – deadline December 5
66. NIOSH – Live to be Salty offers poster, bumper stickers and more…
67. AMSEA Drill Conductor, Stability, Ergonomics and others classes schedule online
68. Laine Welch’s Fish Radio – Items from this week

Inclusion of an item does not mean that UFA endorses or agrees.

 


 

Statewide

 

1. Alaska Governor Parnell concedes election to challenger Bill Walker

Sun Nov 16, 2014 1:03am EST

(Reuters) – Alaska’s Republican Governor Sean Parnell conceded defeat on Saturday more than a week after a closely contested election, saying it was in the state’s best interest to move forward with an orderly transition to challenger Bill Walker…

http://www.reuters.com/article/2014/11/16/us-usa-alaska-governor-idUSKCN0J003U20141116


2. Walker-Mallott campaign names bipartisan team Rick Halford & Ana Hoffman to lead transition

While carefully avoiding a victory declaration, leading gubernatorial candidate Bill Walker announced the co-chairs of his transition team Wednesday afternoon — former two-time Alaska Senate President Rick Halford and Bethel Native leader Ana Hoffman.

http://www.adn.com/article/20141112/walker-names-transition-co-chairs


3. Sullivan win over Begich adds to party’s US Senate sweep

By Becky Bohrer, Associated Press

JUNEAU, Alaska (AP) — Republican Dan Sullivan won Alaska’s U.S. Senate seat in a hotly contested race, beating a first-term incumbent as voter disapproval of President Barack Obama swept Democrats out of office and allowed the GOP to seize control of the Senate…

http://www.alaskajournal.com/Alaska-Journal-of-Commerce/November-Issue-3-2014/Sullivan-win-over-Begich-adds-to-partys-US-Senate-sweep/

Election results:

Latest counts are available onlpine at the Division of Elections at http://www.elections.alaska.gov/results/14GENR/


4. Murkowski readies for role as Energy Committee chair

ANCHORAGE — It was tough to find anyone who was more excited than Sen. Lisa Murkowski at Dan Sullivan’s election night party…

Murkowski, who has served in the Senate since 2002, is poised to take the chairmanship of the Energy and Natural Resources Committee that has jurisdiction over the Interior Department. It’s a powerful position for the senior senator from Alaska given the role the agency plays in a state where two-thirds of the land is owned by the federal government…

http://homernews.com/homer-news/business/2014-11-12/murkowski-readies-for-role-as-energy-committee-chair


5. DCCED Report: Trends and Opportunities in the Alaska Maritime Industrial Support Sector 

Report online: http://commerce.state.ak.us/dnn/Portals/6/pub/MISReport.pdf


6. Department of Labor report: Developing Alaska’s Maritime Workforce

Alaska is a maritime state. The sectors that drive our economy are dependent on direct maritime activity and support.

The waters off Alaska’s shores produce more than 60 percent of the nation’s seafood harvest. Significant amounts of oil and gas are produced offshore. Communities and consumers depend upon marine lines for fuel, durable goods and consumer products. Ferries, cruise ships and personal watercraft ply our waters filled with commuters, fishers, and sightseers, generating hundreds of millions of dollars annually to Alaska’s economy.

All of this requires a skilled and able workforce. That’s why industry, education, and government huddled together to work on a shared workforce plan to bring us into the future.

We invite you to read the plan…

http://labor.state.ak.us/maritimeplan/

We will have updated UFA Commercial Fishing and Seafood Processing Community Fact Sheets at Pacific Marine Expo and will post them shortly after the show on the UFA website at at https://www.ufafish.org/fishing-facts/. The sheets detail jobs, income and revenue for Alaska communities and the Pacific Northwest.


7. AK Dept. of Labor November Trends magazine features Seafood Harvesting Jobs

Alaska’s rich seafood resources are an important part of the state’s economy and a source of jobs and income for thousands of people. At the beginning of a long economic chain that ends with salmon or halibut on someone’s dinner table are the people who harvest the seafood from the state’s oceans and rivers.

November 2014 Trends: http://labor.state.ak.us/trends/nov14.pdf

Department of Labor Seafood page: http://laborstats.alaska.gov/seafood/seafood.htm


8. Fish Factor: Fishing adds jobs, salmon moves to second for US consumers…

http://www.alaskajournal.com/Alaska-Journal-of-Commerce/November-Issue-3-2014/FISH-FACTOR-Fishing-adds-jobs-salmon-moves-to-second-for-US-consumers/


9. Maritime industry sees plan to strengthen

Wrangell seems to be in a fine position to prosper as attention in Alaska turns toward strengthening the region’s various maritime industries.

The Fishing, Seafood and Maritime Initiative (FSMI) has been developed by the University of Alaska and other public and private partners with the intention of supporting a strong and sustainable maritime workforce in the state.

With over 500 firms and 70,000 employees, the maritime industry represents Alaska’s largest employment sector, and its various “blue jobs” encompass seafood, transportation, recreation, Coast Guard and other support services.

The goals of the initiative are to sustain and enhance the economy through supporting Alaska’s coastal communities and to provide research to sustain resources on which those communities can depend.

This wider focus led to the development of a more formal workforce development plan, identifying a larger maritime industry and dividing that into sub-sectors of focus. Executive Director of the Alaska Fisheries Development Foundation and an advisor to FSMI, Julie Decker explained it was the first time Alaska had addressed the larger industry in such a way.

“That was a huge step forward in itself,” she said. “It took a long time to come up with a document.”

FSMI put forward its Alaska Maritime Workforce Development Plan this spring and presented it to the Southeast Conference (SEC) at its annual meeting in September. The plan lays out strategies for developing local workers and supporting maritime-related careers. The plan is available to view online at http://www.alaska.edu/fsmi/AKMaritimeWFDPlan_HighRes_5-22-14.pdf.

Wrangell Sentinel: http://www.wrangellsentinel.com/story/2014/11/13/news/maritime-industry-sees-plan-to-strengthen/2617.html


10. Even after restrictions, charter halibut catch exceeds limits

By Molly Dischner, Alaska Journal of CommerceThe 2014 charter halibut catch exceeded the allocations in both Southeast and Southcentral despite projections last winter that the management measures would keep anglers within the limits for each area.

Total charter removals, which includes release mortality for certain fish, are estimated at 875,572 pounds of halibut in Southeast, or Area 2C, and 2.17 million pounds in Southcentral, or Area 3A.

The charter allocation for 2C was 761,000 pounds and 1.76 million pounds for 3A.

The Alaska Department of Fish and Game estimated that guided anglers harvested about 67,942 halibut in Southeast Alaska this summer, and 181,947 halibut in Southcentral.

Those estimates are based on logbook data through July. ADFG’s Scott Meyer said during an October meeting with charter operators that the department has generally been successful at estimating the full summer’s catch based on the first half, although operators said that storms and other events may throw those estimates off this year.

This was the first year of management under the new halibut catch sharing plan. The International Pacific Halibut Commission set the overall halibut catch limit last January, which was split between the commercial and charter sectors based on a formula set by the North Pacific Fishery Management Council…

http://www.alaskajournal.com/Alaska-Journal-of-Commerce/November-Issue-2-2014/Even-after-restrictions-charter-halibut-catch-exceeds-limits/


11. Fishermen get hands-on with marketing their harvest

By Molly Dischner, Alaska Journal of Commerce

From Sitka to Kodiak, small, independent commercial fishermen are taking an increasingly hands-on role in marketing their own fish.

Rhonda Hubbard and her husband Jim of Seward started selling and processing their own fish more than two decades ago. Since then, she’s seen more fishermen do the same.

Hubbard said that the markets many of those fishermen reach, like farmers’ markets in the Lower 48 and other small sales opportunities, are niches that traditional processors often can’t fill.

“There’s a lot of people that would like to get better access to good quality seafood,” Hubbard said…

http://www.alaskajournal.com/Alaska-Journal-of-Commerce/November-Issue-3-2014/Fishermen-get-hands-on-with-marketing-their-harvest/


12. Researchers look at port, mining impacts on Norton Sound crab

By Molly Dischner, Alaska Journal of Commerce

Studies underway in Norton Sound are trying to gauge the impact of development on area crab stocks.

The Army Corps of Engineers is studying the development of an Arctic deep draft port at Port Clarence and the expansion of Nome’s current port. As part of that process, the corps is studying the potential impact to crabs and benthic fish if dredged material has to be disposed of, and what sites might be best suited for that.

Alaska Pacific University researchers are studying the impacts of suction dredging on Norton Sound red king crab habitat.

At a September meeting, the North Pacific Fishery Management Council’s ecosystem committee encouraged the two projects to coordinate.

http://www.alaskajournal.com/Alaska-Journal-of-Commerce/November-Issue-1-2014/Researchers-look-at-port-mining-impacts-on-Norton-Sound-crab/


13. State Submits Comments Opposing EPA Control

November 15, 2014, Juneau, Alaska – The State of Alaska submitted comments opposing a draft Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) rule that would unlawfully place most of Alaska’s waters and lands under the control of the EPA and the Army Corps of Engineers.

“The proposed rule would significantly expand EPA’s reach onto state, local, and private lands under Clean Water Act (CWA) regulation,” said Governor Sean Parnell. “This proposed rule not only federalizes land use decisions for state, local, and private landowners, it places them under threat of fines and penalties up to $72,500 a day and jail time. Property owners would have to pay the federal government a permit fee, wait for the permit to be issued, and then pay the federal government for the privilege of using their own property through costly “mitigation” fees. Alaskans would have little choice but to comply with EPA and Army Corps’ demands, since the fees must be paid or the property owner will be fined and possibly jailed.”

The EPA is poised to enact this rule by next summer.

Governor Parnell press release:

http://gov.alaska.gov/parnell/press-room/full-press-release.html?pr=7033


14. Board of Fisheries meets in Cordova, December 3–8, 2014 on PWS and Upper Copper and Upper Susitna Rivers Finfish

The Alaska Board of Fisheries (board) will meet December 3–8, 2014, at the Mt. Eccles Elementary School, 201 Adams Street, Cordova, Alaska. During this six day public meeting, the board will meet to consider 57 proposals regarding finfish issues submitted by the general public, fishing organizations, local Fish and Game Advisory Committees, and the Alaska Department of Fish and Game.

In addition to submitting written public comments, the board invites the public to give oral public testimony during the meeting beginning December 3. Any person intending to testify must sign up at the meeting site at the Mt. Eccles Elementary School in Cordova. The tentative deadline for signing up is 2:00 p.m. on Wednesday, December 3. Public testimony will continue until members of the public who signed up before the deadline and are present have been given an opportunity to testify. All portions of the meeting are open to the public and a live audio stream is intended to be available on the Board of Fisheries website at www.boardoffisheries.adfg.alaska.gov. Documents submitted to the board are intended to be posted online throughout the meeting. Copies of advanced meeting materials, including the agenda and roadmap, are available from Boards Support Section, 907-465-4110, or online at: http://www.adfg.alaska.gov/index.cfm?adfg=fisheriesboard.meetinginfo.

Public notice: http://aws.state.ak.us/OnlinePublicNotices/Notices/View.aspx?id=174602

&&&&&

Alaska Board of Fisheries Public Notice Work Session October 15-16, Juneau –

Meeting summary: http://www.adfg.alaska.gov/static-f/regulations/regprocess/fisheriesboard/pdfs/2014-2015/worksession/2014_worksession_summary_final.pdf

http://www.adfg.alaska.gov/index.cfm?adfg=fisheriesboard.meetinginfo

Board of Fisheries Oct 15-16 meeting information: http://www.adfg.alaska.gov/index.cfm?adfg=fisheriesboard.meetinginfo&date=10-15-2014&meeting=juneau

BOF home page: http://www.adfg.alaska.gov/index.cfm?adfg=fisheriesboard.main

 

15. Alaska Board of Fisheries  2014 – 2015 Meeting Cycle & Proposal Book

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2014–2015 Proposal Book – by sections or download entire book:

http://www.adfg.alaska.gov/index.cfm?adfg=fisheriesboard.proposalbook

Agenda change request proposals: http://www.adfg.alaska.gov/static-f/regulations/regprocess/fisheriesboard/pdfs/2014-2015/acr_proposals_all_2014.pdf


16. Items added to Alaska Board of Fisheries agendae…

The Alaska Board of Fisheries proposes to adopt regulation changes in Title 5 of the Alaska Administrative Code, dealing with fishery and aquatic plant resources in the areas designated below…

(Items added to upcoming agendas… too many to list)

Public notice: http://aws.state.ak.us/OnlinePublicNotices/Notices/View.aspx?id=174533


17. Alaska Board of Fisheries date change for the 2015 Bristol Bay finfish meeting

The Alaska Board of Fisheries (board) announces a date change for the 2015 Bristol Bay Finfish meeting. At its October 2013 Work Session, the board set the meeting dates for the Bristol Bay Finfish Meeting from December 8–15, 2015, in Anchorage. In order to secure adequate meeting space, the board moved its meeting dates to November 30–December 7.

This eight-day meeting will be held at the Egan Civic and Convention Center, 555 W. 5th Avenue, Anchorage. The board will issue more information on the meeting as the meeting dates near…

http://www.adfg.alaska.gov/static-f/regulations/regprocess/fisheriesboard/pdfs/2014-2015/2015_bb_date_change.pdf


18. Salmon Surge – Strong runs forecasts for Bristol Bay, Southeast Alaska

State biologists predict harvest exceeding 40 million sockeyes in Bristol Bay 58 million humpies in Southeast

State fisheries biologists are forecasting a run over nearly 54 million sockeye salmon in Bristol Bay in 2015, with a harvest of over 40 million fish, and a catch of some 58 million pink salmon in Southeast Alaska.

The Bristol Bay forecast is 40 percent greater than the previous 10-year mean of total runs and 51 percent greater than the long-term mean of 32.43 percent…

http://www.thecordovatimes.com/article/1446salmon-surge-strong-runs-forecasts-for

ADFG 2015 Bristol Bay Sockeye Salmon Forecast

http://www.adfg.alaska.gov/static/applications/dcfnewsrelease/503871809.pdf

ADFG 2015 Pink Salmon forecast: http://www.adfg.alaska.gov/static/applications/dcfnewsrelease/503704084.pdf


19. Alaskans Appointed to North Pacific Anadromous Fish Commission

November 6, 2014, Anchorage, Alaska – Six Alaskans nominated by Governor Sean Parnell were appointed by the U.S. secretary of state to serve on a panel for the North Pacific Anadromous Fish Commission. The panel serves as a forum for promoting the conservation of anadromous stocks and ecologically related species in the North Pacific Ocean; and advises the U.S. Section of the North Pacific Anadromous Fish Commission on living marine resource conservation and high seas fishery enforcement issues…

Art Nelson, of Anchorage… Dale Kelley, of Juneau… Andrew Bassich, of Eagle… Steve Reifenstuhl, of Sitka… Robert Ruffner, of Soldotna… John Jensen, a lifelong resident of Petersburg…

http://gov.alaska.gov/parnell/press-room/full-press-release.html?pr=7025


20. U. of Georgia researcher to study declining Chinook salmon in Alaska

Athens, Ga. – A University of Georgia professor will use a nearly $500,000 grant to study Chinook salmon in Alaska, where populations of the fish have been in decline for more than a decade.

Gary Grossman, a professor in UGA’s Warnell School of Forestry and Natural Resources, along with Warnell post-doctoral research associate Jason Neuswanger, will assess habitat-related factors affecting the number of juvenile Chinook salmon a river can support—specifically how much water flow and food is necessary for the fish to survive. Grossman and Neuswanger’s work will focus on rivers in the Arctic-Yukon-Kuskokwim drainage, which encompasses more than 40 percent of the land in Alaska and where the salmon is in heavy decline…

Using a $495,282 grant from the North Pacific Research Board, he and Neuswanger will construct a general mathematical model detailing the processes involved in feeding by these salmon. Although their work focuses on juvenile Chinook salmon, they also will examine the effects of prey capture and availability and current on two additional species: the arctic grayling and the Dolly Varden trout, related species that are important sport and subsistence fish for Alaskans…

http://news.uga.edu/releases/article/Grossman-to-study-declining-chinook-salmon-in-alaska-1114/

North Pacific Research Board: http://www.nprb.org/

ADFG Chinook Salmon Research Initiative:

http://www.adfg.alaska.gov/index.cfm?adfg=chinookinitiative.main


21. Fish & Game Revising Wildlife Habitat Management Plans

By Zach Hughes, KSKA – Anchorage | October 24, 2014

The Alaska Department of Fish and Game is revising management plans for some of the most exceptional areas of wildlife habitat in the state. But critics say that even after an outcry about what’s been called a massive erosion in environmental protection by both the public and the Legislature, little to nothing has been fixed.

The Habitat Division within ADF&G oversees the 32 so-called “special areas.”  They’re state lands like McNiel River Game Sanctuary and Izembek refuge supporting wildlife from brown bears to sandhill cranes.

Randy Bates is the head of the Habitat Division, and is to release the first batch of eight revised management plans in the near future.

“We don’t have a target date yet, but in the relatively near future– I would hope in the next month or two,” Bates explained. “At the end of the day what we want is a plan that protects and preserves the area–the natural habitat, the populations of fish and game–for the reasons these areas were designated.”

Once those drafts are finished by ADF&G employees they’ll be made available for public review lasting about 45 days…

http://www.alaskapublic.org/2014/10/24/fish-game-revising-wildlife-habitat-management-plans/

ADFG Habitat Division: http://www.adfg.alaska.gov/index.cfm?adfg=divisions.habmission


22. Tidal power research underway at False Pass

As energy companies race to reap the benefits of Arctic oil, other parts of the state are charging into new energy technologies.

In False Pass, researchers have initiated a project that explores the potential power of ocean currents. Much like wind turbines harness the massive moving energy of air currents, underwater turbines lasso the energy created by water currents…

Bristol Bay Times:

http://www.thebristolbaytimes.com/article/1240tidal_power_research_underway_at_false_pass


23. Alaska Sustainable Salmon Fund Panel Meetings January 20, 29, 30 various locations

The Alaska Sustainable Salmon Fund (AKSSF) is convening its regional Science Panels and Statewide Expert Panel to assist in development of a call for proposals (CFP) planned for spring/summer 2015 (funding and dates to be determined)…

Online public notice: http://aws.state.ak.us/OnlinePublicNotices/Notices/View.aspx?id=174658

AK SSF home page: http://www.akssf.org/


24. Alaska Young Fishermen’s Summit – January 26–28, 2016, in Juneau. 

visit the AYFS Facebook page. See you in Juneau…

Young Fishermen’s Summit page: http://seagrant.uaf.edu/map/workshops/ayfs/index.php


National

25. Healthcare.gov  – enrollment open as of November 15

Healthcare.gov blog:  https://www.healthcare.gov/blog/

United Way of Alaska 2-1-1- Help for Health Care navigating and more: http://www.alaska211.org/

Enroll Alaska: http://www.enrollingalaska.com/home.aspx

Alaska Department of Health and Social Services Health Insurance Marketplace Navigation Help: http://dhss.alaska.gov/amhb/Pages/InsuranceNavigation.aspx


26. NPFMC meets December 8-16 in Anchorage

The North Pacific Fishery Management Council will meet December 8-16 at the Anchorage Hilton. Broadcasting at npfmc.adobeconnect.com. Learn More →

Agenda: http://legistar2.granicus.com/npfmc/meetings/2014/12/904_A_North_Pacific_Council_14-12-08_Meeting_Agenda.pdf

Schedule: http://npfmc.legistar.com/gateway.aspx?M=F&ID=70d4d76c-ed2a-4029-96a2-2fc8e63ee0a5.pdf

NPFMC home page: http://www.npfmc.org/

NPFMC October newsletter:

http://www.npfmc.org/wp-content/PDFdocuments/newsletters/news1014.pdf

&&

NPMFC GOA & BSAI Groundfish Plan teams meet Nov 17-21, Seattle

The North Pacific Fishery Management Council’s Gulf of Alaska (GOA) and Bering Sea/Aleutian Islands (BSAI) Groundfish Plan Teams will meet in Seattle, WA… The meetings will begin at 9 a.m., November 17, and continue through Friday November 21, 2014.

Federal Register meeting notice: https://federalregister.gov/a/2014-25928

NPFMC home page: http://www.npfmc.org/

&&&&

NPFMC Fixed Gear Electronic Monitoring (EM) Workgroup meets Nov. 19-20 in Seattle

November 19-20, 2014, 2014, from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m., each day.

Federal register meeting notice: https://federalregister.gov/a/2014-26069


27. NOAA Fisheries annual report finds 2013 U.S. seafood landings and value increased from 2012 Dutch Harbor, Alaska, and New Bedford, Mass., remain top fishing ports; landings of wild salmon set new record

October 29, 2014

In its annual report, Fisheries of the United States 2013, released today, NOAA Fisheries announced that U.S. fishermen landed 9.9 billion pounds of fish and shellfish, an increase of 245 million pounds from 2012. Valued at $5.5 billion, these landings represent an increase of $388 million from 2012.

“Commercial and recreational fishing are important contributors to our economy and help create jobs throughout our nation’s communities,” said Eileen Sobeck, assistant NOAA administrator for NOAA Fisheries. “Working with our partners, the regional fishery management councils, and the fishing industry, we’ve made great strides on ending overfishing and are working toward building resilient, healthy and sustainable fish and shellfish stocks.”

The report shows that while national total of fish and shellfish landings remained about the same, total landings of wild salmon topped one billion pounds, setting a new record, up 68 percent from 2012. The report also shows that for the 17th consecutive year, the Alaska port of Dutch Harbor led the nation with the highest amount of seafood landed, primarily walleye pollock. Dutch Harbor fishers landed 753 million pounds valued at $197 million…

NOAA press release:

http://www.noaanews.noaa.gov/stories2014/20141029_usfishlandings_2013.html

Senator Begich:

Salmon Catch in 2013 Propels Alaska Seafood Harvest to 5.8 Billion Pounds

Begich Credits Hardworking Fishermen; Biologists who Keep Runs Healthy…

http://www.begich.senate.gov/public/index.cfm/pressreleases?ID=f4d887e7-576e-4a4c-ab6b-eb759a8e5a79

Homer Tribune: Ninety five percent of wild salmon comes from Alaska

by Laine Welch

http://homertribune.com/2014/11/ninety-five-percent-of-wild-salmon-comes-from-alaska/

CSM Progress Watch: Fish in American waters are experiencing population rebounds

http://www.csmonitor.com/World/Progress-Watch/2014/1110/Fish-in-American-waters-are-experiencing-population-rebounds


28. Americans ate more salmon than tuna last year

Seattle Times: Salmon’s big gains with U.S. consumers came in a year when overall per capita consumption of seafood was almost flat, with the total per capita consumption of 14.5 pounds up from 14.4 pounds in 2012. http://seattletimes.com/html/businesstechnology/2024946083_salmonconsumptionxml.html


29. Sea lions may be killing more Columbia River salmon than estimated, NOAA study says

http://www.oregonlive.com/environment/index.ssf/2014/11/sea_lions_may_be_killing_more.html


30. NMFS posts final rule on Amendment 96 CQE quota transfer

NMFS publishes regulations to implement Amendment 96 to the Fishery Management Plan for Groundfish of the Gulf of Alaska (FMP) and an amendment to the Pacific halibut commercial fishery regulations for waters in and off Alaska. Amendment 96 to the FMP and the regulatory amendment modify the Individual Fishing Quota Program for the Fixed-Gear Commercial Fisheries for Pacific Halibut and Sablefish in Waters in and off Alaska (IFQ Program). This action will remove a regulation that prohibits a Gulf of Alaska (GOA) Community Quota Entity (CQE) from transferring and holding small blocks of halibut and sablefish quota share (QS). This action will allow CQEs to acquire additional QS and facilitate CQE community resident participation in the IFQ Program…

Effective December 8, 2014.

Federal Register notice: https://federalregister.gov/a/2014-26466


31. Sign up for Endangered Species law and policy Enews 

http://www.endangeredspecieslawandpolicy.com/


32. Comment by Dec. 15 on NOAA RESTORE Act Science Program Draft Science Plan

Comments on this draft document must be submitted by December 15, 2014…

NOAA is publishing this notice to announce the availability of the Draft Science Plan for the NOAA RESTORE Act Science Program for public comment…

Federal Register: https://federalregister.gov/a/2014-25797


33.  Four New Committee Members named to MAFAC

(October 20, 2014) Secretary of Commerce Penny Pritzker has announced the appointment of four new advisors to NOAA’s Marine Fisheries Advisory Committee, bringing the group’s membership to the full complement of 21. The Marine Fisheries Advisory Committee, or MAFAC, advises the Secretary of Commerce on all living marine resource matters that are the responsibility of the Department of Commerce.

The new members are:

  • Terri Lei Beideman of Forked River, New Jersey
  • Heather Brandon of Juneau, Alaska
  • Mike Okoniewski of Woodland, Washington
  • Peter Shelley of Marblehead, Massachusetts

Congratulations to our newly appointed nominees! To read more about our new members click here

Announcement is currently posted at http://www.nmfs.noaa.gov/ocs/mafac/


34. NOAA posts revisions to permit regs for federal fisheries and processor permits in AK. 

effective November 20

NMFS revises regulations for the application process, use, surrender, and amendment of a Federal Fisheries Permit (FFP) or a Federal Processor Permit (FPP). This action will reduce industry compliance costs associated with fishing and processing permit regulations and NMFS’ administrative costs associated with maintaining and updating permit application regulations and forms…

Federal Register 10/20/14: https://federalregister.gov/a/2014-24758


35. Comment deadline December 26 on updated Marine Protected Areas Framework

The Department of Commerce and the Department of the Interior (DOI) jointly propose an updated Framework for the National System of Marine Protected Areas of the United States (Framework). The Framework is required by Executive Order 13158 on Marine Protected Areas (MPAs). This Framework provides overarching guidance for collaborative efforts among federal, state, commonwealth, territorial, tribal and local governments and stakeholders to implement an effective National System of MPAs (National System) from existing sites, build management capacity among MPA programs, coordinate collaborative efforts to address common management issues and identify ecosystem-based gaps in the protection of significant natural and cultural resources for possible future action by the nation’s MPA authorities. The proposed draft document would update the previous version of the Framework, completed in November 2008…

DATES: Comments will be considered if received by December 26, 2014…

Federal Register October 27: https://federalregister.gov/a/2014-25448


36. Supreme Court Considers Whether Tossing Out Fish Destroyed Records

WASHINGTON — Most of the justices seemed troubled by Supreme Court arguments on Wednesday about the prosecution of a Florida fisherman for throwing three undersize red grouper back into the Gulf of Mexico.

The fisherman, John L. Yates, was convicted of violating the Sarbanes-Oxley Act of 2002, a federal law aimed primarily at white-collar crime. The law imposes a maximum sentence of 20 years for the destruction of “any record, document or tangible object” in order to obstruct an investigation.

Mr. Yates’s primary argument was that fish are not the sort of tangible objects with which the law was concerned…

http://www.nytimes.com/2014/11/06/us/john-yates-supreme-court-justices-hear-argument-on-whether-fish-thrown-back-were-records-destroyed-.html?_r=0


37. Calm Weather Takes a Toll on Gulf Waters

The Seward Line is a collection of monitoring stations that extend from the mouth of Resurrection Bay into the Gulf of Alaska ending near the outer edge of Alaska’s continental shelf. Professor Russell Hopcroft with the University of Alaska Fairbanks is part of a program that surveys portions of the gulf marked by those stations. Earlier this year his team cruised the waters and took notes on ocean temperatures, chemistry, and they also collected plankton to study.

“In September we found that the water temperature was way outside the envelope [of] what we’re used to seeing for water temperatures. It was almost five degrees warmer than what we have seen on average,” says Hopcroft…

“And that was due to the same weather pattern that started the intense drought in California. A persistent area of high pressure in the Gulf of Alaska that basically kept storms from moving across that part of the ocean and coming into the Pacific Coast,” Mantua explains…

http://www.kbbi.org/node/1182


38. Comment on Commercial Operator’s Annual Report (COAR) info collection by 12/22

The Department of Commerce, as part of its continuing effort to reduce paperwork and respondent burden, invites the general public and other Federal agencies to take this opportunity to comment on proposed and/or continuing information collections, as required by the Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995…

DATES: …must be submitted on or before December 22, 2014.

This request is for extension of a currently approved information collection.

The Alaska Commercial Operator’s Annual Report (COAR) is a report that collects harvest and production information broken out by specific criteria such as gear type, area, delivery and product type, and pounds and value. The COAR is due by April 1 of the year following any buying or processing activity.

Federal Register 10/22: https://federalregister.gov/a/2014-25034


Previous national items, still timely…

39. Comment deadline November 24 on NOAA Alaska Chinook Salmon Economic Data Report data collection

Federal Register notice: https://federalregister.gov/a/2014-22511

Amendment 91 Alaska Chinook Salmon Economic Data Report home page:

http://alaskafisheries.noaa.gov/sustainablefisheries/bycatch/salmon/chinook/edr/default.htm

NOAA Chinook Salmon Bycatch Management page:   http://alaskafisheries.noaa.gov/Sustainablefisheries/bycatch/default.htm


40. Comment by November 24 on Round Island and Cape Pierce Walrus Protection Areas

Federal Register: https://federalregister.gov/a/2014-22688

&&

https://federalregister.gov/a/2014-23635


41. Small Vessel General Permit effective December 19…

Small Vessel General Permit for Discharges Incidental to the Normal Operation of Vessels Less than 79 Feet

Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) Regions 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, and 10 are finalizing the NPDES Small Vessel General Permit (sVGP) to authorize discharges incidental to the normal operation of non-military and non-recreational vessels less than 79 feet in length. EPA is finalizing the sVGP, which has an effective date of December 19, 2014, to authorize discharges from vessels less than 79 feet in length, because the law imposing a moratorium against NPDES permitting of these discharges expires on December 18, 2014..

Federal Register notice:  https://federalregister.gov/a/2014-21408

EPA Small Vessel General Permit page:

http://water.epa.gov/polwaste/npdes/vessels/Small-Vessel-General-Permit.cfm


Fish Farm & Environmental

42. Controversial Canadian KSM mine gets key govt. permits

By Mary Catharine Martin, Morris News Service-Alaska/ Juneau Empire

JUNEAU — Kerr Sulphurets Mitchell, a British Columbia mine in the transboundary Unuk River watershed that concerns many Southeast Alaska fishermen, Native organizations, tourism and environmental groups, has received early construction permits from the British Columbia government.

“I think people are feeling not just a sense of urgency, and being threatened, but anger, too,” said Heather Hardcastle, commercial fishing outreach coordinator for Trout Unlimited. “To hear that they have these preliminary permits, road construction permits — it seems like such a slap in the face, because the project doesn’t yet have federal approval from the government in Canada.”

KSM has received provincial approval; Seabridge Gold, the company behind the project, expects the federal decision in November…

http://www.alaskajournal.com/Alaska-Journal-of-Commerce/November-Issue-1-2014/Controversial-Canadian-KSM-mine-gets-key-govt-permits/


43. BC official says mine concerns heard, critics disagree

British Columbia officials say they understand why Alaskans are concerned about new mines planned for transboundary rivers. But critics on this side of the border say they’re not doing anything about it.

British Columbia’s top mining official says he’s not ignoring objections from fishermen, environmentalists and tribal leaders on this side of the border.

“My message to Alaskans is not, ‘Don’t worry, be happy, nothing to worry about,’” says Bill Bennett, B.C.’s minister of energy and mines…

http://www.ktoo.org/2014/11/10/bc-official-says-mine-concerns-heard-critics-disagree/


44. Alaska, B.C. cooperate quietly on transboundary issues

By Elwood Brehmer, Alaska Journal of Commerce

Alaskans concerned with mining in transboundary watersheds often aren’t aware of the cooperation between the state and provincial governments, according to a British Columbia resource official.

“I’m not sure if there’s any elected person in the state of Alaska that really knows the extent to which we engage Alaska on northwest (British Columbia) mining projects and that’s on us. We need to do a better job,” British Columbia Minister of Energy and Mines Bill Bennett said.

Specifically to the proposed Kerr Sulphurets Mitchell, or KSM, porphyry copper-gold mine near the headwaters of the Unuk River drainage in British Columbia, Bennett said the province has held “dozens and dozens” of meetings with representatives from the Alaska and U.S. governments since 2008…

http://www.alaskajournal.com/Alaska-Journal-of-Commerce/November-Issue-3-2014/Alaska-BC-cooperate-quietly-on-transboundary-issues/


45. It’s back to barging for Chieftain Metals’ Tulsequah project

The company that’s trying to reopen the Tulsequah Chief Mine at the Canadian headwaters of Taku River has apparently abandoned plans to build a road to the mine site.

Chieftain Metals announced last month that a forthcoming update to a 2012 feasibility study no longer includes the proposed 128 kilometer road from Atlin, British Columbia. Instead, the company is going back to a plan to barge supplies and concentrated minerals to and from the mine via the salmon-rich Taku, which flows out south of Juneau.

That has environmentalists and state lawmakers concerned. Chris Zimmer of Rivers Without Borders says both Chieftain and Tulsequah’s previous owner, Redfern Resources, have tried barging on the Taku, and it hasn’t worked…

http://www.ktoo.org/2014/11/13/back-barging-chieftain-metals-tulsequah-project/


46. Mount Polley expert panel calls for public submissions into dam collapse

A B.C. government-appointed expert engineering panel has made an unusual call to the public for written submissions on the cause of Imperial Metals’ Mount Polley tailings dam collapse.

Coming three months after the panel was appointed, the call was posted on the panel’s website on Nov. 7 and sent in a limited release to some groups such as First Nations and newspapers in the Central Interior.

The collapse of a section of the tailings dam on Aug. 4 released millions of cubic metres of water and tailings containing potentially toxic metals into the Quesnel Lake watershed.

Written submissions will be accepted until Dec. 7…

Read more: http://www.vancouversun.com/news/metro/Mount+Polley+expert+panel+calls+public+submissions+into/10382909/story.html#ixzz3JHnLTHx3


47. NMFS comments on Susitna salmon studies

By Molly Dischner, Alaska Journal of Commerce (September)

The National Marine Fisheries Service has identified 14 issues with the salmon studies conducted as part of the Susitna hydroproject.

In a September 22 letter, NMFS Alaska Region Administrator raised the agency’s issues with the Alaska Energy Authority’s salmon studies…

Balsiger said the federal agency is concerned with the integrity of data, the ability to effectively integrate modeled studies and the decision support systems.

The list of specific concerns relates to habitat classification, fish passage criteria, fish sampling study plans, fish sampling locations, relative fish abundance estimates, inappropriate mesohabitat scales, sampling sites, unmet tagging goals, unmet fish sampling targets and environmental conditions that affected the planned work. Balsiger also wrote that certain planned components of the project were not carried out, including a fish wheel near the entrance to Devil’s Canyon and an upper river migrant fish trap…

http://www.alaskajournal.com/Blog-Fish-Bytes/Blogs-2014/NMFS-comments-on-Susitna-salmon-studies/

NMFS comments: http://elibrary.ferc.gov/idmws/file_list.asp?accession_num=20140923-5026


48. Tongass Advisory Committee meeting – November 19,20,& 21 in Sitka

On November 19-21, the Committee is scheduled to begin development and evaluation of recommendation options and establish expectations for subcommittee work in December. In addition, there will be time allotted for oral public comment…

Federal Register notice: https://federalregister.gov/a/2014-25640

Tongass Advisory Committee home page: http://www.fs.usda.gov/goto/R10/Tongass/TAC


49. Cook Inletkeeper testing shows no Fukushima radiation in Cook Inlet

By Rashah McChesney, Peninsula Clarion

A test on Cook Inlet waters turned up no evidence of radiation emissions from the Fukushima Daiichi nuclear disaster having made its way into the area.

A crowdsourced funding effort through Cook Inletkeeper raised enough money to fund one test — though the organization is still soliciting donations for further testing at its crowdrise.com funding page — and the organization on Monday announced the results of its test on water sampled in September, north of Yukon Island in Kachemak Bay…

Article:

http://peninsulaclarion.com/news/2014-11-11/inletkeeper-testing-shows-no-fukushima-radiation-in-cook-inlet

Cook Inlet Keeper “Help fund radiation tests” page:

http://inletkeeper.org/issues/help-crowd-fund-radiation-tests-in-cook-inlet


50. AK Board of Forestry to meet by teleconference / webinar December 9.

Public notice & topics, and ways to attend: http://aws.state.ak.us/OnlinePublicNotices/Notices/View.aspx?id=174615


51. Comment deadline November 17 on DEC Log Transfer APDES general permit

DEC Notice of Review of an Alaska Pollutant Discharge Elimination System Preliminary Draft General Permit to Discharge to Waters of the United States – Log Transfer Facilities

DEC has prepared two APDES preliminary draft general permits; CleanWater Act Section 402 Modifications of Section 404 Permits for Log Transfer Facilitiesin Alaska Which Received a Section 404 Permit Prior to October 22, 1985,and Log Transfer Facilities in Alaska.Prior to the formal 30-day public notice period, DEC invites you to review thepreliminary draft general permit, fact sheet, and associated documents. You can access the documents from ADEC’s Wastewater Discharge Authorization Program webpage at: http://www.dec.state.ak.us/water/wwdp/index.htm

Preliminary Draft GeneralPermit Review:

Start Date: October31, 2014

End Date:  November 17, 2014

Online public notice: http://aws.state.ak.us/OnlinePublicNotices/Notices/View.aspx?id=174493


52. EPA EIS available for comment – Greater Mooses Tooth One & Chuchki Sea O&G sale 193

Section 309(a) of the Clean Air Act requires that EPA make public its comments on EISs issued by other Federal agencies. EPA’s comment letters on EISs are available at: http://www.epa.gov/compliance/nepa/eisdata.html…  Now available for comment are:

EIS No. 20140315, Final Supplement, BLM, AK, Alpine Satellite Development Plan for the Proposed Greater Mooses Tooth One Development Project, Review Period Ends: 12/08/2014, Contact: Bridget Psarianos 907-271-4208.

EIS No. 20140316, Second Draft Supplement, BOEM, AK, Chukchi Sea Planning Area, Oil and Gas Lease Sale 193, Comment Period Ends: 12/22/2014, Contact: Michael Routhier 907-334-5200.

Federal Register 11/7: https://federalregister.gov/a/2014-26532


53. Comment extended to November 26 on NOAA Gulf of Mexico Aquaculture plan

The comment period for the proposed rule that published on August 28, 2014 (79 FR 51424), and closed on October 27, 2014, will reopen on November 13, 2014 and remain open through November 28, 2014…

Federal Register notice – comment extension: https://federalregister.gov/a/2014-26801


Previous item:

Comment deadline October 27 on Gulf of Mexico Offshore Aquaculture FMP

Federal Register notice August 28, 2014: https://federalregister.gov/a/2014-20407

NMFS Southeast Fishery Bulletin:

http://sero.nmfs.noaa.gov/fishery_bulletins/documents/pdfs/2014/fb14-064_aquaculture_proposed_rule.pdf

Gulf Aquaculture Plan home page:

http://sero.nmfs.noaa.gov/sustainable_fisheries/gulf_fisheries/aquaculture/index.html


54. Ocean Acidification in Alaska workshop December 2

The Alaska Ocean Observing System (AOOS) is co-hosting an ocean acidification workshop in Anchorage on Dec 2nd.  This workshop aims to bring concerned and/or interested individuals together to hear the latest research, policy implications, community perspectives, and potential impacts along Alaska’s coast and oceans.

Workshop Overview:

We know that Alaska is experiencing a rapid and severe onset of OA relative to many other coastal regions. Studies also show that Alaskan coastal communities have varying degrees of vulnerability to OA, ranging from moderate to severe, with the most vulnerable located in regions where fisheries are primary economic drivers of local economies. Partners across the state have taken great strides to implement the current monitoring system in place, but state funding is set to expire in 2015. Now is the pivotal time to engage with a growing number of Alaskans interested in how we can make informed decisions about OA.  We hope that you will be able to join us.

More information on AOOS’s work on ocean acidification can be found here: http://www.aoos.org/ocean-acidification/

Seagrant notice:

http://seagrant.uaf.edu/map/workshops/2014/ocean-acidification/index.php


Marketing

55. AFDF Announces New Category for the Alaska Symphony of Seafood 

2015 event to also include additional venue  (Juneau)

ANCHORAGE, Alaska Thursday, October 16, 2014) — Alaska Fisheries Development Foundation (AFDF) announced today that it will hold the 22nd annual Alaska Symphony of Seafood in 2015.     The Alaska Symphony of Seafood is a competition for value added products made from Alaska seafood.  The event in 2015 will include two major improvements, including a new location and new product category.

Events in February, 2015 will be held in Seattle, Anchorage and a new location, Juneau.  The winners will be given an opportunity to display their winning products at the Seafood Expo in Boston.   The event’s multiple locations give seafood promoters the opportunity to introduce new value-added seafood products from Alaska seafood and gain exposure with industry and culinary experts, seafood distributors, and national media. The overall goal is to inspire innovative ways to use Alaska’s natural seafood resources.

A new category will also be introduced this year.  The category name is “Beyond the Plate” and will broadly include by-products of many types. “The definition of this category is a consumer-ready product that is made with parts of seafood which would typically be deemed fish waste or a by-product of the primary processing, such as fish oil, pet treats, fish leather, and many others,” said Julie Decker, Executive Director of AFDF…

Dates of the Symphony of Seafood events will be announced along with the Call for Product by the end of October.  Entry forms and fees will be due by December 31, 2014.   All information will be available at AFDF’s website:  http://www.afdf.org/symphony-of-seafood/


56. ASMI calling all fishermen to be ambassadors for wild Alaska seafood – sign up today for exclusive, limited edition ASMI fisherman hat. 

ASMI is launching a new opt-in Fishermen’s Database online at http://fishermen.alaskaseafood.org.

Go to the website, sign up and provide a little bit of information about yourself and the fisheries you are involved in. In return, ASMI will send you a custom ‘Alaska Fisherman 2014’ hat created by local artist Scott Baxter of the Aurora Projekt. (http://auroraprojekt.com) The limited edition of hats includes both a men’s and women’s style. ASMI will use the database information to identify those Alaska fishermen who are willing to help bring Alaska Seafood’s story to life, be it through interviews, personal profiles, photo shoots, speaking to guests during media tours or attending events in their home town. For more information contact Tyson Fick at tfick@alaskaseafood.org.


Enhancement 

57. Crystal lake hatchery rebuild progressing, minimal impact anticipated

With a crew working six days a week, construction at the Crystal Lake Hatchery facility is moving along on schedule.

“We’re basically on schedule, which is a little bit surprising for a construction project,” Bill Gass said with a laugh. Gass is the production manager for Southern Southeast Regional Aquaculture Association (SSRAA), which is contracted to operate the Crystal Lake facility by the Alaska Department of Fish and Game’s Sport Fish Division…

http://www.petersburgpilot.com/story/2014/10/30/news/hatchery-rebuild-progressing-minimal-impact-anticipated/2973.html


58. 170,000 fish in hand – A look inside DIPAC’s coho, Chinook tagging process

By Mary Catharine Martin, Juneau Empire

As you read this sentence, a Douglas Island Pink and Chum hatchery worker likely has one of one million young Chinook salmon in hand.

Every year, DIPAC hatchery workers spend weeks handling tens of thousands of Chinook and coho salmon individually, clipping their adipose fins as a sign they come from a hatchery and tagging them with a one millimeter long coded stainless steel wire…

http://juneauempire.com/outdoors/2014-11-07/170000-fish-hand


Subsistence

59. New federal rural determination regulations to favor subsistence users, rural residents

The Federal Subsistence Board’s rural determination process will change, according to an announcement made at the Alaska Federation of Natives Convention last month.

The changes should mean a more favorable process for villages and other rural communities that rely on hunting and fishing. Deputy Secretary of the Interior Michael Connor told AFN attendees that the new regulations will come soon…

http://www.ktoo.org/2014/11/04/new-federal-regulations-favor-subsistence-users-rural-residents/


60. Kuskokwim Subsistence Salmon Panel meets January 15 & 16 in Bethel

The Alaska Board of Fisheries (board) will convene a meeting of the Kuskokwim Subsistence Salmon Panel (panel) in Bethel at the Yupiit Piciryarait Cultural Center, 420 Chief Eddie Hoffman Highway, Bethel, Alaska, on January 15 and 16, 2015.

Starting at 1:30 pm on January 15, the panel will hear Alaska Department of Fish and Game reports and take public testimony. Tentative signup time for public testimony on January 15 will run from 1:30-2:30 pm.

On January 16, the panel will begin developing potential tools for equitable distribution of the Kuskokwim River subsistence salmon resource throughout the drainage in times of low abundance. It is tentatively set to start at 9:00am. Based on the outcome of this panel meeting, it may hold follow-up meetings.

Panel meetings are open to the public. Meeting agenda will be available at the meeting, and in advance of the meetings at the Bethel Fish and Game Office, 570 4th Avenue and on the Boards Support Section website: http://www.adfg.alaska.gov/index.cfm?adfg=kssp.main

The mission of the panel is to seek public input on how to ensure an equitable distribution of subsistence salmon resources throughout the Kuskokwim River drainage and potential tools for equitable distribution in times of low abundance.

Public notice: http://aws.state.ak.us/OnlinePublicNotices/Notices/View.aspx?id=174655


61. BOF proposed corrections & clarifications to Subsistence, C&T 

The commissioner of the Department of Fish and Game, under a delegation of authority issued by the Alaska Board of Fisheries (board) under AS 16.05.270, proposes to adopt regulation changes in Title 5 of the Alaska Administrative Code, related to correcting errors and omissions in Title 5 dealing with certain subsistence, commercial, and sport finfish and shellfish fisheries, including the following:

(1)  5 AAC 01.625. Waters closed to subsistence fishing is proposed to be changed to clarify the exception to closed waters while subsistence fishing under a permit in the Prince William Sound Area.

(2)  5 AAC 01.716. Customary and traditional subsistence uses of fish stocks and amounts necessary for subsistence uses is proposed to be changed to clarify the description of certain portions of Districts 12 and 13 of the Southeastern Alaska Area in which there is a customary and traditional finding for subsistence uses of various finfish species…

Public notice: http://aws.state.ak.us/OnlinePublicNotices/Notices/View.aspx?id=170047


62. Comment by Dec. 22 on Subsistence salmon non-economic values info collection 

This request is for a new information collection…

The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration’s (NOAA) National Ocean Service (NOS) and National Marine Fisheries Service’s Alaska Fisheries Science Center propose to collect data on non-economic values related to subsistence salmon fishing and use in Alaska. Data are needed to support Natural Resource Damage Assessment (NRDA) and resource restoration analysis and activities. NRDA is a legal process to determine the type and amount of restoration needed to compensate the public for harm to natural resources and their human uses that occur as a result of an oil spill or other hazardous substance release.

Federal Register: https://federalregister.gov/a/2014-25026


63. Federal Subsistence Winter Advisory Committee Calendar

http://www.doi.gov/subsistence/calendars/index.cfm


64. Deadline Jan. 23 for Subsistence Regional Advisory Council nominations

The Federal Subsistence Board is accepting applications through Jan. 23 to fill seats on the 10 Subsistence Regional Advisory Councils. Council membership appointments are typically 3-year terms. There are approximately 35 seats open for appointment among all councils.

The councils meet at least twice a year and provide critical advice to the Federal Subsistence Board on subsistence management issues. Council meetings serve as a forum for regional public involvement in federal subsistence management. Council members must be knowledgeable about the uses of fish and wildlife resources in their region.

Individuals may apply for membership themselves, or an individual or organization may nominate someone for council membership. The application form and information about the application process and the Subsistence Regional Advisory Councils is available on the Federal Subsistence Management Program’s website: www.doi.gov/subsistence/index.cfm.


Other

65. NPRB Request for Proposals – deadline December 5

http://www.nprb.org/annual-research-program/request-for-proposals/2015-request-for-proposals


66. NIOSH – Live to be Salty offers poster, bumper stickers and more…

Falling overboard is the second leading cause of death among commercial fishermen, nationwide. And the reason for that? Not wearing a personal flotation device (PFD). In fact, none of the 191 fishermen who died in the U.S. between 2000 and 2013 were wearing a PFD when they drowned.

Live to be Salty is a multi-media health communication intervention developed by the National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health and our partners in an effort to reduce drownings, by promoting the use of PFDs on board commercial fishing vessels.

Visit Live to be Salty to learn about the comfortable PFD options currently available for use by commercial fishermen, and see  “Partner Resources” for posters, bumper stickers, and other promotional items for download and printing…

http://www.livetobesalty.org/

Also see and share Live to be Salty on social media:

Facebook (www.facebook.com/livetobesalty )

Twitter (www.twitter.com/livetobesalty ).

CDC/NIOSH Commercial Fishing Safety home page: http://www.cdc.gov/niosh/topics/fishing/


67. AMSEA Drill Conductor, Stability, Ergonomics and others classes schedule online

http://amsea.org/


68. Laine Welch’s Fish Radio – Items from this week

-How do salmon find their way home?

-Hired skipper ban heads to court; Silver Bay goes global; Snazzy AK salmon updates.

-Ocean acids change fish behavior

-Juneau wants more AK researchers to be based in AK

-AK pushes salmon to #2 on Top 10 List of seafood favorites…

These items and more, online at http://www.alaskafishradio.com/

 


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Compiled by staff of United Fishermen of Alaska, PO Box 20229, Juneau AK 99802 (907) 586-2820 ufa@ufa-fish.org