The Kenai River Sportfishing Association is going after Vince Webster, member of the Alaska Board of Fisheries.As you'll recall, Gov. Sean Parnell recently reappointed Webster for another term, and he is now awaiting legislative confirmation.
KRSA has issued this call to action for people to contact legislators and urge a "no" vote on Webster.
The organization says Webster "directly participated in precariously and unnecessarily lowering the escapement goal of Kenai River king salmon during a time of record low abundance and uncertain future production."
Webster did this, KRSA says, to benefit commercial salmon setnetters.
60 comments:
Webster is incompetent, has no leadership and disregards basic science. Of course his personal interests are trumping conservation.
KRSA is incompetent, has no leadership and disregards basic science.
That's really sad that they would do that. He has always been strong for subsistence.
Webster is a KRSA plant although he must have not come through in flying colors, who is Mulder pushing the Governor to have in his place?
Probably Roland Maw from UCIDA, that might be the blessing the Mat Su needed.
Webster's big failure was in trying an end run at the last meeting to prevent the dip netters on the Kenai river a chance to catch a King salmon. At the last minute when most of the public was gone, and no notice whatsoever was given to the public that participates in the dip net fishery, he put in a proposal that would prevent the dip net fishers from keeping a King while at the same time allowed the commercial fishers the right to continue harvesting them. Only after the Dept. forecast that the Kings would not meet their lower escapement goals would the commercial netters be restricted. But the dip net fishers would be restricted at the beginning of the season long before the Dept had any idea if goals would be met.
He came very very close to getting this passed. Only at the last moment was this issue brought up before the remaining public and thankfully it did not pass.
He did the same thing in PWS with the shrimp fishery. At the last moment he introduced new language that restricted the personal use fishery with out restricting the commercial fishery and this time because of the makeup of the board it passed. What a tragedy for the personal use fisheries in the State.
Everyone knows how important the dip net fisheries are to Alaskans. It benefits more of us than any other fishery. Why Webster would favor the commercial fishermen over the rest of the state is mind boggling. I am contacting my legislator.
Webster did not set the escapement goals. The Dept has the sole authority to set them. However he did not object or, during discussions, question them. To the contrary, he supported them with his questions and statements and actually wanted to adopt an even lower goal called an OEG which would have caused a disaster if adopted. Some on the fish board questioned the Depts new goals as being too low. He did just the opposite. What would you expect from a person who together with his family owns 5 or more set net permits and sites. Do you really think he would care about any other user group?
The practice of "lowering the escapement goals" is misleading and that has allowed over-harvest by all of the users.
Can the practice now!
Hey Wes,
Better change the title of your blog to DIPBOSS--seems your followers are all KRSA PR drones now.
5 AAC 39.223. Policy for statewide salmon escapement goals ....
(b) The board recognizes the department's responsibility to
(1) document existing salmon escapement goals for all salmon stocks that are currently managed for an escapement goal;
(2) establish biological escapement goals (BEG) for salmon stocks for which the department can reliably enumerate salmon escapement levels, as well as total annual returns;
(3) establish sustainable escapement goals (SEG) for salmon stocks for which the department can reliably estimate escapement levels when there is not sufficient information to enumerate total annual returns and the range of escapements that are used to develop a BEG;
Vince Webster was never a commercial guy in my opinion. He seemed more comfortable with KRSA when he first got in there.
Those KRSA guys must be vindictive. Next thing they'll keelhaul Morrisky and Johnstone for bad behavior.
Face it. The KRSA hired guns have to do a jihad like this else they look stupid and incompetent: first they wiretap UFA then they lose their butts at the statewide meeting. This is about saving face.
Nothing more
Nothing less.
The reality is that the board of fish is so anti Commfish that they shut down a multi million dollar fishery last summer in cook inlet even though the kings were a larger run than the minimum by around 14,000
And Vince Webster voted with KRSA on that one.
My how these guys forget their buddies.
We aren't big Vince Webster fans.
But we believe the western Alaskans, ESP the Bay, needs representation. And this is the guy they and Governor Parnell have chosen.
So let it lie, KRSA.
If they f$&@ with the Governors guy and block the confirmation, let's get a commercial fisherman that KRSA will really love.
Besides, the new guy, or gal, won't be up for confirmation until after the Cook Inlet meeting next year.
Someone with more insight than I should point out the fallacy of KRSAs reasoning here.
The king salmon escapement goals were not lowered. Doing my quick math it appears the minimum escapement--- the same estimate that killed our commercial fishery last year-- was indeed raised.
In any event, what a circus this has become.
KRSA won't be satisfied until they have all 7 seats
And then they'll whack their own guys for someone better
Btw
What happened to the UFA eavesdropping case.
Did UFA kiss and make up or just invite KRSA to join
Bobbyt
Bobby T: You are one funny man. By the way, how did the Sitka herring go for you? Not too many people laughing about that out come, I bet. So will this disaster be Bill Davidson's swan song. He is a good man and must feel terrible about what happened.
Sitka herring?
Never been to even see the fishery. I've always just been hired to work on Equal Split.
And I'd say that it looks good for equal split.
Bill doesn't manage the fishery anymore but he used to and did a great job. Dave Gordon does. And he does a superb job. With equal split he'd have got em this year as well. He's been dead on for about 10 years in a row now, maybe 12.
And he will be managing the fishery for another 20 years, FYI
BTW, Vince sure looks good in that picture.
Bobbyt
Bill was quoted on TV and in some blogs explaining what happened to the fishery this year so i just assumed he was still active in the management along with Dave. We had a chance at equal shares in Ketchikan, but your good buddy Jensen sunk our boat. Those unfamiliar with the fishery went right along with him. Some friend, huh? Webster's picture should be on some porn site. Is that the best Wes could come up with?
That's the official photo from the board website.
No,not RM, their new guy is an old friend Kevin Delaney. Notice how he is always hanging out with the KRSA gang at BOF, NPFMC and the Halibut Commission ?
You sporters are fools. Kings need to be managed essentially as bycatch when the much larger red run comes through.
Furthermore, you need to take kings off of your personal use and subsistence plates in favor of reds when necessary. You really don't care about the long term health of the resource.
After shutting down the entire sockeye season for the set nettters in cook inlet last year KRSA still has the fucking nerve to try to tshovel shit on our graves
Watch when you cross the street Rueben and Ricky
KRSA Blog. This is their favorite legislors test to see if a BS-Cow-Mooo Blog can deny the governor's choice award Webster. Need re-election money?
This ain't got nothing to do with biology - two decades of KRSA's fish come first scorched earth policy against commercial fisheries has Jack-in-the-box Ricky still ranting in the halls finger pointing when escapement goals are met but they don't get their way...
Vince ain't never going to get the favorite commercial fish board award from anybody. That's reason enough to keep him seated.
Thanks Ricky for telling the Board of Fish, ADFG, and the governor they can't do their jobs in your rant.
We'll see if your favorite legislators can Mooo too.
I am surprised that Deckboss would allow the threat made by 2:15 to be published. It is outrageous and perhaps even unlawful. Wonder which ESSN fisherman made the statement. I hope that the members of the legislature read this threat before they cast their votes on the BOF appointees. Thank you 2:15 for illustrating just how rabid some of you can be. You have personally set back the ESSN efforts by you comments. And it is too bad as many of your group are decent people just trying to get by.
No wonder the BOF will not have a meeting in Kenai/ Soldotna. These commercial guys might assault someone. Really, have you ever heard of an in river sport guy or a guide ever engage in such conduct? It is always the ESSN people that get unreasonably aggressive. And it does not serve their interests. It is counter productive. Big change is about to happen. The legislature is finally becoming aware of the imbalance and harm being done to Alaskans by the commercially dominated BOF and the Dept. Think that Cora is balanced? How about the Governors fisheries lady, S. Moreland. i don't think so. But what is about to happen will open a lot of eyes to where the problem lies. A solution is about to occur.
What's going to happen~the second coming of Christ?
the poster at 215 wasnt an ESSN fisherman
it was from someone in juneau.
just an fyi. someone in juneau more likeit as you wouldn't find Rueben Hanke or Ricki Gease in Kenai. They've been in Juneau now for 3 weekds illegally lobbying
imbalance on the Board of Fish.
sure. 2 setnetters, a former commercial guy who now leases sport skiffs in Petersburg, and 3 sports fisher guys.
sure it's an imbalance but the combined total of commfish experience here is zero.
"I am surprised that Deckboss would allow the threat made by 2:15 to be published. It is outrageous and perhaps even unlawful. Wonder which ESSN fisherman made the statement. I hope that the members of the legislature read this threat before they cast their votes on the BOF appointees. Thank you 2:15 for illustrating just how rabid some of you can be. You have personally set back the ESSN efforts by you comments. And it is too bad as many of your group are decent people just trying to get by."
Hell, I've had posts completely erased just by mentioning Larry Cotter and Don Young in the same sentence. Yes, very selective on the blogmiesters part.
Hey Wes fuck you
The Department sets escapement goals. Rolling into the Bristol Bay meeting this year the Department set higher escapement goals for all sockeye escapements in Bristol Bay.
Webster led the assault on the Department's autonomy to set escapement goals and stonewalled the introduction of setting the Department's new higher goals.
Because of his protests, a three year "task force" was created to "study" the Department's "recommendation" to raise the sockeye escapement goals in Bristol Bay.
First time ever that the Department got rolled by a board member on their duty to use science to set salmon escapement goals in Alaska.
KRSA got mauled at the BOF statewide meeting, they look like steaming dung for their eavesdropping episode, so now lets throw rocks at everybody. Does anybody but the handful of fat cat non-resident anglers they represent really take them seriously anymore? Their claims are about as valid as the KKK's, and they should be archived accordingly.
Webster and Kluberton have done a fine job, no matter which party your affiliated with.
You sniveling dipnetters need to shut the fuck up, and go to Safeway where you can buy all the cheap food you want. Comparing yourselves to subsistence folk is beyond ridiculous.
Commercial fisherman feed the world.
Vince, shave and a haircut before pictures buddy.
That's his Miami Vice look. Miami Vince.
I thought he was from California?
Webster did not set the escapement goal on the Kenai. the Dept did. However he tried on different occasions to set even a lower OEG which the board of fish has authority to do. He wanted around a 13,000 OEG which was less than the ADF&G scientists said would be sustainable. By doing this he would have the ESSN fishers fishing additional time without regard to the conservation impacts. Once a set netter, ---. He then offered up, at the last moment and without any notice to the public, a proposal to restrict from the beginning of the season the Personal use fishers ability to harvest any Kings. While at the same time he offered the commercial set net fishers additional time to harvest fish including Kings. He did exactly the same thing in PWS by restricting the PU harvest of shrimp, but at the same time allow the commercial harvest to continue. There are well over 150,000 alaskan residents that benefit in one way or another from the PU fisheries and everyone of them should write their elected representative and urge them to NOT confirm Webster. And the support of Webster and Kluberton by people who make threats on this blog will not help them, believe it. If i were either of them I would pray that this support would stop. Finally, Bobby T. Your attempt to stir up the KRSA/ UFA pot once again falls on deaf ears. It was just a failed attempt by UFA for attention, which back fired on them. Instead of making KRSA the bad guy, it turned out to be a show illustrating just how ineffective UFA has become. No wonder Arni left them.
Turn out the lights, the party is over. You better start looking for a replacement for Webster. And Kluberton: you better hope that you have not been irreparably tarnished by the unwelcome support of the Trollers Assoc, UFA, and by the threatening statements from the ESSN fishermen
This will be notice to the governor and to the Dept. that the one sided approach always favoring the commercial sector will no longer serve the best interests of the State of Alaska. .
30,000 PU dipsticks: Hmmm. 500,000 sockeye need 1200 kings?
Over a million pounds of rotten fish carcasses tractor raked back into the Inlet by the city of Kenai; groundkeepers take 101 PU coliform and garbage clsss.
ADFG's office home-pak freezer filled with a million bucks from pu sport license. The only garbage they have to deal with is recyled printer ink.
Ricky's dad (pu rep) bitches during the Task Force meeting that pu will "give up 1200 kings" only if the eastside setnetters are screwed from 75 hours per week to two 12 hour periods per week like in KRSA's plan.
In 2012 pu dipsticks took 70,000 sockeye in one day more than the eastside took in fishery disaster season.
Fish and Game's eo tells pu to release kings in 2012 and now Webster get poled from Ricky blogs like he came up with it. The Task Force board generated proposal had it as an option from a sport fish organization and Ricky says it never happened...
Ricky's legislative Vince Webster public hanging?
KRSA's back room deals with "their" board members to screw Joe Public Fisherman at the last minutes of board meetings for commercial guides and lodges is a pure public process?
Dipsticking Webster? What s bunch of PU garbage...
Again
What a bunch of bs
Anonymous folks making anonymous threats to public officials
You anonymous hacks have gotta get thru guys like me to mess with public officials
Threatening these guys
For shame
I'll protect even the ruebens and rickis from harms way
But particularly the not so veiled threats at Tom Kluberton
You anonymous freaks are just that
Show your face to come after these honorable reverred public officials and you gotta get thru me.
And I ain't a little guy
Bobbyt
Booby T part of the seiners mob. How much do I have to pay for protection?
Organized crime anyone?
Good post Bobby, I saw that threat last night & it's unacceptable. I'm definitely surprised to still see it up, Wes please remove 2:15's comment
I find it odd that April 6, 2013 at 6:28 AM-er isn't concerned over 8:21's list as unacceptable. The Tom Kluberton veiled threat certainly crossed the line. Hypocracy knows no bounds...
Webster and Kluberton were publicly thanked by All fishing organizations for their hard work and professional conduct during the Task Force meetings.
A statewide meeting is held and the board voted 7-0 to put ADF&G's new escapement goal into the King Plan.
Now all hell breaks loose from one organization that praised Vince Webster and Tom Kluberton?
Setnetters didn't win anything at the statewide meeting. They didn't get what they suggested and neither did KRSA or anyone else - end of story. The responsibily for management of both sockeye and fisheries is on the department of Fish and Game - end of story. Has that been a problem in the past - yes, the department acknowleged they would double their efforts in-season and they'll be judged on their performance.
The king forecast isn't great but it's not a terrible either and all users should be able to fish normally - as stated by both Directors. If the return comes in stronger - everyone should be pleased and not bitching about it.
Respect the resource, respect the historical and tradional fisheries, and respect those who serve on the board.
If you don't like the way the public process works - write, bitch and moan, but don't cross the line to personal character attacks on a board member because you didn't get your way by a vote of 0-7.
Booby T: You could probably take em if the fight took place in a phone booth. Anywhere else and within a few short seconds you would be used up. None of us are what we once were. It IS refreshing, however, to see a commercial guy recognize just how improper these threats are even when made to individuals whose agenda conflicts with their own. Go 'T'
So what is your guess on Monday's vote. Is Webster going to make it or is he going down? It will probably be very close. My take is Webster wins easily. Don't know why UFA and the ESSN groups are worrying so much.Tthe more they campaign the worse it could be for Webster. It starts people talking about it when they had no reason to in the first place. Regrettably, the earlier poster was correct. Kluberton may get swept up in this mess. Lucky Morisky. He will come through with nearly all voting for him. As he should.
Webster and Klubeton took the time to participate in the task force, and earned many good people's respect on all sides of the fisheries issue because of it. The task force allowed ADFG to present the data in a way that everyone could understand, which made it much harder for KRSA to manipulate. They did not control the process, and did not get the allocative outcome they were looking for. This was an instance where the BOF process worked. All Alaskans are better off. Now KRSA is spinning more lies and manipulation to try and block Webster's confirmation. However you feel about Vince Webster, don't let these greasy pricks get their way. If KRSA wins, Alaskans lose. I'm confident that more people get that now than ever. Go nuts boys, keep spending money in Juneau! Everyone still thinks you suck!
Funny. Bob Penny quote-" Grandpas are for taking kids fishing."
To bad you and your million lodge cohorts have so over populated the river with shoulder to shoulder fishermen, that there isn't room enough for kids to enjoy it. Sport in this state is WAY to commercialized.
I take my boys fishing on the river in September for coho ever since the early-run kings went in the toilet.
Didn't much care for or like the guides running over my kids lines while fishing in July. Not fun when your kids see you blow your stack or having to hear your kids say "what's up with that dad"...
Real threats don't sound like the "...crossing the street" comment. Calm the flounder down boobt. (But you almost had my 5 year old daughter scared with the comeback, or was it your brown dripping nose?)
A.N.Onymous
Morisky is a UN-approachable drone. If there is a sport avenue, he's voting for it. PERIOD! No one on this board should be narrowminded, uneducated about fisheries, or this rapped up in party line politics. It was ridiculous to hear him ask, "is scaring fish into nets an accepted practice around the state?" Well, Duh!! Maybe not in Fairbanks, but everywhere else where fishing ACTUALLY takes place it is, and a fisheries boardmember should know that. You fat lodge owners need to double your prices, cut your clientele in half, and lower the baglimits. This would make for a better experience for your fishermen, less work for you, and take the pressure off of you to fight with us Alaskans for resource. If you did, you wouldn't have to pressure the gov. to put clowns like Morisky on the board, and we can all be spared the embarrassment. Where else are your people going to go? They'll pay it.
Perhaps KRSA could bug the legislators offices, so they can know in advance what sympathy card to play next.
Big frog in a small pond croaking for sympathy. Good news is, other than the handful of politicians you've bought off with a "charitable gift" of riverfront property, not many people left are willing to listen to your forked tongues.
Sounds like the same person is making these attacks. the lingo is the same and the timing is as well. Taking on Morisky is just plain stupid. I was at the Statewide meeting and am a commercial guy. He was very approachable. I must say that there are a couple people within our organization that are just too radical and I believe I know who is writing these unfair, unfounded comments. And it he does not stop , I will dime him out. We need to end these unkind dialogs as they do not help any of us. Perhaps Wes could do a little better job of editing these comments. i know this is supposed to be a "open' opportunity to express ones opinion without fear, but it is getting pretty ugly.
Dime this, 7:05. No commercial guy would say that. Your a KRSA drone, and if you don't like the heat, maybe you should stay in the closet.
I can't imagine how anyone in their right mind would ever put their name in for the Board of Fish after this. What we all ought to do is just walk away from the process and boycott it.
It has gotten so poisoned and corrupt it is not even worth commenting on this KRSA lead character assassination.
Very sad time for fisheries management in Alaska!!
Hey, Hello, Yoowhoooooo. Are there any men out there?
Reading some of the stuff on this blog note makes me envision big adult men talking garbage in the manner of boys between 9 and 12.
It's no wonder that the fisheries resources all over the state are showing extreme evidence of stress. Too much bullying of the regulators have been going on too long. Time for the ethical adults concerned about our resources to step in and help manage for sustainability and fairness to all users groups.
KRSA comments in their "Action Alert" about Webster and Kenai chinook escapement goals are disingenuous, to say the least. To be consistent, they should oppose Kluberton and Morisky too, since they voted with the rest of the Board 7-0 on the new goals. KRSA conveniently left out the Bendix/DIDSON issue and how that played into forming the new goals.
But, alas, we are headed for a system in the State--that KRSA has long cultivated with plentiful money and illicit lobbying--where a person doesn't serve on the BOF unless it is with their tacit consent.
RE-BOOT VINCE WEBSTER.
Whatever is said on this site will have nothing, i say again, nothing to do with helping with Webster's confirmation. The die has likely already been cast. Call them names, threaten them, whatever. When KRSA goes to work they generally get their man. They work at their tasks, spend time in Juneau providing information to the legislators, have fund raising events, get to know those who make decisions so they have access, and eventually get their man/woman one way or another. All the nasty posts are coming from those who envy KRSA's effectiveness. In all the time I have been reading the comments on this site, I cannot remember anyone claiming to be a sports guy using profane language, threatening individuals who have different views then their own, or naming individuals with whom they disagree and them label them with hostile descriptions. No, in each case it is a commercial fisherman, and generally someone from the ESSN group who engages in this unprofessional conduct and is afraid to pen his name. And don't think that it goes unnoticed. The legislators read these comments and from what I have been told by some of their staff they find the ugliness very counter productive to the commercial fish agenda. So, go ahead with the crap. It will be of no assistance when it comes to the confirmation of Webster. It hurts his chances.
You think court is being held because of what is written on this bathroom wall? You KRSA dudes need to ease up on the Glaucoma medicine. You think anybody is buying your nonsense? Typical of rich guys, you think your money can buy you anything you desire. It's true that money can buy some politicians, but you can't buy them all. Your antics are beyond sleazy. If you were half the sportsman you claim to be, you'd keep all uncle Bob's payoff money out of it, and let decisions prevail accord to what's right. Vince is a good man, and you guys know it. To run him down for disagreeing with you, takes your organization to a whole new low, and THAT is something everybody in this state sees.
I like that. It's called deckboss by the way. This is where commercial guys come to bitch about all your bullshit. If you don't like it, go spy somewhere else.
Anon @ 3:04 PM, and organization that stoops to electronic spying could just as easily post negative and threatening anonymous messages on a web site pretending to be someone (a commercial fisherman for instance) that they aren't. Then those same dirty tricksters would probably then point a finger and say, look at how bad THOSE guys are.
Illegal lobbying by Krsa
Illegal activities by a 501c3
Illegal mark Hamilton
Illegal eldon mulder
I'm a former Krsa member at 800
I'm sick of the illegal activities of my former friends
When I was with Krsa we supported vince Webster
Again and again
Then we tried to whack the PU guys on kings and blame it on vince Webster
All you tough guys type away complaining on this blog, why not get together and take a little control. This is just a blog with information for you to use as a guide for helping you get something done. Stop bitching and do something about it!
Why do commercial interests or sport interests sit on the board? If you own a piece of the resource isn’t it a conflict of interest? This is entirely political and just wrong. The Fish Board should be comprised of people who have no economic interest in making certain all of us have fish in Alaska. Let’s be honest and get rid of all the political aspects. The commons is not being served by this board.
The fight for fish has occupied every section of Alaska now. In a battle for the top, commercial users have all others trying to move up the access ladder. Everywhere this has taken place, the end result is: Big money wins, and that doesn't include LOCAL money. Alaska is now a playground for the affluent sporties. Politicians will make it happen. Cheap, gov't. suckling commercials will loose the funding but maintain the greed and tumble down the ladder. Most likely Bobbly T. will end up with stitches. Drained and looking to Groundswell for ADVISE on corruption. A full circle left hook. Got the bag of popcorn standing by.
Post a Comment