Alaska Gov. Bill Walker today issued the following statement in defense of his choice for the Board of Fisheries.
Finding high-quality Alaskans to serve on the Board of Fisheries is critical, and that is why I was pleased to nominate Duncan Fields of Kodiak to fill the vacant seat on the board.
At the same time, Duncan's appointment underscores the constant struggle to achieve balance on the board. Not only is there an array of user groups — from commercial and sportfish to subsistence and personal use — there are also distinct regions which deserve representation when management issues are considered. It is not always possible to balance every need every year. This is why I believe the board should be expanded to include nine members. While I continue to support Duncan's appointment, I am working to promptly address the concern of balance between user groups.
Showing posts with label expansion. Show all posts
Showing posts with label expansion. Show all posts
Wednesday, March 21, 2018
Tuesday, April 20, 2010
Hatchery showdown in Cordova
Deckboss wishes he could be in Cordova tomorrow to hear all the hatchery talk.
The Prince William Sound Aquaculture Corp. (PWSAC), a private, nonprofit operator of some of the world's largest fish hatcheries, wants to make millions more salmon each year, which could mean millions more dollars for commercial fishermen.
The hatchery operator would create additional fish by upping its "egg take," raising more fingerlings for release into the sea. A year or three later, the adult salmon would return home, many to be captured in nets.
At 9 a.m. tomorrow in Cordova, a panel called the Prince William Sound Regional Planning Team will meet to consider the proposed expansion.
The planning team makes recommendations to Alaska's fish and game commissioner, who has the last word.
Going into the meeting, it looks bad for PWSAC.
Here's a 51-page memo from Department of Fish and Game biologists generally opposing the hatchery expansion.
Among other concerns, they say the straying of hatchery-born pink, chum and sockeye salmon into local streams already might "pose an unacceptable risk to wild salmon stocks."
They cite studies that found pink salmon display "competitive dominance," grabbing food such as zooplankton and squid and thus hurting other species of salmon from as far away as Bristol Bay and Puget Sound.
What's more, it appears juvenile hatchery pinks can prey on herring juveniles, helping retard recovery of Prince William Sound's famously depressed herring stocks.
"While this hypothesis needs to be explored with additional research, the rapid decline of herring stocks in PWS did occur shortly after a large ramp-up in production of hatchery pink salmon," the Fish and Game memo says.
Because large numbers of hatchery pinks and chums are "likely having a detrimental impact to wild stocks of salmon and herring," the department's research and management biologists are advising against increased production of these fish, which are the main hatchery species.
OK, so that's the Fish and Game perspective.
At the Regional Planning Team meeting, I expect we'll hear a considerably different perspective from PWSAC.
It'll also be interesting to hear where the commercial fishing industry stands on this. Most Alaska fishermen I know are mother hens when it comes to the health of wild salmon stocks.
According to PWSAC, the time is right to boost production.
"The global salmon market has been steadily expanding over the past several years and Prince William Sound's local processing capacity has increased significantly on numerous fronts," PWSAC said in permit alteration requests to Fish and Game.
The operator said fish resulting from the proposed expansion "should be easily absorbed" in the marketplace.
The Prince William Sound Aquaculture Corp. (PWSAC), a private, nonprofit operator of some of the world's largest fish hatcheries, wants to make millions more salmon each year, which could mean millions more dollars for commercial fishermen.
The hatchery operator would create additional fish by upping its "egg take," raising more fingerlings for release into the sea. A year or three later, the adult salmon would return home, many to be captured in nets.
At 9 a.m. tomorrow in Cordova, a panel called the Prince William Sound Regional Planning Team will meet to consider the proposed expansion.
The planning team makes recommendations to Alaska's fish and game commissioner, who has the last word.
Going into the meeting, it looks bad for PWSAC.
Here's a 51-page memo from Department of Fish and Game biologists generally opposing the hatchery expansion.
Among other concerns, they say the straying of hatchery-born pink, chum and sockeye salmon into local streams already might "pose an unacceptable risk to wild salmon stocks."
They cite studies that found pink salmon display "competitive dominance," grabbing food such as zooplankton and squid and thus hurting other species of salmon from as far away as Bristol Bay and Puget Sound.
What's more, it appears juvenile hatchery pinks can prey on herring juveniles, helping retard recovery of Prince William Sound's famously depressed herring stocks.
"While this hypothesis needs to be explored with additional research, the rapid decline of herring stocks in PWS did occur shortly after a large ramp-up in production of hatchery pink salmon," the Fish and Game memo says.
Because large numbers of hatchery pinks and chums are "likely having a detrimental impact to wild stocks of salmon and herring," the department's research and management biologists are advising against increased production of these fish, which are the main hatchery species.
OK, so that's the Fish and Game perspective.
At the Regional Planning Team meeting, I expect we'll hear a considerably different perspective from PWSAC.
It'll also be interesting to hear where the commercial fishing industry stands on this. Most Alaska fishermen I know are mother hens when it comes to the health of wild salmon stocks.
According to PWSAC, the time is right to boost production.
"The global salmon market has been steadily expanding over the past several years and Prince William Sound's local processing capacity has increased significantly on numerous fronts," PWSAC said in permit alteration requests to Fish and Game.
The operator said fish resulting from the proposed expansion "should be easily absorbed" in the marketplace.
Wednesday, October 7, 2009
Trident generates excitement in Cordova
Peter Kuttel, a manager with Trident Seafoods Corp., gave a Chamber of Commerce talk yesterday in Cordova about the company's big local expansion.
Deckboss wasn't there to listen, but luckily Rochelle van den Broek was and she shared this excellent summary.
It seems that Trident is really surging in Cordova. A big part of its expansion is squeezing value from fish waste though the production of fish oil and a liquefied fertilizer product made from a process known as hydrolyzation.
Trident is employing more people and intends to keep its plant doors open longer each year.
Kuttel indicated this is "the single largest investment that Trident has made in a community in Alaska," van den Broek writes.
Heck, the company has even pledged to help send the town's Miss Iceworm queens to college, she adds.
As background, you might recall that Kuttel ran a Cordova processor called Bear & Wolf Salmon Co. He stayed with Trident after the Seattle-based giant acquired Bear & Wolf in early 2008.
Deckboss wasn't there to listen, but luckily Rochelle van den Broek was and she shared this excellent summary.
It seems that Trident is really surging in Cordova. A big part of its expansion is squeezing value from fish waste though the production of fish oil and a liquefied fertilizer product made from a process known as hydrolyzation.
Trident is employing more people and intends to keep its plant doors open longer each year.
Kuttel indicated this is "the single largest investment that Trident has made in a community in Alaska," van den Broek writes.
Heck, the company has even pledged to help send the town's Miss Iceworm queens to college, she adds.
As background, you might recall that Kuttel ran a Cordova processor called Bear & Wolf Salmon Co. He stayed with Trident after the Seattle-based giant acquired Bear & Wolf in early 2008.
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