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News Articles
Following is a selection of recent news articles about Bristol Bay. Click into any news story to read the full article.
GOOD GRADES IN THE BAY
January 15, 2011
Anchorage Daily News
Bristol Bay salmon fishermen got good report cards for boosting the quality of their fish.
For the past two summers, a group of 15 driftnet fishermen at Egegik participated in a project that graded portions of the salmon catch they delivered to processors. The fish were headed and gutted and graded by plant standards to see how much, or if, their quality scores improved.The results?
"The percentage of No. 1 quality fish went from 43 percent in 2009 to 69 percent in 2010. That's a huge jump," said project director Mark Buckley, a 23-year Bay fisherman and owner/operator of Digital Observer Inc.
(NOTE: See the second item in the column, below references to a reality show seeking fishermen's wives.)
Alaska Wilderness Recreation & Tourism Association (AWRTA) urges EPA to "veto" Pebble Mine
January 11, 2011
AWRTA Website "Visti Wild Alaska"
On December 8th, AWRTA sent the following letter to EPA Administrator, Lisa Jackson. As the letter states, AWRTA does not oppose mining, but we do oppose unwise development that threatens the state’s unique environment and the recreation and tourism industry that depends upon it.
Dear Administrator Jackson:
The Alaska Wilderness Recreation & Tourism Association (AWRTA) respectfully requests that the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) immediately initiate a section 404(c) process pursuant to 33 U.S.C. § 1344(c) to prohibit specification of those waters of the United States associated with the development of the Pebble Mine in Alaska’s Bristol Bay as disposal sites for dredged or fill material.
Acidification Of Oceans May Contribute To Global Declines Of Shellfish, Study By Stony Brook Scientists Concludes
January 11, 2011
Woods Hole Group regarding Stony Brook News University Press Release (9/27/2010)
"Our findings regarding the effects of future CO2 levels on larval shellfish are consistent with recent investigations of ocean acidification demonstrating that calcifying organisms will experience declines in survival and growth, as well as malformed CaCO3 shells and hard parts," they wrote. "However, our examination of the development of larval shellfish at levels of CO2 present before the industrialization of the planet provides important insight regarding the potential effects ocean acidification has had on calcifying organisms during the past two hundred years."
BBEDC program will boost aid for fishing boats
January 9, 2011
The Bristol BayTimes
Bristol Bay Economic Development Corp. has announced the expansion of its vessel upgrade assistance program and near doubling of its maximum grant amount available to resident fishermen for this work.
The change is part of BBEDC's continuing effort to increase the fishing income of resident harvesters by encouraging chilling and better handling of salmon, said Fritz Johnson, regional fisheries coordinator or the community economic development firm.
The expanded upgrade assistance program, announced the first week of January, includes deck and fish hold improvements in addition to hold insulation, and increases to $10,000 the maximum grant amount available to resident fishermen.
The change is part of BBEDC's continuing effort to increase the fishing income of resident fishers by encouraging chilling and better handling of salmon, Johnson said. Besides the larger grant award, slush bags, insulated totes and fish hold insulation continue to be part of that overall effort to boost fishing income for local fishermen.
Oil findings boost chance of corp. criminal charge
January 6, 2011
AP Washington Post
NEW ORLEANS -- Months of investigation by a presidential commission and other panels reinforce the likelihood that companies involved in the Gulf oil spill will be slapped with criminal charges that could add to the huge fines they already face, legal experts said Thursday.
The reports don't blame a single person or group responsible for the series of mistakes. That means in the end no one may go to prison for the worst offshore oil spill in U.S. history.
BP, Transocean and Halliburton should survive thanks to their financial arsenal, though charges would take another chink out of their armor.
Meetings on offshore drilling held throughout Arctic
January 4, 2011
The Arctic Sounder
WASHINGTON - The Bureau of Ocean Energy Management, Regulation and Enforcement (BOEMRE) announced that it will hold a series of public scoping meetings this February on the Programmatic Environmental Impact Statement (PEIS) for the proposed 2012-2017 Outer Continental Shelf (OCS) Oil and Gas Leasing Program.
Lawmakers introduce legislation to protect wild salmon
January 3, 2011
The Tundra Drums
Representatives Bob Miller and Scott Kawasaki today introduced their opposition to the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) approval of genetically-modified salmon for sale and consumption in the United States, a written statement from Kawasaki's office said.
The pair of House Democrats on the Fisheries Committee said they intend to introduce a series of bills in direct response to hearings by the FDA on a proposal by AquaBounty Technologies to produce hybrid Atlantic salmon. They say the bills will halt enactment of laws that will harm the Alaskan seafood industry and could diminish wild Alaskan salmon stocks.
Northern Dynasty (NAK): A takeover target?
January 3, 2011
The Stock Advisors (website)
... I am looking for a $25 to $40+ a share takeover offer for Northern Dynasty over the next year or so.
148 Year Old Historic Ship Used In Early 1900's Bristol Bay Salmon Fishery Still Sails In California
January 3, 2011
KDLG 670 AM Public Radio for Southwest
More than 100 years ago, the primary link between Bristol Bay and the outside world was through very large sailboats that would make the long voyage north every spring and then head south again each fall before the ice returned. One of the ships that used to sail to the Nushagak River from San Francisco every year was the Star of India. Surprisingly, the Star of India is still afloat and sail-ready today in San Diego, California.
A standout year for local seafood
January 1, 2011
Anchorage Daily News
Alaska's seafood industry worked hard in 2010 to ramp up its message to policy makers, especially those from the Railbelt region who tend to overlook the industry's economic significance.
How important is the seafood industry to Alaska and the nation? At a glance:
• 62 percent of all U.S. seafood landings come from Alaska.
• 96 percent of all wild-caught salmon comes from Alaska.
• Seafood is by far Alaska's No. 1 export, valued at nearly $2 billion (next in line: zinc and lead at $785 million).
• Alaska ranks ninth in the world in terms of global seafood production.
The seafood industry is second only to Big Oil in revenues it generates to the state government's general fund each year. The industry provides more Alaska jobs than oil and gas, mining, tourism and timber combined.
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