Fish Factor: Dutch Harbor #1 in Landings & Values Again!; Ketchikan #15 in Landings, 18th in Values By LAINE WELCH - Dutch Harbor does it again! For the 21st year in a row, more seafood crossed the Dutch Harbor/Unalaska docks in 2009 than any other port in the nation. the #2 and #3 ranked ports for landings were Empire-Venice, LA and Reedville, VA. Kodiak ranked #4 for fish landings last year, up from the #5 spot in 2008. In all, 11 Alaska communities made the list of the top 50 ports in the U.S.

The information comes from the just released and much anticipated Fisheries of the United States annual report by NOAA Fisheries, which covers both commercial and recreational fishing.

According to the report, a total of 506 million pounds of fish and shellfish were landed at Dutch Harbor last year, down from 612.7 million pounds in 2008, a decrease of more than 18%. At Kodiak, deliveries jumped to nearly 283 million pounds, compared to 250.9 million pounds the previous year, an increase of 16.5%.

In terms of dockside values, scallops again helped New Bedford, MA retain the top spot at $249.2 million last year. Dutch Harbor came in second at $159.7 million, a drop of about $8 million from 2008. Kodiak landings increased to $103.8 million, up from $98.7 million.

Total U.S. seafood landings in 2009 were 7.9 billion pounds, valued at $3.9 billion, down 6% and 11% respectively from 2008.

Americans ate less seafood last year - 15.8 pounds per person, compared to 16 pounds in 2008. It's the lowest amount since 2002 when per capita consumption was 15.6 pounds. The National Fisheries Institute will soon unveil the list of the top 10 seafood favorites, based on the annual report.

Funding for boats, byproducts and bashes

Funding is available for various salmon-related projects and the call is out now for proposals. The money comes from the Alaska Sustainable Salmon Fund with oversight by ADF&G. Projects are selected by the Anchorage-based Alaska Fisheries Development Foundation.

The funding focus is on three areas: the first is energy audits for fishing boats - specifically, learning how much energy various salmon vessels use.

"We don't have a lot of expertise in that field, so if someone had the ability to contract for energy audits, say on a 32 foot gillnet vessel," that would be of interest," said AFDF director Jim Browning. - More...
Friday PM - September 03, 2010

Ketchikan: Older ELT units can pose a safety concern for the general aviation community - At 3:10 am Thursday, the Ketchikan Volunteer Rescue Squad's office received a call from United States Coast Guard Sector Juneau requesting assistance in locating a 121.5 Emergency Locator Transmitter (ELT) transmitting in the Ketchikan area. The USCG reported flight service was hearing the signal very strong just south of the airport.

According to infromation provided by Jerry L. Kiffer, at 3:35 am, the Direction Finding team (DF team) started tracking the signal. The signal was heard in the Bar Harbor area and as far south as Mountain Point. The signal's audio quality was good but the signal was very weak and the team had difficulty in determine the direction the signal was coming from said Kiffer.. Direction Finding operations performed at several locations that seemed to indicate the signal might be originating from the Airport. At 6:40 am, the team located the signal on an aircraft parked on the ramp at the airport. The owners of the aircraft were contacted and they responded to secure the signal.

The number team deployments for Emergency Locator Transmitter (ELT) signals has fallen sharply this year after the February 2009 USCG decision to turn off the receivers on the SARSAT satellites that were listening for 121.5 emergency signals said Kiffer. "We certainly do not feel the number of signal activations have been reduced, but with the satellites no longer listening, we fear the beckons are transmitting until their batteries go dead. This may result in an aircraft taking off with an ELT with a dead battery, and in case of a crash the ELT will then not operate."

Kiffer said, "We consider this a very serious safety concern for the general aviation community. If an aircraft crashes in a remote location the ELT will activate but we will have no way of knowing that the aircraft is down unless somebody happens to fly by close enough to receive the signal. The occupants of the aircraft will simply have to wait until they are reported overdue before a search will be started. Without a Lat/Long position from the ELT, rescue crews will be forced to start the search from the point of departure instead of flying directly to the scene." - More...

Alaska: State Petitions to De-List Steller Sea Lions - The State of Alaska this week petitioned the federal government to remove the Eastern distinct population segment (DPS) of Steller sea lions from the list of species protected by the Endangered Species Act (ESA). The state coordinated its filing with Oregon and Washington, which also filed a similar petition this week.

The National Marine Fisheries Service (NMFS) has divided Steller sea lions into two "distinct population segments" - a Western DPS and an Eastern DPS. The Western DPS is listed as endangered; the Eastern DPS is currently listed as threatened.

The Eastern DPS has surpassed the recovery objectives set by NMFS and the threats facing the sea lions have been addressed, meriting their removal from the list of threatened species.

"We're working on multiple fronts to ensure that commercial fishing and other important economic activities are not blocked by unwarranted ESA regulations," Governor Sean Parnell said. "Removing a recovered species from the list reduces needless bureaucracy and litigation risks." - More...
Friday PM - September 03, 2010

Alaska: Salazar, Hayes Visit Alaska to Discuss Arctic Energy and Conservation Issues with Local Communities - U.S. Secretary of the Interior Ken Salazar and Deputy Secretary David J. Hayes today have completed their trip to Alaska where they have spent several days meeting with local communities, representatives of Alaska Native organizations, stakeholders, and energy industry officials to discuss energy and conservation issues on Alaska's North Slope.

"Alaska's energy resources are vital to our nation's economy and to the State's future, but we must be thoughtful and responsible in developing those resources so that we protect Alaska's fisheries, wildlife, and remarkable beauty for generations to come," said Interior Secretary Ken Salazar. "In the Arctic, we must continue to be guided by caution, science, and the voices of North Slope communities, including Alaska Natives, as we chart a wise path forward."

"The people of the North Slope have seen dramatic shifts that climate change and other human-related impacts are having on the Arctic's landscape and wildlife," said Hayes. "It is vital that we hear from those who have lived on this land for generations, so that their experiences, their observations, and their hopes for the future can help guide our nation's decisions in the Arctic." - More...
Friday PM - September 03, 2010

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Congratulations to Joe Miller by Ken Bylund - My hat's off to you, Joe, best of luck; enough honest effort will bring this once great ship of state back into safe waters. Only hope you can be strong in the face of bribery [aka compromise and arbitrary justice]. These seem to be the primary tools in Washington. Best advice -- buy a copy of Capitalism: The Unknown Ideal, by Ayn Rand, read it again, or better, get the Audible read by Anna Fields... refresh that keen memory as to what we are. - More...
Wednesday PM - September 01. 2001

Road Construction By Al Johnson - Sitting in the traffic during our North Tongass Highwasy re-construction reminded me that I wanted and am now, writing to say how much I appreciate the work ethic of the Secon construction company, crew and subcontractors is during this construction effort. The professionalism of the equipment operators is fascinating to watch, the daily dispatch of road debris is outstanding.Daily progress reflects rapacity towards the job completion. - More...
Monday PM - August 30, 2010

Gaanax adi Lands Are Not Yours By Aan Kadax Tseen aka Don Hoff Jr. - I was born and raised in Ketchikan; I have sat on the City Council/Vice Mayor, O.S.H.A. Review Board member/Chairman, I.R.A. Councils, etc. I have been writing opinion letters on Land Claims for Ketchikan. - More...
Monday PM - August 30, 2010

Miller is DEPLORABLE By Stacey Stone - Miller had a campaign full of lies and now he is likening a United States Senator to a prostitute. Who is this man and who in the heck in their right mind can consciously vote for him? - More...
Monday PM - august 30, 2010

Wrong By Susan Round - Perhaps Mr. Edward's attitude toward libraries and literacy, and those who share it, have much to do with children not meeting "standards". Ever consider that? I wholeheartedly and enthusiasticly support the new library. I raised two children in this community. They spent a considerable amount of their childhood in the public library and they both exceeded the "standards" by any measure. - More...
Monday PM - august 30, 2010

Thank you voters By Diane Naab - The members of ABC: A Better Choice are pleased with the voter turnout concerning the library site location. We thank those in the community who took the time to vote. - More...
Monday PM - August 30, 2010

Raven's Way program thanks Sitka merchants for their support By Rebecca Howe - Over the course of the year, the SouthEast Alaska Regional Health Consortium (SEARHC) Yéil Jeeyáx Raven's Way adolescent residential substance abuse treatment center receives support from several organizations in Sitka. Raven's Way would like to thank five Sitka businesses for their support. - More...
Monday PM - April 30, 2010

In response to Library By Aprill Gass - This is the first time I have written to Sitnews, I was happy to see Mr. Edwardson point out the lack of educational progress we have seen in this community and the new library. I agree that we have many important issues facing us, the library seems to be one we could put on hold for the time being given the economic climate of our town. - More...
Monday PM - April 30, 2010

Voting Haida Corp. By Frances C. Natkong - If anyone on Haida Corporation Board of Directors approaches you asking you to vote for ANYONE please give me a call at 907-209-9447. Board members are not supposed to be campaigning, it is against policy. - More...
Monday PM - April 30, 2010

Appreciation for Volunteers By Judith Green - KUDOS to all those who volunteer to sit at the polling places. - More...
Monday PM - April 30, 2010

Economy By Robert Freedland - Our economy is of great concern to me. We have 9.5% unemployed and many other who have lost hope about finding a job, and we do not have a unified approach to dealing with this problem. - More...
Monday PM - April 30, 2010

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