Flea Market, US Canada Salmon Treaty

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Salty
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Flea Market, US Canada Salmon Treaty

Post by Salty »

I was at the fisherman's flea market sponsored by our local Sea Wives and it was another great success with lots of fishermen trading junk and treasures and generally having a good time visiting. Thank you to the Sitka Sea Wives.
While visiting I learned that we are likely to take a significant long term cut in our share of the modeled abundance of treaty Chinook. I can't be more detailed as this whole thing is shrouded in secrecy and confidentiality but it does not sound good. It sounds like ATA and our troll representatives held out for a better deal but were eventually rolled by the States lead negotiator and the interests of everyone else in getting a deal. While the "team" no doubt will circle the wagons and put as good a face on this as possible I understand this was not a consensus deal at least initially. I don't know if ATA has supported this or not. I hope not. I applaud ATA and any of the negotiators who held out for a better deal. Losing some of the modeled abundance to other interests when Alaska has the record of conserving Chinook just does not seem right to me.
For example:
Alaska is the one entity in the treaty who has successfully rebuilt our salmon runs;
SE Alaska provides complete sanctuary for all Chinook in all our freshwater spawning systems;
SE Alaska has a complete prohibition on groundfish trawling in both State and Federal waters thus reducing Chinook bycatch;
Alaska has prohibitted finfish farming thus reducing Chinook mortality due to sea lice, competition with farmed fish, and sickness due to net pen pollution;
Alaska has a "Wild Salmon priority" built into our statutes (Thank you Dick Eliason, troller);
Alaska has led the way to reduce high seas gillnetting (Thank you SEA COPS);
And for a variety of reasons SE Alaska has reduced its timber harvests to a fraction of that when we went into the treaty;
Upcoming proposals to the Board of Fish could save even more Chinook by reducing charter effort and their catch and release mortalities in known areas of high abundance off of the SE Coast.
For these reasons and more I am disappointed that we might be offering more of our share of the coastwide harvest to other entities that for a variety of reasons have not taken the strong Chinook conservation positions Alaska has. Thank you to ATA and our negotiators who held out for a stronger negotiating position. Shame on the States lead people for sacrificing Alaska interests to get a deal.
Remember that I am one troller who has a long record of advocating for conservation in the face of strong peer opposition. I still bear significant political scars from advocating for prohibitting treble hooks, proposing the troll fishery go barbless, open the season later, better protection for SE salmon from the timber industry, and throwing out pro-development charter sport fish advocating Legislators. I spent 20 years on the Sitka Conservation Society Board, was at the founding meeting of the Southeast Conservaion Council, helped found and worked five years for the Alaska Marine Conservation Council, and served on the State's sustainable salmon runs task force which paved the way for Alaska Salmon being the first major species to recieve a marine stewardship council certification. So, my concerns with the treaty process in which Alaska gives up more of its share of the Chinook harvest go well beyond that of an industry advocate and include my perspective as a long time fishery conservationist.
Rewarding those interests who are not doing the job to provide safe passage, and sustain their Chinook populations at the expense of the entity who has been making the tough decisions to conserve the resource seems like another Republican strategy to punish those of us supporting good science and responsible natural resource management. I have sat beside the state's lead negotiator when he blatently pandered to Frank Murkowski and organized UFA to endorse him for Governor when Frank couldn't even remember his prepared position on halibut management. While I have not heard enough from a short conversation with two ATA Board members and a treaty representative at the flea market to know for sure what is coming, I smell a skunk.
ata
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Re: Flea Market, US Canada Salmon Treaty

Post by ata »

Morning All:

Well, it looks like the Treaty deal is signed and the press started today. I will write a more detailed posting ASAP to share a bit of what happened from my point of view.

The short story is, yes, there are big cuts for Alaska and Canada. And, no, ATA did not support the deal. I am awaiting a final version of the agreement, to make sure to give you precise information. Dock rumor is not my thing.

More soon...

Dale, ATA
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