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#02-12-2014 - ComFish News Roundup

Sealaska chair vows to support STA herring lawsuit
by Emily Forman, KCAW
February 11, 2014 12:26 pm
Sealaska board chair Albert Kookesh has vowed to back the Sitka Tribe of Alaska should it decide to sue the state over Sitka Sound sac-roe herring fishery. At a meeting of tribal leaders in Sitka last week, Kookesh said, ”I’m the chairman of the board of Sealaska Corporation. I told Sitka Tribe 2 or 3 years ago: you guys file suit, we’ll be... http://www.kcaw.org/2014/02/11/sealaska-chair-vows-to-support-sta-herring-lawsuit/

Peter Micciche's swift rise to power in the Alaska Senate 
Pat Forgey
Alaska Dispatch
February 11, 2014
JUNEAU -- What to do when you're a first-term senator, have been a dependable vote for Gov. Sean Parnell and Republican legislative majority leaders, but along comes an issue that your constituents are telling you -- loudly -- that they don't support the governor's position on? The answer: Remember who your boss is. For Sen. Peter Micciche, R-Soldotna, that issue came with House Bill 77, a regulatory rollback measure supported by Parnell, the oil industry and Republican leaders. But it's been controversial on the Kenai Peninsula, where concerns about local control and loss of salmon run strong. When the newly elected Sen. Micciche had to... https://www.alaskadispatch.com/article/20140211/peter-micciches-swift-rise-power-alaska-senate

Alaskans hear East Coast perspective on MSA
BY MOLLY DISCHNER
Published: 2014.02.11 11:47 PM
SEATTLE — Several members of the North Pacific Fishery Management Council participated in a workshop on the Magnuson-Stevens Act Tuesday organized by the Center for Sustainable Fisheries and National Fisherman magazine. The Center for Sustainable Fisheries is a New Bedford-based nonprofit. President Brian Rothschild was the primary speaker, offering his perspective on what changes to the Magnuson-Stevens Act are needed. The act, or MSA, is currently in the process of being rewritten. House and Senate committees have held hearings on the changes, and in December the House Natural Resources Committee released its draft version of possible changes. The Senate has not yet... http://www.alaskajournal.com/Blog-Fish-Bytes/Blogs-2014/Alaskans-hear-East-Coast-perspective-on-MSA/
Seafood processing tax credit expansion supported
by Joe Viechnicki
February 10, 2014 9:50 am
A bill that would continue and expand Alaska’s tax credit for seafood processors installing new equipment had support from the Parnell administration and the industry before the House fisheries committee Thursday. Supporters said the legislation could help companies get more value out of the salmon and herring caught around the state.... http://www.kfsk.org/2014/02/10/seafood-processing-tax-credit-expansion-supported/

Local fisheries group gets $10K grant
Posted: Wednesday, February 12, 2014 12:30 am | Updated: 12:32 am, Wed Feb 12, 2014.
Staff Report
FAIRBANKS — The Alaska Native Fund has granted $10,000 to the Yukon River Drainage Fisheries Association for a project to reduce Bering Sea salmon bycatch.... http://www.newsminer.com/news/local_news/local-fisheries-group-gets-k-grant/article_6003641a-93c8-11e3-8f3e-0017a43b2370.html

Will Rio Tinto divest interest in Pebble?
The California State Controller and New York City Comptroller's offices refused to back down from their request that mining giant Rio Tinto divest from the Pebble Mine, even in the face of an aggressive response from Northern Dynasty Minerals - the company behind the controversial gold and copper mining project proposed at the headwaters of Bristol Bay, Alaska. Instead of backing away from their request... http://www.nationalfisherman.com/news-events/top-news/2999-will-rio-tinto-divest-interest-in-pebble

Pebble deserves fair evaluation
Posted: Tuesday, February 11, 2014 12:00 am
By Rep. Eric Feige
Community Perspective
As U.S. Sen. Mark Begich and state Rep. Andy Josephson have recently opined about Pebble, I offer some of my own thoughts in response to the rhetoric of politicians more interested in inciting fear and “us vs. them” thinking than facts. I flew my own plane to the Pebble deposit two summers ago and believe it is imperative that any elected officials who want to weigh in on this matter should at a minimum visit the property for themselves and visit with all groups expressing views on... http://www.newsminer.com/opinion/community_perspectives/pebble-deserves-fair-evaluation/article_e99b9404-92f1-11e3-9b2b-001a4bcf6878.html

B.C.’s Nisga’a reach out for LNG development, offer land in exchange for jobs
Jeff Lewis | February 11, 2014 | Last Updated: Feb 11 5:02 PM ET
CALGARY – Generations of Nisga’a people have fished for salmon, eulachon and trout that flourish in the Nass River on British Columbia’s northern coast. These days, H. Mitchell Stevens is angling for a more lucrative catch. The president of the Nisga’a Lisims Government, which administers a sprawling territory including 2,000 square kilometres of coastline tucked just south of the Alaska-B.C. border, is making a bold appeal for a slice of the natural gas-export rush that has gripped Canada’s West Coast.The Nisga’a are touting four new parcels of coastal land about 100 kilometres northwest of Terrace, B.C. as a more direct — and cheaper — route to Asia for the province’s gas molecules than rival locations scouted by.... http://business.financialpost.com/2014/02/11/b-c-s-nisgaa-reach-out-for-lng-development-offers-land-in-exchange-for-jobs/

Americans’ catfish is going to be Made in the US once again and also more expensive
By Shawn Regan 6 hours ago
Shawn Regan is a research fellow at the Property and Environment Research Center (PERC) in Bozeman, Montana. On Feb. 7, President Obama signed the long-awaited Farm Bill, ending a two-year battle over the direction of US agricultural policy. The 949-page bill touches on nearly every aspect of the US food system, from crop insurance to food stamps.... http://qz.com/176115/your-catfish-is-going-to-be-made-in-america-once-again-and-also-more-expensive/

‘Soft lobbying’ war between sugar, corn syrup shows new tactics in Washington influence
By Tom Hamburger, Wednesday, February 12, 4:42 AM
A group called Citizens for Health recently launched a campaign to encourage consumers to reduce high-fructose corn syrup in their diet — filing a petition with the Food and Drug Administration demanding stricter labeling on food items containing the sweetener. Yet the petition did not disclose that the organization, which bills itself as the “voice of the natural-health consumer,” has received the bulk of its funding in the year it launched the effort from sugar companies, which see corn syrup as a threat to their profits..... http://www.washingtonpost.com/politics/soft-lobbying-war-between-sugar-corn-syrup-shows-new-tactics-in-washington-influence/2014/02/12/8123da00-90dd-11e3-b46a-5a3d0d2130da_story.html











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