Friday, February 21, 2025

Alaska A cannery in Southeast Alaska is at the forefront of America’s tinned fish renaissance Alaska Public Media by Jack Darrell - February 20, 2025  Wildfish Cannery was founded in Klawock, Alaska in the late 1980s by a school teacher named Phyllis Mueller. Her grandson Mathew Scaletta is at the helm these days. https://alaskapublic.org/programs/alaska-economic-report/2025-02-20/a-cannery-in-southeast-alaska-is-at-the-forefront-of-americas-tinned-fish-renaissance Bering Sea snow crab harvest sees promising numbers despite back-to-back canceled seasons KTUU by Quinn White - February 19, 2025 ANCHORAGE, Alaska (KTUU) - The Bering Sea snow crab season opened in October after the Alaska Department of Fish and Game canceled back-to-back seasons in 2022-23 and 2023-24 due to low population numbers. https://www.alaskasnewssource.com/2025/02/20/2024-25-bering-sea-snow-crab-harvest-sees-promising-numbers-despite-back-to-back-cancelled-seasons/ NPFMC Moves Toward Decision on Minimizing Chum Salmon Bycatch Fishermen's News - February 19, 2025 Federal fisheries managers meeting in Anchorage in early February heard testimony from more than 150 people regarding minimizing chum salmon bycatch in commercial fisheries. https://fishermensnews.com/npfmc-moves-toward-decision-on-minimizing-chum-salmon-bycatch/ Funding Frozen for Weir Project Critical to Alaska’s Copper River Salmon Fishery Fishermen's News - February 19, 2025 A collaborative project to replace a weir critical to the Copper River salmon fishery in Alaska is in jeopardy after the Trump administration froze millions of dollars in funding, including $3.5 million in construction funds for the weir project. https://fishermensnews.com/funding-frozen-for-weir-project-critical-to-alaskas-copper-river-salmon-fishery/ Alaska Salmon Fishery Meets MSC Requirements Following Hatchery Audit Expana by Gina Bachorik - February 19, 2025 On Friday, February 14, 2025, the Alaska salmon fishery met the full extent of the Marine Stewardship Council (MSC) Standard requirements related to hatcheries.This comes after a recent audit was performed by independent assessment body MRAG Americas, which determined that the fishery was in compliance with MSC requirements. Per the audit, wild salmon populations continue to thrive while also maintaining the genetic integrity needed for future fishery success.Audits such as this are performed annually, and MSC recertifications are achieved every five years to meet MSC standards.Entities that assisted the hatcheries in maintaining MSC compliance include the Alaska Fishery Development Foundation, the Alaska Department of Fish and Game's (ADF&G) Commercial Fisheries Division, and Alaska Private Non-Profit Hatchery Corporations.Hatchery research and managementAlaska fisheries have taken recent measures to improve hatchery production. For example, to better follow fish origin and assess and regulate fishery contributions and hatchery-wild interactions, Alaska fisheries teamed up with the ADF&G to implement salmon hatchery research and management.One particular activity that was implemented is the State of Alaska Hatchery Research Project, which addressed hatchery-wild interactions and involved joint participation from a panel of state, federal, and academic scientists.25 years of MSC certificationAccording to the MSC, the Alaska Fisheries Development Foundation (AFDF)—holder of the Alaska salmon fishery’s MSC certificate—achieved recertification in November 2024, marking 25 years of contiguous MSC certification and sustainable management of the northwest state’s wild salmon runs. This also marks Alaska as one of the longest-running MSC certificate holders to date.As stated by the MSC, Alaska fisheries are among numerous MSC-certified global fisheries that together represent 19% of the world’s wild marine catch. https://www.seafoodnews.com/Story/1298011/Alaska-Salmon-Fishery-Meets-MSC-Requirements-Following-Hatchery-Audit National US confirms Howard Lutnick as commerce secretary amid uncertainty over NOAA’s future Seafood Source by Nathan Strout - February 20, 2025 The U.S. Senate voted to confirm Howard Lutnick as the secretary of the Department of Commerce despite fears that the Trump administration plans to cut NOAA funding or dismantle the agency altogether. https://www.seafoodsource.com/news/environment-sustainability/us-confirms-lutnick-as-commerce-secretary-amid-uncertainty-over-noaa-s-future *Requires Subscription FYI’s Recycled commercial fishing net makes a cozy parka Cordova Times by Margaret Bauman - February 20, 2025 Recycled commercial fishing nets are turning up in unusual places these days, like Patagonia’s Recycled Down Sweater Parka – rated in the Feb. 12 issue of Travel + Leisure magazine as the best lightweight woman’s parkas, of 41 jackets put to the test.   https://thecordovatimes.com/2025/02/20/recycled-commercial-fishing-net-patagonoia-parka/

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