Sorted by date Results 801 - 825 of 944
JUNEAU, Alaska (AP) – Gov. Sean Parnell has asked a federal agency to buy about 1 million cases of canned pink salmon to ease a glut that has weighed down prices for Alaska fishermen this year. Parnell made the request in a letter to U.S. Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack this week. He wants the USDA to purchase $37 million worth of canned pink salmon under a federal law that allows for buying surplus food from farmers and donating it to food banks or other programs. USDA purchased $20 million worth of salmon earlier this year, which Parnell c...
July 25, 1914 – Workmen employed in blasting soft rock from a quarry in Connecticut recently came across a bit of rock which had been blown out about thirty feet underground which, when cracked, exposed a live worm that lived five days after it had been exposed to view. How long the worm had been occupying his cramped quarters is mere conjecture. July 26, 1974 Celebrating Pilot's 40th Year – Petersburg gets publicity in the strangest ways. It has come to our attention that the Department of the Interior, in a report on the subject of "Towing Ic...
ANCHORAGE, Alaska (AP) — An Alaska Army National Guard soldier was wearing a combat helmet and other protective gear when he was attacked by a bear while participating in a training exercise at a military base, officials said Monday. Sgt. Lucas Wendeborn of Valdez is being treated for puncture wounds and lacerations after the mauling Sunday at Joint Base Elmendorf-Richardson. The female brown bear was defending her two young cubs, base officials said. Wendeborn's injuries are not life-threatening, National Guard spokeswoman Maj. Candis O...
The Southeast Seine fishery is performing as expected despite a closure last week, said Alaska Department of Fish and Game (ADFG) biologist Dan Gray. “As expected, we have a fairly low pink salmon forecast and it’s early yet in the development of that run, but it looks like what we thought,” Gray said. In the Hidden Falls terminal harvest area, the Northern Southeast Regional Aquaculture Association needs 180,000 chum salmon for brood stock. As of July 8, only 5,000 passed the barrier net and into a containment area. “Without that in place i...
JUNEAU, Alaska (AP) — Southeast Alaska's watersheds are changing quickly, and researchers are working to figure out how, why, and what those changes mean. Sanjay Pyare, Assistant Professor of Geographic Information Systems and Landscape Ecology, Sonia Nagorski, Research Assistant Professor of Environmental Sciences, Brian Buma, Assistant Professor of Forest Ecosystem Ecology, and other researchers affiliated with the University of Alaska and the Alaska Coastal Rainforest Center _ including graduate and undergraduate students _ on a recent F...
“Butterflies are amazing, how the hell do they navigate?” One of the many things Paul Garceau wondered about. That wonder ended when Paul passed away, June 8th,2014 at Prescott Valley, Arizona. Paul was born at North Attleboro, Massachusetts on April 4th, 1930. He always enjoyed being outdoors, the woods and lakes were favorite areas to explore. He was setting his own trap lines by the age of eight, a free spirit even as a boy. He knew at a young age he needed to go to Alaska, and he did, hitchhiking across country in 1950. Before his jou... Full story
Salmon takes center stage in Alaska every summer, but many more fisheries also are going on all across the state. The world’s biggest sockeye salmon run is expected to surge into Bristol Bay any day, where a catch of about 17 million reds is projected. Elsewhere, the annual summer troll fishery in Southeast Alaska kicks off on July first with a target of just over 166,000 Chinook salmon. Lots of crab fisheries are underway each summer— Dungeness fishing began on June 15 in Southeast where a harvest of 2.25 million pounds is expected. The reg...
The Crystal Lake Hatchery reconstruction project has one less hurdle to jump through after Kim Rice, Alaska Department of Transportation and Public Facilities deputy commissioner, delegated authority to the Alaska Department of Fish and Game (ADFG) in order to expedite project completion. “(DOT&PF) generally oversees state facility projects such as the Crystal Lake Hatchery,” Rice wrote in a letter to Petersburg Mayor Mark Jensen. “However, because DOT&PF is aware of the critical nature of this facility to the community of Petersburg, my staff... Full story
You’ve heard it before and you’ll hear it again: The seafood industry is Alaska’s largest private employer, putting more people to work than mining, oil/gas, timber and tourism combined. The annual revenue the seafood sector contributes to State coffers is second only to Big Oil. So where does the seafood industry rank for the major candidates running for Alaska Governor and the US Senate? Here’s what a thorough look at each of their campaign websites reveals, starting with the race for Governor (all in alphabetical order)— Byron Mallott (...
The Alaska Department of Fish and Game has announced this summer’s first Southeast Alaska purse seine fishery opener. Areas in District 2 and District 12 will be open 5 a.m. to 8 p.m. from Sunday, June 15 through Wednesday, June 18. An ADFG press release states the 2104 chum salmon return to Hidden Falls Terminal Harvest Area (THA) is 1,072,000. “Of this return, 180,000 are needed for brood stock leaving 892,000 available for common property harvest,” the press release states. King salmon landing restrictions for Kendrick Bay state fish great... Full story
Petersburg High School seniors are graduating next Tuesday in the high school gym. Petersburg School District teacher Sue Harden is retiring this year and will be the honored speaker during the ceremony. Among the many highlights at the event, the school’s band and choir will perform and Class Historian Fran Abbott will provide a history of the class. Petersburg High School and Mitkof Middle School Principal Rick Dormer said the senior class tends to set a tone for the school’s climate each year. This year’s class has created a quieter and c...
Salmon season is just getting underway, but seafood companies are still selling last summer’s record catch of 226 million pink salmon - and it has prompted lots of creative thinking. “The challenge is to market all this fish and still maintain the value,” said Tyson Fick, communications director for the Alaska Seafood Marketing Institute (ASMI), the state’s lone marketing arm. “It wouldn’t be any problem for the producers just to flood the market, and then we would see a tremendous downward pressure in years to come. More so, we see this as...
Gerald "Jerry" Patrick Wollen, 58, was born in Aberdeen, Washington on June 14th, 1957 to parents James and Ruth. He had wonderful memories of his early years growing up with older brother Jamey and younger brother Randy, his many cousins and friends in the little town of Oakville, Washington. He remembered fondly their paternal grandparents Oscar and Alice Wollen, often telling stories of those early years that remained a cornerstone of the childhood adventures of his youth. As the boys grew... Full story
The 33rd Annual Petersburg Chamber of Commerce King Salmon Derby gets underway this Friday at 7 a.m. The derby continues through the Memorial Day Weekend and ends Monday at 5 p.m. Two tagged fish will hopefully be available for anglers this year. Derby Committee member Doug Welde and volunteers were still seeking two Kings to tag at press time Thursday morning. One tagged fish could bring a derby angler a chance at $5,000 from Hammer and Wikan and the other could garner a $10,000 prize sponsored by Alaska Marine Lines and the Petersburg... Full story
The debate over which sector – commercial or recreational fishing – provides the bigger economic punch can finally be put to rest. The annual ‘Fisheries Economics of the US’ report by the Dept. of Commerce shows once and for all that in terms of values, jobs, sales and incomes the commercial sector far outscores recreational fishing. A breakdown of the extensive report by market analyst John Sackton shows that in 2012, commercial fishing had $140 billion in sales compared to $58 billion for sport fishing. And for the value contributed to the...
JUNEAU, Alaska (AP) — King salmon fishermen in much of Alaska are facing dismal catch predictions this summer but that's not the case in southeast Alaska. The Juneau Empire reports high returns last year and high escapement projects in rivers outside Alaska are making commercial and sport fishermen optimistic about 2014. King salmon abundance estimates along the Panhandle have more than doubled from last year. The Alaska Department of Fish and Game says 439,400 kings can be caught this year. That compares to 266,800 in 2012 and just 176,000 l...
The Alaska Department of Fish and Game released a final update of the Sitka Herring Sac Roe fishery results. Fisherman netted 16,976 tons of herring, down from preliminary projections but still exceeding the guideline harvest by 643 tons. The March 20 season opener saw the most herring coming up in nets at 5,031 tons. The total mature roe was recorded at 12.4 percent. The baseline market price for roe is 10 percent. Processors were offering around $150 per ton this year, down from $780 last year. Fish and Game Area Management Biologist Dave...
Southern Southeast Regional Aquaculture Production Manger Bill Gass said he’s impressed by how fast State officials are moving forward with plans to reconstruct Petersburg’s Crystal Lake Hatchery incubation facility that was destroyed by a fire last month. “It’s not a matter of deciding to pay it or not,” Gass said. “Before an expenditure of that magnitude happens or not they (State officials) need to get engineers involved, quotes from contractors, a fully functional design that would go out to bid… We’re the contracted operators but t...
Sitka sac roe herring fishermen sold their catch at around $150 a ton this season-a dramatic decrease compared to last year's sac roe average price per ton of $780. Sitka's Alaska Department of Fish and Game Area Management Biologist Dave Gordon said past fisheries in Sitka as well as Kodiak and Togiak have flooded the market. "There's an over supply," Gordon said. "There's always a desire to get the maximum quality under those circumstances...It's something that seems to happen in this fishery... Full story
The Alaska Department of Fish and Game (ADFG) announced yesterday a 2014 Southeast Alaska Chinook salmon all gear harvest quota of 439,400 fish. Those fish fall under the Pacific Salmon Treaty—non-Alaska-hatchery produced Chinook. “The quota is based on the forecast of aggregate abundance of Pacific Coast Chinook salmon stocks originating from river systems in the area subject to management under the treaty, which stretches from Cape Suckling, Alaska to Cape Falcon, Oregon,” an ADFG press release states. ADFG officials stated the actual 2013...
The Alaska Department of Fish and Game announces the regulations for king salmon, effective April 2, 2014 - April 30, 2015. The regulations are: Alaskan Resident: The resident bag and possession limit is three king salmon 28 inches or greater in length. Nonresident: The nonresident bag and possession limit is one king salmon 28 inches or greater in length, except during May and June the bag and possession limit is two king salmon 28 inches or greater in length. The nonresident annual limit is six king salmon 28 inches or greater in length....
Fisherman fishing the Sitka Sound Herring Sac Roe fishery harvested more than half of its guideline harvest limit this past week. As of March 23, according to the Alaska Department of Fish and Game, 9,858 tons of herring have been pulled out of the water leaving 6,475 tons remaining. There was an opening Wednesday afternoon that targeted around 3,000 tons but an exact harvest weight wasn't determined at the time this report was written. On March 25, officials observed herring spawning on...
Commercial troll fishery public meeting to be held in Petersburg The Alaska Department of Fish and Game will hold commercial troll public meetings in Petersburg on Wednesday, April 2 at 12:30 pm in the Petersburg Library Conference Room. Meeting topics will include, but are not limited to, plans for the 2014 spring and summer troll fisheries, the 2014 Pacific Salmon Treaty Chinook salmon abundance index and quota, and a review of the 2013 troll season. All members of the public are welcome to attend. State seeks public input on ferry schedule...
Alaska’s salmon catch of 273 million salmon set a record last year – and so did the number of salmon returning home to state hatcheries. The 2013 Fisheries Enhancement Report by the AK Dept. of Fish and Game shows that a return of 112 million hatchery reared salmon contributed 36 percent to the state’s total salmon harvest. The breakdown by species was 63% for chum salmon, 38% for pinks, 23% for Chinook salmon, 22% for cohos and 5% of Alaska’s sockeye salmon catch can be credited to hatchery returns. Unlike farmed fish, which are crammed...
The Alaska Department of Fish and Game announced the Sitka Sound herring roe fishery is on a two-hour notice as of 8 a.m. March 20. A test sample taken March 17 from shallow waters near Magic Island revealed a high percentage of immature roe with an average weight of 201 grams, which is higher than average. Although the immaturity levels during that time were considered high, the past several days may have allowed more growth time as well as the separation of less mature herring from the mature schools. The guideline harvest level this season... Full story
