Tag Archives: Bristol Bay Regional Seafood Development Association
Celebrate wild sockeye salmon — the harvest that powers Bristol Bay’s economy and feeds the world
It’s the time of year again when children have returned to school and seemingly endless daylight gives way to shorter days and cooler nights. In the Bristol Bay region of Alaska, it is viewed less as the end of another summer, and more as the end of another salmon season. Many weeks of hard work harvesting and preserving tens of millions of salmon to feed our families, communities and the rest of the world has come to an end. I can’t think of a better time to pause and celebrate Bristol Bay’s wild salmon. We celebrate the incredible journey every single salmon makes; traveling thousands of miles in its life to return to its birthplace and complete the cycle of life. Over the week of Sept. 9, a diverse coalition of commercial fishermen, business leaders, lodge owners, Alaska Native people and others, all from the Bristol Bay region, is bringing this celebration to the nation’s capital. more, >>CLICK TO READ<<10:15
Fishers harvesting abundant Bristol Bay sockeye could fill knowledge gaps about declining Chinook
In the Bristol Bay region, sockeye salmon runs have been booming while Chinook runs have dwindled. Now scientists are seeking to enlist fishing crews in the effort to find out why, as well as what can be done about the Chinook troubles. A community-focused program called Skipper Science is asking for Bristol Bay fishermen working on the salmon-rich Nushagak River to record the prevalence, locations and conditions of Chinook salmon they encounter – and the places where they are not found. In the Bristol Bay region, sockeye salmon runs have been booming while Chinook runs have dwindled. Now scientists are seeking to enlist fishing crews in the effort to find out why, as well as what can be done about the Chinook trouble. >click to read< 11:01
Bizarre salmon season winds down short of state projections
On top all the other effects of the coronavirus pandemic, it’s been a strange year for Alaska’s commercial salmon fisheries. As the fisheries are winding down, the total landings are about 17 percent behind the projections statewide. The Copper River sockeye run was a flop, as was the chum run statewide, and the silver salmon harvest was down everywhere except Kodiak and Bristol Bay. Prices were down, too, and processors had the extra expense and responsibility of keeping workers healthy in remote communities at close quarters. >click to read< 22:14
Early release of Pebble Mine Final EIS triggers barrage of criticism
Thursday a wide array of Alaska Native, commercial fishing, and sportfishing groups issued statements criticizing the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers’ Final Environmental Impact Statement for the proposed Pebble Mine after copies of the document were delivered to interested parties via USPS a day before its publication in the Federal Register. The Final EIS is not a decision on whether the Pebble Partnership will receive the permits it needs to move forward with the mine, but rather it is a scientific document the Army Corps and U.S. Coast Guard will use to make permitting decisions. >click to read< 17:16
Salmon set to return, Poor Kenai king returns will restrict start of Cook Inlet, Copper River counts keep commercial fishing closed
The start of the massive Bristol Bay commercial sockeye fishery is fast approaching but this year is bringing with it a level of uncertainly rivaled by few others even in the volatile fishing industry. Fishery participants and observers generally expect a softer market and lower prices for Bristol Bay sockeye 
due to several factors, >click to read<. Poor Kenai king returns will restrict start of Cook Inlet fishery – That means the fishing time for East Side Cook Inlet setnetters will be no more than 36 hours per week, as long as the sport gear and harvest restrictions remain in place, per the Board of Fisheries paired restrictions plan for the sport and commercial fisheries that are often in conflict. >click to read<. Copper River counts keep commercial fishing closed – There seems to be a decent chance commercial fishing in 
the Copper River District could resume soon despite a dismal start to the famed early season salmon fishery. >click to read< 16:26
Coronavirus: Bristol Bay fishermen urged to delay travel to the region until at least May 1
On Thursday, the Bristol Bay Regional Seafood Development Association, which represents the Bristol Bay drift gillnet fleet, issued its first COVID-19 advisory to the fleet asking that non-local Bristol Bay Fishermen delay travel to the region until at least May 1 and listed the state mandated quarantine protocol for anyone who does travel to Alaska from out of state.,, Since Alaska enacted a limited entry permit system, the share of permits held locally by Bristol Bay residents has declined by more than 50 percent, according to a 2017 University of Alaska Fairbanks analysis. Many drift fishermen make the trip each summer from Washington, Oregon or California. >click to read< 07:49
Lawsuit against Bristol Bay fish marketing group dismissed
The Bristol Bay Six case against Bristol Bay Regional Seafood Development Association has been dismissed. Alaska Superior Court Judge Yvonne Lamoureux said that the association is within its rights to spend money fighting the Pebble Project, which the association feels could harm the fishery of Bristol Bay. The six fishermen who had sued had said that BBRSDA was working in areas far from its mission, spending some $250,000 of fishermen’s money on contracts with groups opposing the Pebble Project. >click to read<13:55
Fishermen’s group calls Corps’ analysis of potential tailings dam failure at Pebble ‘woefully inadequate’
A new study commissioned by a Bristol Bay seafood marketing group paints a doomsday scenario if the bulk tailings dam at the proposed Pebble mine ever suffered a catastrophic breach, an outcome the U.S Army Corps of Engineers has called very remote and one the mine developer has taken steps to avoid. Billions of gallons of mud would smother valley bottoms, covering vast stretches of salmon habitat, according to an executive summary released Friday. Finely ground-up waste material from mining would travel downstream and spill into Bristol Bay more than 200 river miles from the mine site, threatening the valuable salmon fishery. >click to read<13:16
Positive trends highlighted in fall sockeye market analysis
Bristol Bay’s commercial fishing industry had a smashing good season in 2017. The massive forecast for next year has stirred a lot of excitement, and drift permit prices are up around $140,000. Now an annual analysis of the sockeye market suggests wholesale and retail prices are up, worldwide supply is down, and farmed salmon producers are still struggling to rebound. Only the prospect of Pebble Mine filing for permits has seemed to dampen the mood of Bristol Bay fishermen this fall. Andy Wink, a senior seafood industry analyst at the McDowell Group, authored the “2017 Sockeye Market Analysis” for the Bristol Bay Regional Seafood Development Association. click here to read the story 08:18
Bristol Bay fleet chilled more salmon in 2016 than ever before, according to study
The Bristol Bay salmon drift fleet sold more chilled salmon to processors last year than ever before. Bristol Bay is the world’s largest salmon fishery, and is making efforts to sell a larger portion of its catch as fillets, rather than canned. Filling those fresh and frozen orders requires chilling at the point of harvest, which more fishermen are apparently doing. According to the BBRSDA survey, chilling bonuses averaged 16 cents per pound last season. Depending on the base price, the percentage that 16 cents represents can be too large to ignore. While most new boats come with refrigerated seawater systems installed and more are added to older vessels each year, the study found there are still plenty of skippers who are holding out. Click here to listen, and read the story 16:30
Martello to lead Bristol Bay Regional Seafood Development Association
After a lengthy search, the Bristol Bay Regional Seafood Development Association has a new executive director set to start in December. The organization, which is funded by a tax on drift fishermen, announced Nov. 12 that Becky Martello would take the top job beginning Dec. 14. Martello replaces Sue Aspelund, who said last spring that she’d like to resign from the position after holding it for about a year. Martello grew up in Bristol Bay and has fished commercially,,, Read the article here 13:38
Third party subpoenas denied in Pebble litigation
A federal court judge has ruled against motions from the Pebble Limited Partnership to compel testimony and documents from third party interests in Pebble’s lawsuit against the Environmental Protection Agency. In a U.S. District Court decision handed down in Anchorage on Nov. 18, Judge H. Russel Holland quashed the motion in which Pebble sought testimony and numerous documents from the Alaska Conservation Foundation and the Bristol Bay Regional Seafood Development Association, through former employees Sam Snyder and Bob Waldrop respectively. Read the article here 16:39
Bristol Bay sockeye earnings hit decade low
For the first time in a decade, ex-vessel earnings for sockeye salmon coming out of Bristol Bay, Alaska, have fallen below $100 million, despite a “massive” return of 58m fish, according to a sockeye bi-annual market analysis prepared for the Bristol Bay Regional Seafood Development Association by McDowell Group. According to the report, 2014 marked the fourth consecutive year that base ex-vessel prices –the price paid to fishermen by a processor for whole fish — were above $1.00/lb, “Bristol Bay seemed to be on a roll; firing on all cylinders and producing strong earnings”. Value fell sharply, however, in 2015,,, Read the rest here 14:00
Seafood development association shifts focus away from Pebble Mine
The Bristol Bay Regional Seafood Development Association took another step away from prior efforts to fight Pebble Mine with the election of a new board president. The fishing association, or BBRSDA, is funded by a 1 percent tax on Bristol Bay drift fishermen. Historically it has opposed , including spending at least a fifth of its budget on sustainability and anti-mining efforts over the past several years and a policy statement adopted in 2008 that opposed large-scale mining. But that focus has been shifting away from that work. Read the rest here 21:30
The Facts: Discovery/Animal Planet’s “Battle on the Bay” – Reality, or Made for TV Drama.
In January, Discovery/Animal Planet debuted a new “reality TV” show that follows five of the 1,747 Bristol Bay salmon permit holders that fished during the 2014 season. The Bristol Bay Regional Seafood Development Association (BBRSDA), which represents all the Bay’s salmon driftnet fishermen, would like to set the record straight on a few things. Read the rest here 11:58
Bristol Bay buyback up for discussion
According to an email from Bristol Bay Regional Seafood Development Association (BBRSDA), 81 percent of drift permit holders responded to a survey last year saying they were interested in learning more about a possible buyback. Now the association is trying to decide whether to study the issue further. Read the rest here 16:30 Photo compliments of Todd Raden, Thank you Todd!
A commercial fishermen’s group Plans Ads Thanking Begich for Pebble Stance
A commercial fishermen’s group is running TV ads thanking Sen. Mark Begich for his opposition to the proposed Pebble Mine. Bob Waldrop is executive director of the Bristol Bay Regional Seafood Development Association. He says ads will begin running Wednesday. Read more@ktuu.com 12:10
Should Alaska’s largest salmon fleet look into downsizing? Alaska Fish Radio
That’s the question fishermen are posing in an informal buyback poll mailed to Bristol Bay’s 18-hundred plus driftnet permit holders. continued
Alaska Fish Radio is a 2 1/2 minute program that airs weekdays on 30 radio stations and web sites. Its focus is Alaska’s seafood industry.
Deadline is Feb. 5 to nominate to Bristol Bay Regional Seafood Development Association board
Officials of the Bristol Bay Regional Seafood Development Association have issued a reminder of the Feb. 5 deadline for members interested in nominating themselves or someone else for a seat on the association’s board of directors.
All BBRSDA members have already been mailed a written call for nominations and notice of election. Read more http://www.bbrsda.com/
Commercial fishermen applaud EPA’s peer review process for Bristol Bay assessment; mining and productive salmon stocks do not mix!
“People who are attacking this report aren’t criticizing the science but are trying to use any opportunity to attack the EPA,” said Bob Waldrop, executive director of the Bristol Bay Regional Seafood Development Association. “The agency was invited to Bristol Bay by Alaska Natives, commercial fishermen and others, and EPA is simply fulfilling its duties and responsibilities to live up to the Clean Water Act.” http://www.akbizmag.com/Alaska-Business-Monthly/November-2012/Commercial-fishermen-applaud-EPAs-peer-review-process-for-Bristol-Bay-assessment-Call-on-President-for-swift-action-to-protect-fishery-jobs-and-economy/
