Tag Archives: Chris Ystad
Sitka Assembly considers helping Southeast trollers in legal fight that could shut down the fishery
The Seattle-based environmental group Wild Fish Conservancy wants to stop the Southeast troll fisheries, which they say harm an endangered population of orcas. And in December, a federal judge in Washington issued a report that puts the fisheries at risk of closure. The Alaska Trollers Association is a defendant in the 2020 suit against the National Marine Fisheries Service. Sitka fisherman Matt Donohoe is the president of the Trollers Association. He says they object to the report and expect their legal expenses to increase. “Anyone claiming that Southern Resident killer whales are starving because Alaska trollers were taking food from the mouths of their babies would be laughed out of court. That’s what we thought,” >click to read< 11:48
Industrial park board backs proposal for spending Sitka hospital sale proceeds on marine haulout
The board of directors of Sitka’s Industrial Park has lent its unanimous support to a proposal to use proceeds from the sale of Sitka Community Hospital to construct a marine haul out. Directors of the Gary Paxton Industrial Park debated the issue for a half-hour at their monthly meeting on Monday (7-11-22), addressing many questions that are likely to be raised by the public if the question moves to the ballot this fall. Municipal administrator John Leach said the possibilities of growth were significant for hauling larger ships, possibly even Coast Guard Fast Response Cutters, which currently are serviced in Homer and in California. The idea was, “if we build it, they will come.” >click to read< 20:38
