Tag Archives: Senator Lisa Murkowski
Lisa Murkowski concerned with NOAA fisheries’ to list Alaska Chinook Salmon as endangered
In Washington D.C. on Thursday, NOAA Fisheries announced a petition to list Gulf of Alaska Chinook Salmon as “threatened or endangered” under the Endangered Species Act. Senator Lisa Murkowski expressed her concern in the following statement: “Incredibly, NOAA is moving ahead even after finding that the Wild Fish Conservancy’s petition ‘contained numerous factual errors, omissions, incomplete references, and unsupported assertions and conclusions.’ As we fight to save our salmon and salmon fisheries alike, we need to rely on the best available science, instead of half-baked petitions intended to get conservation groups a foot in the door to attack our fisheries and resource development.” more, >>CLICK TO READ<< 09:54
Senator Lisa Murkowski: Investing in seafood industry pays off
Alaskans know just how essential fisheries are to life in the 49th state. The seafood industry is the largest direct employer in our state, providing 60,000 jobs and generating over $5 billion for Alaska’s economy. Over 15 percent of Alaska’s working age rural residents are employed by the industry. And commercial fisheries are a cultural and economic cornerstone in small communities across the state’s 33,000 miles of shoreline. Alaska’s seafood industry also provides for our nation. Catches in Alaska make up more than 60 percent of all seafood harvests in the United States, >click to read< 15:11
The NOAA Oversight Project – Fisherman’s FOIA’s Squeeze NOAA
From Dutch Harbor to the Old Harbor Float in Petersburg, from Gloucester and all the way round to Corpus Christi, wherever Americans untied their boats to fish in the decades since the Magnuson Act passed, fishermen had to take on science, politics, and NOAA. Some of you spent your shore time up to your knees in fish politics dividing the stock or arguing with managers about areas or days at sea. Because you engaged in politics, new generations of kids setting and hauling gear can still catch fish. Sort of– Sit down, put a mug up, and read this expose. You will be shocked. Read the article here 16:28
USDA invites offers to sell canned sockeye
The U.S. Department of Agriculture is now soliciting offers to sell canned sockeye salmon in its plan to purchase $30-million dollars worth. The USDA announced this plan last month after Senator Lisa Murkowski wrote a letter to Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack asking him to approve the purchase, which she said would alleviate a surplus inventory and put a nutritious product in food programs around the country. The canned salmon will be distributed to school lunch programs and food banks around the country. Link 11:50
Russia furthers Arctic dreams while America sleeps
Murkowski’s starting point in her presentation was that the United States should have prepared for assuming the chairmanship of the Arctic Council but did not. The United States took over the two-year position from Canada last Friday. Obama and, I imagine, his predecessors would never admit any such failure. Why, last Friday, Secretary of State John Kerry, the Arctic Council’s new chairman, stated the president’s Arctic policy. It is coping with climate change, period. Read the rest here 13:35
Discharge exemption ok’d; USCG Act reauthorized
Fishermen can safely hose down their decks without fear of violating the Clean Water Act. Congress yesterday voted unanimously to extend a moratorium for three years that exempts commercial fishing vessels from needing incidental discharge permits. Senator Lisa Murkowski spearheaded the bipartisan push –Read the rest here 18:35
Stakeholders Laud Senator Murkowski’s Legislation Pushing Back Against Presidential “Fiat”
“My legislation is designed to ensure that our oceans are not locked away with a stroke of the President’s pen,” Murkowski said. “The continued foreclosure of our lands and waters threatens economic activities from fishing to exploration for oil and natural gas.” GO LISA!!!! Read more here 17:26
Murkowski Commends Wal-Mart Decision – Announcement “Clear Vindication of Our Superior Sustainable Management”
WASHINGTON, D.C. – Wal-Mart today announced that it will continue to buy Alaska seafood for its nationwide stores, concluding a four-month review of Alaska’s sustainability standards and practices. Senator Lisa Murkowski – who has been pushing back against outside groups attempting to question Alaska seafood since last Summer – had the following to say: Read more here 20:49
Alaska Fish Factor: Good Science Should Drive Fisheries Policy
US – Good science should drive all fisheries decisions, and Lite Guv Mead Treadwell says he has the chops to maintain a true course.Treadwell, a Republican who hopes to unseat Democratic US Senator Mark Begich in November’s election, paid a recent visit to Kodiak and “talked fish” in a brief interview. Comment deadline flub – No one appears to know that a deadline to have a say on how man-made sounds affect marine mammals is January 27. Two days after Christmas, NOAA released its “Draft Guidance for Assessing the Effects of Anthropogenic [man made] Sound on Marine Mammals,” which seeks to improve understanding of acoustical impacts on the animals. Read more@thefishsite 13:40
Murkowski Muscles GSA in Sustainability Fight – Gets Major Change in Guidelines
In a recent letter (attached) from a GSA Assistant Commissioner, the official writes to Senator Murkowski that the agency agrees, and that “American managed fisheries do not require third-party certification to demonstrate responsible and sustainable practices.” [email protected] 13:40
MSC Americas director resigns amidst salmon certification debacle – See ya!
Kerry Coughlin has resigned as head of Americas for the Marine Stewardship Council (MSC), just over a month after she sent an open letter hitting out at critics of the program and in the same week as an objection to the re-certification of Alaska salmon to the MSC standard. much more@undercurrent 11:27
Murkowski Responds to Resignation of Alaska Salmon Adversary – here
Seafood certification – who’s really on first? Nils Stolpe
“Sustainability certification” has become a watchword of people in the so-called marine conservation community in recent years. However, their interest seems to transcend the determination of the actual sustainability of the methods employed to harvest particular species of finfish and shellfish and to use the certification process and the certifiers to advance either their own particular agendas or perhaps the agendas of those foundations that support them financially. continued here
The Marine Stewardship Council (MSC) is the largest international organization – headquartered in London – providing fish and seafood sustainability certification. It was started in 1996 as a joint effort of the World Wildlife Fund, a transnational ENGO, and Unilever a transnational provider of consumer goods.
David and Lucille Packard Foundation, Marine Stewardship Council (MSC), Monterey Bay Aquarium, National Park Service, NOAA, Obama Victory Fund., Park Service Director Jonathan Jarvis, Resources Legacy Foundation, Senator Lisa Murkowski, The Writings of Nils Stolpe, US Department of the Interior, Walmart, Walton Family Foundation, World Wildlife Fund
Murkowski Hires New Fisheries, Economics Policy Experts
WASHINGTON, DC – Senator Lisa Murkowski today announced the hiring of Jay Sterne to advise her as she shapes effective federal fisheries policies for the nation – and the hundreds of thousands of square nautical miles off Alaska,,,, Read More
