Alaska fisheries history buffs have a new source of information in a publication unveiled recently at the Board of Fisheries meeting in Sitka: "Sustaining Alaska's Fisheries: Fifty Years of Statehood."

Requested by the Alaska Department of Fish and Game, funded by the Alaska Fisheries Marketing Board and written by former fisheries reporter and historian Bob King, the book chronicles the major role that the salmon fisheries played in the fight for statehood, and the dismal shape the runs were in when turned over to state management by the federal government, as well as the recovery efforts that have made it one of the bedrocks of the Alaska economy.

Filled with interviews and stories from fishermen and politicians who took the fight for statehood and control of the salmon fisheries to the federal government, the book details the state's commercial fishery management heritage and explores many of the original principles of sustained yield, local area management, and public participation in the regulatory process that are the hallmark of the state's management program.

In introducing the book to the Board of Fisheries, Fish and Game Commissioner Denbly Lloyd said, "I hope you enjoy this book, as a resource and a reminder of the visionary pioneers, scientists and leaders who have been a part of developing Alaska's amazing commercial fisheries. The stage is set for keeping our fisheries wild and productive, sustaining ways of life and livelihoods for generations to come."

Author Bob King worked as news director for public radio station KDLG in Dillingham, in the heart of the world's largest salmon fishery, for nearly 20 years, and was recently tapped to be Sen. Mark Begich's point person on fisheries in Washington, D.C.

Copies of the book can be obtained by calling Nancy Long at (907) 465-6166, or e-mailing nancy.long@alaska.gov. There are a limited number of print copies available, but it will also be available online this week through the "publications" link at the Fish and Game Web site, adfg.state.ak.us/, although Long says that the on-line copy will not be as "slick and sexy" as the print copy.

The effects of sea lice from salmon farms on wild salmon runs in British Columbia has opened up a battle that may end up being sorted out by the courts as the Kwicksutaineuk and Ah-Kwa-Mish First Nations (KAFN) filed a class-action lawsuit in the B.C. Supreme Court against the provincial government, claiming farmed salmon in open-ocean net pens have harmed wild salmon.

The tribes' territory, the Broughton Archipelago north of Vancouver Island, has been the center of the sea lice debate in recent years because of a 2007 study that indicates sea lice from farmed salmon infesting wild runs may lead some wild runs to extinction within four to six years. The KAFN argues that the provincial government is responsible by authorizing 29 farms to operate near juvenile salmon runs.

The problem outlined by the study is that adult Atlantic salmon, which are large enough to tolerate sea lice, are penned near the outflow of streams where juvenile salmon are entering salt water. As the juveniles pass the pens, they are infected with sea lice, which the study showed often kills them. In natural conditions, the adult salmon that carry the sea lice aren't in the migration channels and rivers at the same time as young pink and chum salmon, so the little fish are not infested.

KAFN Chief Bob Chamberlain says suing the provincial government was necessary because wild salmon runs throughout their territory "are in a sustained and serious decline; some salmon runs may become extinct and never be replaced. The salmon have existed here as long as we have, and it is essential to the survival of our distinct aboriginal culture that plentiful stocks of wild salmon survive."

KAFN wants the province to admit wrongdoing in authorizing the farms, as well as an injunction against further aquaculture permits.

Salmon farms in Chile recently faced problems importing their product into the U.S. because the fish were fed banned pesticides to prevent sea lice infestation.

Canada has about 280 salmon farms that produce about 96,000 tons of fish valued at about $387 million each year. About 70 percent goes to the United States. British Columbia has about 100 salmon farms, 29 of them in the Broughton Archipelago.

Cristy Fry has commercial fished in Homer since 1978. She also designs and builds gear for the industry. She can be reached at cristy-fry@excite.com.