According to a story in the Kodiak Daily Mirror, subcommittee members, headed by Gilchrest, are interested in how science is integrated into the management process, whether management is a transparent or public process, what the major issues in Alaska's fisheries are and what lessons can be learned from this management. Young will be in Kodiak exclusively to listen to testimony presented at the meeting. Stakeholders testifying for the subcommittee are by invitation only, but the public is encouraged to attend. The witness list is made up of industry leaders knowledgeable about federal fisheries issues and sustainable fisheries management.
The Mirror reported that Dave Benton, executive director of the Marine Conservation Alliance, was asked by the subcommittee to testify. Benton will present the alliance's position in regards to the reauthorization of the act. MCA agrees with the North Pacific Fishery Management Council's principles for an ecosystem-based approach to management. In addition to supporting continued regional council management authority, the alliance also supports many of the recommendations from the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, according to the Mirror. The alliance especially supports the increased institutionalization of scientific review in the council decision-making process.
The witness list for the subcommittee hearing includes Dr. William T. Hogarth, director of the National Marine Fisheries Service; Chris Oliver, executive director of the North Pacific Fishery Management Council; Carolyn L. Floyd, mayor of the city of Kodiak; Jerome Selby, mayor of the Kodiak Island Borough; Al Burch, executive director of the Alaska Draggers Association; Duncan Fields of the Gulf of Alaska Coastal Communities Coalition; and Arni Thomson, executive director of the Alaska Crab Coalition, among several others.
A former Alaska senator is part of a new task force formed to develop national aquaculture standards to guide future development of the nation's oceans and devise ideas to reduce harm from fish farms proposed off the U.S. coast.
Former Sen. Arliss Sturgulewski, R-Anchorage, will participate in the Marine Aquaculture Task Force, formed by a collaboration between the Woods Hole Oceanographic Institute and the Pew Charitable Trusts, with additional support from Lenfest Foundation. The nine-member task force will host and participate in a range of scientific and policy-making forums; engage leaders from government, industry, science and the environmental community; and publish a report recommending national standards for sustainable aquaculture. The Woods Hole Oceanographic Institute reports that to address aquaculture's risks and benefits, the members of the task force will be guided by the principle that marine aquaculture must be conducted in a way that does not harm fish and wildlife and the ecosystems on which they depend.
The U.S. Department of Commerce has called for a fivefold increase in domestic aquaculture production by 2025. Although most aquaculture in the United States is currently inland or near the shore, much of the growth in aquaculture is expected to come from fish and shellfish farms in ocean waters. To facilitate this growth, the Commerce Department recently sent legislation to Congress that would greatly expand aquaculture in federal waters extending from three to 200 miles offshore. According to the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, 70 percent of the seafood Americans consume is imported, and at least 40 percent is farm raised. In 2002, the United States ranked 10th in worldwide aquaculture production, accounting for just over 1 percent of the global market.
Cristy Fry has commercial fished in Homer since 1978 and has also designed and built gear for the industry. She currently longlines for halibut and sablefish, and gillnets salmon in Upper Cook Inlet aboard the F/V Realist.
