2015-03-12 Work Session Kodiak Island Borough
Assembly Work Session
Thursday, March 12, 2015, Borough Assembly Chambers
Immediately Following the Joint Work Session
Work Sessions are informal meetings of the Assembly where Assembly members review the upcoming regular meeting
agenda packet and seek or receive information from staff.Although additional items not listed on the work session agenda
are discussed when introduced by the Mayor,Assembly,or staff,no formal action is taken at work sessions and items that
require formal Assembly action are placed on regular Assembly meeting agenda.Citizen's comments at work sessions
are NOT considered part of the official record.Citizen's comments intended for the'official record°should be made at a
regular Assembly meeting.
Page
1. CITIZENS' COMMENTS (Limited to Three Minutes per Speaker)
2. AGENDA ITEMS
2 - 14 • a. Fisheries Analyst Reports
KFWG report on meeting January 2015 McCartv.pdf
KFWG report on meeting February 2015 McCartv.pdf
20150226 KFWG report on Cotten meetinq.pdf
15 - 17 b. Letter Regarding Reduction of Staff and Hours at the Kodiak, Alaska
Weather Service Office
Stevens-Stutes National Weather Service Office.pdf
Natl Weather Service Letter KIB.pdf
Natl Weather Service Office Partial Closure.pdf
3. PACKET REVIEW
a. NEW BUSINESS
CONTRACT
Contract No. FY2015-25 Anton Larsen Bay Dock Installation.
Contract No. FY2015-27 Lake Orbin Culvert Replacement Project
Phase II.
RESOLUTIONS
ORDINANCES FOR INTRODUCTION
OTHER ITEMS
Appointment to the Providence Kodiak Island Medical Community
Advisory Board (Jerome Selby).
4. MANAGER'S COMMENTS
5. CLERK'S COMMENTS
6. MAYOR'S COMMENTS
7. ASSEMBLY MEMBERS COMMENTS
Page 1 of 17
AGENDA ITEM #2.a.
Kodiak Fisheries Work Group (KFWG)
City of Kodiak and Kodiak Island Borough
Meeting January 7, 2015
Notes:
1.The written note provided by the Clerk at the beginning of each KFWG Agenda
informs the public that the work group is an"informal meeting of representatives of
the City of Kodiak and the Kodiak Island Borough to discuss issues with its Fisheries
Analyst.... Items that require formal action are placed on a regular City Council
and/or Borough Assembly meeting agenda."
2.The following summary of the meeting is provided by the Fisheries Analyst to
simply inform the public about the main issues discussed,and is not intended to
constitute formal minutes of the meeting.Administrative Notes after each meeting
are also provided by the City or Borough staff,and included in the meeting packet
for the following KFWG meeting,available on the City or Borough website prior to
that meeting.
•
• The January 7, 2015,meeting of the KFWG was attended by members from the
Borough Assembly Larry LeDoux and Chris Lynch,and City Council members John
Whiddon and Pat Branson (Mayor). Borough and City Managers and the Fisheries
Analyst were also present. Co-chair John Whiddon chaired the meeting,which was
staffed by City staff members.City Council member Terry Haines and Borough
Assembly member Carol Austerman were absent.
Public comment.start of meeting
•
(Note: the following summary of comments is not intended to he a complete record
of all the comments given.)
Stephen Taufen expressed his preference for the House version of the
reauthorization of the Magnuson Stevens Act,saying it provided more emphasis on
transparency.
Julie Bonney(representing Alaska Groundfish Data Bank,AGDB) reported on the
indecision at the North Pacific Fishery Management Council (NPFMC or"Council")
December meeting regarding continuing action on Gulf Trawl Bycatch Management
(GTBM). She re-emphasized the pollock and cod fisheries'need for tools to better
manage bycatch of halibut and Chinook salmon.She said there was a need to meet
with the new State Administration to determine the way forward.
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AGENDA ITEM #2.a.
George Hutchings stated his view that any new program for GTBM needed to allow
vessels to freely form coops with each other,and to get a fair price for their fish
from processors.
Fisheries Analyst Reoort
The Fisheries Analyst, Heather McCarty, provided a brief overview of the situation
regarding fisheries in the new State Administration,including Acting ADF&G
Commissioner Sam Cotten,and the new configuration of the Congressional
delegation.
McCarty provided an oral summary of the written report made to the KFWG in the
meeting packet(attached) of the Alaska Board of Fisheries(BOF) meeting in
December.The BOF took no action on Proposal 26 for a 200,000-pound pollock trip
limit in Prince William Sound.At the Kodiak-based trawl industry's request,the City
and the Borough had provided letters of support to the BOF for the industry position
against that proposal.
Chairman Whiddon asked Kodiak BOF member Sue Jeffrey to come to the table to
provide information on the BOF actions on the proposal before them for an
expanded trawl fishery in State waters (inside three miles).Jeffrey said that at the
BOF meeting February 18 in Anchorage,they planned to review that initial proposal,
as well as discuss the pollock seine test fishery in Cook Inlet and the draft of a State
Pollock Management Plan.She indicated the draft management plan would be
available to the public prior to that meeting,
Jeffrey also elaborated on the BOF State Pollock Summit set for an as-yet- -
undetermined date in October 2015. She said that the BOF was looking forward to
hearing from constituents as to what opportunities they might wish to have.She
said the BOF was still in the information-gathering stage as to what they will do on
this issue.
Whiddon asked what the goal or objectives were for a State pollock fishery.Jeffrey
replied that there already was a State pollock fishery-a"parallel fishery" --inside
three miles,and that one question was how a bigger fishery would affect current
participants.
•
Gulf Trawl Bycatch Management
McCarty orally summarized the key points in the written report on the December
meeting of the NPFMC(attached),which focused on the Gulf Trawl Bycatch
Management action. Briefly,the Council agreed to delay further action on the GTBM
package,previously scheduled for April 2015,until October 2015. Between now and
October,the Council staff will continue to analyze the key elements of the current
package,although there was disagreement among Council members on whether
that work should continue according to the previous Council direction.
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•
AGENDA ITEM #2.a.
It was generally understood from Council members'comments,particularly those
from Acting Commissioner Cotten,that the new State Administration wishes to have
time to review what has been done so far on GTBM,with the possibility of
eventually proposing changes in direction. In addition,Council members expressed .
the need for more ideas on the processor aspect of the proposed action.
McCarty reviewed a range of changes in direction that could be ultimately proposed,
while saying that it was speculation only,and that other ideas might also be out
there.
The question before the KFWG was how to proceed with review of the GTBM issues
identified to be of concern and interest to the community of Kodiak. Before the
December Council meeting,the KFWG had determined it would conduct workshop-
style meetings regarding these issues with industry participants and other local
constituents. The goal was to be ready in April to provide input to the Council.
The FWG determined that the group would continue with the implementation of this
plan,and react to whatever direction is eventually given by the Council. Members
also reiterated that it is important for the FWG to continue to hear directly from
industry stakeholders and community members regarding their preferred direction
or directions for this Council action. Chair Whiddon commented that there is a
"symbiotic relationship"between the community and the industry.
Whiddon invited Duncan Fields,Council member from Kodiak,to the table to
discuss the Council's current status on GTBM. Fields indicated that to the
intersection of fisheries management and public policy,Acting Commissioner Cotten
brings a small community perspective. Fields said Cotten would be very careful
about proceeding,and would consider the impacts of a fisheries rationalization
program on small coastal communities. He also said that two Council appointments
from Alaska will be made by August 2015,with the Governor's nominations to be
made in March-and that might have something to do with delaying the State's
position on GTBM until the October Council meeting.
Fields expressed a"note of caution"-saying that while it should be the motive of
the community to move forward in developing consensus positions,it may not be
possible to influence the State's position. Whiddon asked what the community's
role could be in this process-can the community weigh in in a meaningful way.
Fields said that the efforts of the FWG and the community represent a positive step
in the right direction,and that he is an advocate for the community having a voice as
well as the stakeholder groups. He said the FWG was an essential catalyst to bring a
consensus of community positions,and he was very supportive of using it to
develop a community point of view. He just cautioned that it may not drive the
Council decision-making.
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AGENDA ITEM #2.a.
Fields also expressed the opinion that in general across the world there has been a
negative impact on communities from catch share(rationalization) programs for
fishery management He said that it had to do with transfer of capital,gifted capital,
and impacts on other fisheries. He said there could be benefits to individuals but not
necessarily to communities.
Regarding moving forward,Whiddon said the FWG recognizes the community has a
valid role in the process but needs to get together with industry and other
stakeholders to get a clear viewpoint for the October meeting of the Council.
Members Branson and Lynch said that they would like to continue with plans for
meeting with stakeholder groups in an interactive way,using the correct format.
Member LeDoux suggested a good format would be a one or two-day forum bringing
together all stakeholders,with a facilitator.LeDoux said it is necessary for the public
to know as much as they can about the effect on the community of fishery
management policies,and that most of the public does not know what is going
forward.
He also reiterated that the City and the Borough set positions on behalf of the
community,rather than the KFWG.
Whiddon suggested such a forum be held at ComFish,and the FWG supported that
plan,and agreed to identify the suite of stakeholders. LeDoux expressed the need to
include crewmembers and cannery workers. Lynch said they would put out a call for
stakeholders who wish to participate by the February meeting of the FWG.The
wording of the call would be put together by the Co-Chairs and McCarty,and
discussed at the February meeting.The call would be advertised in several ways.
The group also discussed interacting with Governor Walker and his administration.
Governor Walker has been invited to visit Kodiak some time after the end of
February. Kodiak community leaders are also heading to Juneau the end of March.
Economic Analysis
McCarty and Cassidy reported that the staff at the Borough is preparing to collect
the necessary economic data from the community files.
Public Information Process
In a continuing effort to disseminate information about the FWG meetings to the
public,McCarty suggested that the analyst provide a report after each FWG meeting.
Lynch and LeDoux commented that it was a great idea,and LeDoux indicated the
report must include points from public comments.The FWG instructed the analyst
to produce such a report
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AGENDA ITEM #2.a.
MSA Reauthorization
It was agreed that when the new Congress begins to move again on the MSA
' Reauthorization that the DC lobbyists for the City and Borough would be asked to
provide regular reports to the FWG.
Kodiak Marine Research facilities •
•
Quentin Fong from the UAF SFOS faculty in Kodiak gave a short presentation to the
FWG about the need for a replacement faculty member at the facility,and asked for
continuing support from the community for Legislative funding for such a position.
The City and Borough has provided such support in the past.
KRAA
The ED of KRAA gave a report on the EA regarding enrichment of Karluk Lake that is
now out for public comment.There is a 60-day public comment period and such
comment is important to the process.The KRAA staff has some concerns about the
content of the EA,and is preparing bullet points for use in preparing public
comment.The public meeting on the EA is January 18.McCarty will ask about a
possible extension of the public comment period.
Public comment fend of meeting)
•
Taufen asked about the EIS for the GTBM action,and addressed the usefulness of
Marine Sanctuaries to protect fisheries against oil development.
Newly-elected State Representative Louise Stutes asked for better accessibility to
FWG meeting information,and asked that the reports and other information be
posted on the City and Borough websites. She also indicated that it would be
important for the community to understand the effects of fishery management
policies on the community. It was agreed that Rep.Stutes would have a permanent
place on the agenda for the FWG.
Paddy O'Donnell agreed that rationalization can have negative effects on the
community and even on harvesters,and used some aspects of the current Rockfish
Program as an example.
Hutchings reiterated that the vessels in any catch share program need to be able to
choose coops,with no processor affiliation. He also said that the FWG should look at
other issues in addition to GTBM. •
Alexus Kwatchka said that the community needs to keep looking at what is on the
table (re GTBM),and that additional ideas are needed to perhaps broaden the view.
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AGENDA ITEM #2.a.
Kodiak Fisheries Work Group (KFWG)
City of Kodiak and Kodiak Island Borough
Meeting February 11, 2015
Notes;
1.The written note provided by the Clerk at the beginning of each KFWG Agenda informs the public
that the work group is an"informal meeting of representatives of the City of Kodiak and the Kodiak
Island Borough to discuss issues with its Fisheries Analyst....Items that require formal action are
placed on a regular City Council and/or Borough Assembly meeting agenda."
2.The following summary of the meeting is provided by the Fisheries Analyst to help inform the
public about the main issues discussed,and is not intended to constitute formal minutes of the
meeting.Administrative Notes after each meeting are also provided by the City or Borough staff,and
included in the meeting packet for the following KFWG meeting,available on the City or Borough
website prior to that meeting.
Present in person were Co-Chairs Chris Lynch and John Whiddon,members Carol
Austerman and Larry LeDoux,and Borough Manager Bud Cassidy. Pat Branson was
unable to fly into Kodiak and called in for the meeting. Fishery Analyst Heather
McCarty also was unable to fly in,and participated by telephone.
State Representative Louise Stutes from Kodiak also called in to the meeting.
Public comment
Steven Taufen said that Council testimony should be based on more hard data and
information. He encouraged more information to come from seafood companies,
especially in light of changing ownership.
Julie Bonney said that she is on the planning subcommittee for ComFish,and
recommended that the roundtable forum on Gulf Trawl Bycatch Management
mentioned at the last KFWG meeting should be on Wednesday April 1,before the
ComFish events Thursday, Friday and Saturday.She reported those three days are
full of activities.Commissioner Sam Cotten is coming and so is Sen. Murkowski. She
said plans call for a presentation on research by NPRB,and from the Kodiak
research facilities,and she does not want to see a conflict with the events.
Fishery Analyst's Report
McCarty gave her Analyst's report,attached,adding more detail.
McCarty also reported on attending a meeting which was not included in the written
report-the International Pacific Halibut Commission(IPHC) annual meeting in
Vancouver,Canada,January 26-30, 2015.At that meeting,the Commission reported
halibut stocks appear to be stabilizing in several regions,with some management
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AGENDA ITEM #2.a.
areas experiencing small increases in biomass available for harvest.The approved
2015 catch limit for Area 3A was 10.1 million pounds,which is the combination of
commercial harvest and sport charter harvest.This is slightly higher than the catch
limit for 2014.
The Commission meeting also focused strongly on the bycatch of halibut in the
Bering Sea and the Gulf.
Representative Stutes reported that she was told that Lt. Governor Mallott will be
very engaged in fisheries issues,acting as an advisor to the Governor.
Sue Jeffrey,member of the Alaska Board of Fisheries from Kodiak,and Co-Chair of
the BOF Pollock Working Group,reported on the agenda for the Feb. 18 workgroup
meeting.The State's Draft Management Plan for pollock is available on the ADF&G
website.The BOF also plans an October meeting on state waters pollock --near
October 21 and 22.She said that the Feb. 18 meeting will likely be the last meeting
of the Working Group,which would then compile all the information and pass it on
to the full BOF.
McCarty asked whether the FWG wanted her to attend the BOF Pollock Working
Group meeting Feb. 18.The group felt that the members of the Kodiak community
who serve on the working group would be covering the meeting. Pat Branson will be
specifically representing the community at the meeting. (Note: McCarty listened to
the meeting via teleconference,and a report is attached.)
McCarty reported that she will be speaking on"Bycatch from the Community
Perspective'as part of a bycatch panel at the SWAMC meeting in Anchorage March
6.The other members of the panel will be Comm.Cotten,John Gauvin from
Amendment 80 fleet,Glenn Merrill from NMFS,Becca Robins-Gisclair,Bob Foy and a
representative from the Environmental Defense Fund.
McCarty said she would make clear at the beginning of her presentation that she
was NOT representing the community of Kodiak or any other client in her remarks.
•
Gulf Trawl Bvcatch Management(GTBM1.
Austerman said that as the FWG is unclear on where the proposal will go,it is
difficult to determine what they should discuss.McCarty said that we are able to
look at the more general issues common to catch share programs,and at the realm
of possible management actions.
LeDoux:We need to be able to tell policy makers what the effect of management
policies may be on the industry and the community.We need to hear from the
industry and others what those are,and communicate that clearly.
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AGENDA ITEM #2.a.
•
Branson:we need that understanding,and need to listen to the industry and
stakeholders.
Whiddon:We are looking at the expenditures of the community in support of the
industry-and the need to engage.
Austerman:we need to narrow down the issues and the possible ways to address
them from a management perspective.
Whiddon:bring people to the table for a real discussion.We need to roll up our
sleeves and engage as soon as possible.
Lynch:We will compile a list of topics with the fisheries analyst,and put it out to the
public.They can say they want to have a seat at the table.
Whiddon:We have many of the involved people here in the room now-including
AGDB and Whitefish Trawlers and AMCC.We need to get going.
Members agreed that the meeting or workshop should have a roundtable format,
with a facilitator to control the meeting and allow everyone to participate.
Austerman: interested in a facilitated discussion not a series of presentations.
• Switching formats is a good idea to move forward-let's see how it works.We need
to determine the right representation for the discussion.The Fisheries Analyst and
Co-chairs could narrow down the list before the next meeting.We will need Bios
from the persons representing the stakeholder groups.
LeDoux:we determine what questions and outcomes we want from the meetings.
We need to determine how we take the information from the meetings and make it
useful.We also need to have a place for individuals to come in and talk-fishermen
and the public.
The Fisheries Analyst will draft a key point summary to help determine what the
FWG wants to accomplish.
Whiddon: agree with individuals participating,but they need to discuss the issues at
hand.
Branson:it's important to have a list of issues and a facilitator to focus the
discussion.
ComFish Forum
Lynch: maybe we need to schedule the meeting we are talking about later than April.
Whiddon: is it reasonable to slot in such a meeting at ComFish?
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AGENDA ITEM #2.a.
Lynch: believe it is reasonable to plan for a forum on Wednesday,April 1.
The FWG agreed by consensus on April 1.
(Note:since the meeting,it has come to the attention of the Co-chairs that many
small boat operators and fishermen will be participating in a SERVS exercise on
April 1.The Co-chairs have indicated that the next meeting of the FWG will include a
discussion on identifying a different date for the roundtable forum.)
Co-chairs and Fisheries Analyst will draft a list of issues,and send to other members
before the next meeting of the FWG.
Economic study:
Cassidy:the Borough has been accumulating data available at the Borough level,so
we can determine what effects management decisions and policies may have on the
community.We have the three last years'severance tax data from each species,
which is confidential data individually,but usable in aggregated form.We are now
getting infrastructure costs for the Borough.
Lynch: there is a master plan at the City to gather similar data,so we need to find
out when we niight have it available.
Magnuson Stevens Act reauthorization
Things are beginning to take shape in the new Congress,and reauthorization bills
are likely to be made public soon. It was agreed that the City and Borough
representatives in Washington DC would prepare a report on MSA,and other
relevant federal issues,for the next FWG meeting.
Kodiak Marine Research
McCarty reported that Chris Sannito has been hired as a temporary faculty member
at the KSMSC,but that it will be difficult to find further funding for replacement of
faculty members. Quentin Fong of KSMSC is scheduled to make a presentation to the
Borough Assembly Feb. 19.
Public comment
Taufen:
He reported that BSAI groundfish issues will be reflected in the Gulf. Northern
Economics gave a power point presentation at the Council meeting,and included a
slide of estimates for foregone revenue if halibut bycatch is reduced.Taufen also
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AGENDA ITEM #2.a.
discussed pricing in the fishing industry,and said that the FWG should get involved
in the price inequities in Kodiak
Paddy O'Donnell,trawl fisherman:
He said fleets are operating under A87(salmon bycatch reduction) this year,with
2700 Chinook salmon available to the trawl fisheries.They might be looking at a
bottom trawl closure in mid-April if the bycatch numbers continue as they are now.
We need to look at the impacts to the community if there is a closure. Pollock are not
aggregating because of warm water conditions-A season pollock may not show up.
More cod vessels will be working.The fleet is getting bycatch of hatchery fish that
are part of the problem,not part of the natural cycle of things-this is a major
concern.We all need to think about this moving forward.
Jason Chandler,trawl fisherman:
He said the whole process can be really frustrating when listening from the
sidelines. He is looking forward to the roundtable meeting where questions can be
asked and answered. Lots of issues are coming forward.The biggest tool (in a
rationalized fishery) is time-giving fishermen time to prosecute the fisheries.
100%observer coverage is not a tool for bycatch reduction.
Bonney:
She suggested a show and tell,with all the Council and Assembly members invited
to come to the processing plants and the trawlers.
Regarding bycatch,the fleet is dealing with three regulatory amendments,with a
voluntary coop structure. Lots of salmon are on the grounds,so the question is can
the fleet get the pollock out of the water.A87 is a Gulf-wide cap on salmon,and in
the Western Gulf the under 60-foot vessels have driven the salmon cap-they have
taken 500 Chinook so far,and could trigger the closure to shut down the A season
cod fishery for the year for the whole Gulf. If we don't get the tools we need to
manage bycatch,it could be serious.Right now on the waterfront it is very fragile.
Jeffrey:
She reported that the BOF has an October 21 and 22 work session,and it is a high
probability the pollock meeting will be Oct 24 or 25. From Kodiak the Pollock
Working Group has had O'Donnell,Kasperzak,Bonney,Branson,Kilborn, Fields and
others.She also said moving forward with the roundtable forum will be great.
Closing comments:
Branson:She said Julie's invitation to visit plants and trawler was a good idea.
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AGENDA ITEM #2.a.
LeDoux: He said he would look forward to the invitation to visit plants and vessels.
He asked about the genetic makeup of the salmon bycatch,as he could not hear the .
answer from Julie. (Note:question was answered.)
Lynch: Reported that the genetics report is on the Council website from the October
meeting.
Austerman: She said she was very interested in the forum,and believed the tour of
plants and vessels was a good idea.
Whiddon: He said sport fish regulations had just changed,allowing five halibut a
year and no fishing on Thursdays. He believes this will have a detrimental impact on
the community.The sport charter industry is not heard as much as it could be.He
also thinks it would be good to do an industry tour to see offloads,employees,
investments,etc.The industry is very important to the community-and is
approaching a cliff.
Lynch: She reported briefly on the rural leadership forum,saying that Duncan Fields
was there and encouraged villages to use the CQE program.Other villages said they
wanted something similar to the Karluk Lake fertilization.
She said she did not want subsequent meetings in the Library,as it was very hard to
hear.
The next FWG meeting was scheduled for March 18,at 8:30 am.
•
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AGENDA ITEM #2.a.
Date: February 27,2015
To: Kodiak Fisheries Work Group
From: Heather McCarty,Fisheries Analyst
Subject:Report on meeting with ADF&G Commissioner Sam Cotten,February 26,2015
I was able to accompany Borough Assembly members Carol Austerman,Rebecca Skinner
and Larry LeDoux and lobbyist Mark Hickey to a meeting yesterday with Commissioner
Cotten.Our hope was to obtain a little more information on his thoughts regarding the Gulf
Trawl Bycatch Management(GTBM)action at the North Pacific Fishery Management
Council(NPFMC),and the BOF proposal to provide for a pollock fishery in State waters.
After the November election of Governor Walker,the Commissioner and the Council stalled
the GTBM action until October 2015,to allow for the State administration to review the
current proposal and suggest possible changes in direction.
The Commissioner indicated that the administration remained very interested in providing
a system to allow better control of bycatch,but said he was not certain the best way to do
that was to institute a catch share program that granted control of the fisheries resources to
historical harvesters in perpetuity.He said he was certainly not ready to make public any
new proposal,but that he had been looking at alternative ideas.One of those he mentioned
was somehow institutionalizing the current voluntary cooperative management system
•
being used in the pollock trawl fishery.He also talked about allocating individual bycatch
amounts to harvesters to arrive at a system of individual accountability for bycatch
performance.He did not give a lot of detail on either of these ideas,but we did have a brief
discussion on bycatch accountability and how it could be implemented.
Cotten emphasized that he was looking for discussion and feedback from the interested
public on new GTBM ideas.We provided the Commissioner with the most recent
City/Borough letter to the Council(October,2014),and mentioned that the letter,while
quite general,did support the GTBM action moving forward,and acknowledged that
cooperative management was a workable tool to manage bycatch.
•
Regarding the proposal to create a State waters pollock fishery with part of the Federal TAC,
Cotten said that if the Federal fishery was expected to become a catch share fishery he
would be in favor of also having a State waters fishery,which would presumably be open to
other participants.However(and this was less clear),he appeared to agree with comments
made by Duncan Fields at the most recent BOF Pollock Working Group meeting that the
planned BOF meeting on a State waters pollock fishery should be delayed until after the
Council becomes more certain about their intent regarding the GTBM action.(NOTE:This
should happen in early October,so if the BOF meeting were in late October,the timing
would seem to be workable.)
Assembly members also told the Commissioner how much the community would like to
host him,and have further discussions on these and other topics.He said he was trying to
get to Kodiak for ComFish.Also,he will be meeting again with Kodiak folks when they come
to Juneau at the end of March.We mentioned that the KFWG is planning a facilitated
roundtable forum soon on the subject of GTBM,and he said he would be interested in
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AGENDA ITEM #2.a.
attending.He also indicated that it would be difficult for him to spend much time out of
Juneau during the session.
The meeting was cordial and informative.In summary,Cotten was clear that he would
indeed prefer to move in a different direction on GTBM than what is in the current proposal,
and acknowledged that he knew that some stakeholders in the harvesting sector may not
agree with moving away from a catch share program for target species.
If any of the other attendees would like to fill in more details in this summary,please add to
this brief report.Thanks for inviting me to attend!
•
•
•
•
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•
SESSION ADDRESS: Senator Gary Stevens INTERIM ADDRESS:
Alaska State Capitol 305 Center Ave,Ste. 1
Juneau,Alaska 99801-1182 Kodiak,Alaska 99615
(907)465-4925 Alaska State Legislature (907)4864925
Fax:(907)465-3517 _ Fax:(907)4865264
Toll Free: 1.800-8214925 v ` 71+\N
Dr. Louis W. Uccellini, Director
National Weather Service
1325 East West Highway
Silver Spring,MD 20910
February' 19,2015
Dear Dr. Uccellini,
It is our understanding the National Weather Service (NWS) is considering reducing staff and
hours at the Kodiak,Alaska Weather Service Office. Part of this plan includes a complete closure
between late afternoon and midnight, when the Anchorage office will handle calls.
The Kodiak facility receives as many as 500 marine briefings per month, and several hundred
public weather calls. This information is crucial to the safety and well-being of our constituents,
particularly the commercial fishing fleet, which operates at varying hours throughout the year. In
the absence of a live operator for a substantial portion of the day in Kodiak,we question whether
the potential cost-savings outweigh the importance of having someone who understands the local
weather and can effectively relay vital information in a timely and efficient manner, or provide
specialized weather briefings,to the public.
As the Alaska State Legislators for Kodiak Island, we believe it is in the best interests of the
National Weather Service and the pubic to maintain fulltime weather service in Kodiak. We
respectfully ask that you reject any plan to reduce hours at the Kodiak facility.
Thank you for your consideration of this letter. We look forward to your reply.
Since•"
•
Gary Stevens Representative Louise Stutes
cc: Senator Lisa Murkowski
Senator Dan Sullivan
Congressman Don Young
Senator.Gary.Stevens@akleg.gov
Page 15 of 17
Letter Regarding Reduction of Staff and Hours at the Kodiak,...
AGENDA ITEM #2.b.
. ; Kodiak Island Borough
r
t ?f \ Office of the Borough Mayor
7 y �%I/� `- 710 Mill By Road
t Kodiak,Alaska 99615
s "}-rej;'',- 11. Phone (907) 486-9310 Fax (907) 486-9391
March 2, 2015
Dr. Louis W. Uccellini, Director
National Weather Service
1325 East West Highway
Silver Spring, MD 20910
Dear Dr. Uccellini,
It is my understanding the National Weather Service (NWS) is considering reducing staff and
hours at the Kodiak, Alaska Weather Service Office. Part of this plan includes a complete
closure between late afternoon and midnight at which time the Anchorage office will handle
calls.
The Kodiak facility receives as many as 500 marine briefings per month and several hundred
public weather calls. This information is crucial to the safety and well-being of our residents,
particularly the aviators and those who commercially fish. They operate at varying hours
throughout the year. In the absence of a live operator for a substantial portion of the day in
Kodiak, we question whether the potential cost-savings outweigh the importance of having
someone who understands the local weather and can effectively relay vital information in a
timely and efficient manner to the public.
The Kodiak Island Borough Assembly and I believe it is in'the best interest of the National
Weather Service and the public to maintain fulltime weather service in Kodiak. I respectfully ask
that you reject any plan to reduce hours at the Kodiak facility. -
Thank you for your consideration of this letter. I look forward to your reply.
Sincerely,
KODIAK ISLAND BOROUGH
Jerrol Friend
cc: Senator Lisa Murkowski
Senator Dan Sullivan
Congressman Don Young
Page 16 of 17
Letter Regarding Reduction of Staff and Hours at the Kodiak,...
AGENDA ITEM #2.b.
Bud Cassidy
From: Seb O'Kelly<tarpon @hsgblaw-dc.com>
Sent: Thursday, March 05,2015 7:57 AM
To: 'Bradley Gilman:Bud Cassidy,,jfriend @alaska.net
Subject: RE:Closure of National Weather Station
Folks,
See below for exchange between Sen.Sullivan and the Secretary of Commerce during a hearing Wednesday.
Seb
SULLIVAN:
Secretary Pritzker,I want to turn to fisheries.As you know,that's a hugely important industry for Alaska.Were the
super power of America's fisheries.We harvest well over 50 percent of America's fisheries.I was a little disappointed to
see that your testimony only gave one sentence to fisheries.Just two questions.How are you looking to work with the
State of Alaska and other fishing communities to enhance our opportunities?And more specifically,there's been
concerns in Kodiak about the closure of the National Weather Service station there.That is a hugely important asset.
You know,we have very tough weather out there in Kodiak.And we want to work with you on enhancing our
opportunities in fisheries,but shutting down stations like that is not a good sign.And I'd like your thoughts on how we
can work with you on ensuring great opportunities in that big export element of our economy.
PRITZKER:
Senator,both the fisheries and the weather service are an important part of what we do.And I was up in Alaska and did
actually meet with the weather service there.Our goal—I'm not familiar with the<Kodiak>situation.I would have to
look into that particularly,but our goal at the weather service is to run the weather service more effectively and
efficiently,which sometimes requires consolidation of some efforts because of technology.It's easier to run different
parts of our organization with more regional technology centers.I don't know if that's the situation in Kodiak,so I have
to look into it.
In terms of the fisheries,I'm well aware of how important the fisheries are,not just to Alaska but to all of our coastal
communities,and we're working closely.NOAA's very focused on fish stock assessment and making sure that we're
working with our local stakeholders to understand the quality of that stock assessment and making sure that—it's one of
the reasons that it's very important that we ultimately begin the renewal of our fleet because we need to be able to not
only do stock assessments but also charting and mapping and things like that that are also very important to our
fishermen,as well as all that use our navigable waterways.
So this is an ongoing partnership,and the way we think about our relationship with our fishermen is that it's a
partnership and one that we take very seriously around our coastlines.
SULLIVAN:
Thank you.
--Original Message--
From:Bradley Gilman fmailto:mackerel(dhseblaw-dc.comi
Sent:Monday,March 02,2015 4:28 PM
Page 17 of 17
Letter Regarding Reduction of Staff and Hours at the Kodiak,...
KODIAK ISLAND BOROUGH
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