A proposal to reduce current pink salmon production in Prince William Sound hatcheries now has opposition from the Cordova City Council and Cordova District Fishermen United (CDFU) in advance of Alaska Board of Fisheries meetings in Cordova from Dec. 10-16.
The measure was introduced by Virgil Umphenour, who currently serves on the Fairbanks Fish and Game Advisory Board and U.S./Canada Salmon Treaty Negotiating Team.
“The solution is very simple,” said Umphenour, who proposes a cut in the permitted egg intake of each Prince William Sound hatchery that produces pink and chum salmon. “Reduce that egg intake by 25% at the Prince William Sound Aquaculture Corp. and Valdez Fisheries Development Association and then do an evaluation within five years.”
Umphenour, who served with the Marine Corps in the Vietnam War, is longtime professional hunting guide and former member of the Alaska Board of Fisheries.
His proposal contends that there is significant evidence that there is an ocean-carrying capacity exacerbated by the proliferation of Alaskan and Asian hatchery releases into the North Pacific Ocean. His proposal argues that this is particularly important to Chinook salmon, as stocks have declined dramatically all over Alaska.
Proposal 78 notes that an emergency agreement between Canada and Alaska was signed on April 1 to impose a drastic Chinook harvest moratorium of at least seven years, and that the situation with Chinook salmon on the Yukon River is now becoming a statewide problem.
The Cordova City Council on Nov. 6 passed a resolution in firm opposition to the proposal, and reaffirmed its support for Alaska’s salmon hatchery programs, including those of the Prince William Sound Aquaculture Corp. and Valdez Fisheries Development Association.
The resolution contends that reducing pink and chum production by 25% would cause significant harm to Cordova’s economy – diminishing fisheries tax revenues and disrupting the economic flow that hatchery salmon provide to Cordova’s local business and families.
The resolution also notes that the state’s salmon hatchery program supports an estimated 4,200 jobs, $219 million in labor income, and $576 million in total economic output annually – with more than 14,000 Alaskans earning a portion of their income from hatchery salmon.
The resolution further notes that the salmon hatchery program operates as a nonprofit model, is self-funded through cost recovery and enhancement taxes, and follows a rigorous public permitting process employing scientific methods to sustainably protect wild salmon populations while benefitting all user groups.
“There are no merits to Proposal 78,” said Jess Rude, executive director of CDFU. “Passing that proposal will result in serious economic harm to every salmon permit holder CDFU represents. The total economic impact of PWS hatcheries is significant, and reducing their production will mean immediate economic downturns on communities already experiencing revenue losses due to depressed fish prices and fishery resource disasters.”
Similarly, the group Salmon Hatcheries for Alaska takes a diverse view – arguing that Prop 78 would have a direct impact on the local economy of Prince William Sound, family fisheries, and the sustainability of both hatchery and wild salmon stocks.
“Hatcheries play a critical role in supplementing salmon returns, supporting local jobs, and stabilizing the availability of salmon for all Alaskan user groups, including subsistence, personal-use, sport, and commercial fisheries,” the group said in a recent statement urging opposition to Prop 78.
The Board of Fisheries meetings coming to the Cordova Center from Dec. 10-16 will cover Prince William Sound and Upper Copper/Upper Susitna finfish and shellfish, except shrimp. The deadline for public comment on any of the proposals on the agenda is Nov. 26.
For more information, visit the Alaska Department of Fish and Game Board of Fisheries web page.
