NOAA Fisheries Archives

Wild Fish Conservancy seeks endangered species protection for Alaskan king salmon

by Robert Woolsey, KCAW | Feb 12, 2024 | Local News, Syndicated

Northern Journal reporter Nat Herz is covering the petition to list Alaskan king salmon under the Endangered Species Act. NOAA Fisheries doesn't have to accept the petition (from the Wild Fish Conservancy), and even if it does, Herz says "these things tend to get bogged down in litigation." Read More

Comment deadline: Advocates believe revising NOAA’s ‘National Standards’ will increase equity, reduce bycatch in the Gulf of Alaska fisheries

by Robert Woolsey, KCAW | Sep 11, 2023 | Local News, Syndicated

Advocates say an update to the "National Standards" could overhaul outdated guidance for the management of Alaska's federal fisheries, and introduce climate change, equity, and environmental justice into harvest policies -- and drastically reduce bycatch. Read More

$1.3 million awarded for beach cleanup, shellfish monitoring following 2017 tugboat sinking in Starrigavan Bay

by Robert Woolsey, KCAW | Aug 22, 2023 | Local News, Syndicated

NOAA Fisheries has received a settlement of $1.3 million from the National Pollution Funds Center for restoration of herring habitat and shellfish monitoring in the aftermath of the 2017 sinking of the tugboat Powhatan in Starrigavan Bay. Read More

NOAA to trollers: A revised environmental analysis could allow king fishing by August

by Robert Woolsey, KCAW | Jun 9, 2023 | Local News, Syndicated

Without giving too much away, NOAA Fisheries Alaska region administrator Jon Kurland told trollers in Sitka that his agency was working full-tilt to comply with a US District Court order, allowing the fleet to target king salmon -- if not in July as usual -- then perhaps in August. Read More

Spoutin’ around town: gray whales find haven in Sitka Sound

by Meredith Redick | May 22, 2023 | Local News, Syndicated

While reports of gray whale strandings along the Pacific coast have jumped since 2019, there’s at least one place where these whales seem to be thriving. Hundreds of gray whales migrating from Mexico to their Arctic feeding grounds are stopping in Sitka along their route. Read More