The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency said it plans to release its draft revised assessment document of the Bristol Bay Watershed Assessment this spring and complete the assessment in 2013.
In a statement at the Alaska Forum on the Environment on Tuesday, EPA Regional Administrator Dennis McLerran spoke to the controversial watershed assessment, telling the audience what to expect as far as a timeline for releasing the draft document. The EPA plans to let peer reviewers have another look at the EPA's revised document, McLerran said.
"Today, I am announcing that we will be releasing a draft revised assessment document this spring and will be seeking additional public comment on that draft," McLerran said, according to a written copy of his speech released to press. "We are making arrangements to have the original 12 independent experts review the revised assessment and evaluate whether the revised draft has been responsive to their peer review comments. We intend to complete the assessment in 2013 after this additional round of review and comment is completed."
The EPA, which launched the assessment of the potential impact from mining in the watershed of the rich fishing ground last year, has faced criticism from many, including Alaska's lawmakers, who said the federal agency has overstepped its bounds. Today, the EPA critics also included those opposed to the Pebble Mine, a copper and gold mine prospect located in the headwaters of Bristol Bay.
Pebble opponents released several statements Tuesday calling on the EPA to quicken the pace of its action, and switch to a path that included limiting future mining development in the watershed area.
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Callifornia crabbing: Here's a fun video shot on the decks of the Majestik while catching Dungeness crab off the coast of northern California.
Over 500 lots of seafood processing equipment formerly owned by Adak Seafood will be sold at auction on Tuesday, June 18, starting at 10 a.m. Hawaiian-Aleutian Daylight Time at the Hilton Garden Inn in Anchorage Alaska.
The equipment is located in a recently updated 250,000 square foot state-of-the-art processing facility in Adak, Alaska. Farmington Hills, Mich.-based Hilco Industrial, which conducts 75 machinery and equipment auctions in a wide range of industries annually, will conduct the auction.
Adak Seafood opened originally as Ada Fisheries in Anchorage in 1986. The facility, updated in 2005, is located on the island of Adak, the southernmost city in Alaska near the western end of the Aleutian Islands. The facility processed cod primarily, as well as halibut, blackcod, crab and pollock, Hilco says.
Alaska fisherman and commercial fisheries activist Kevin Adams was elected chairman at the Alaska Seafood Marketing Institute board of directors meeting on May 9 in Anchorage.
The governor-appointed board consists of seven members: five seafood processors and two industry representatives actively engaged in commercial fishing. Adams was appointed to fill a harvester seat by Gov. Frank Murkowski in 2004.
With 38 years of fishing experience in Bristol Bay, Adams has long been an active member in the Alaska fishing industry, ASMI says. He has worked for both the Alaska Fisheries Development Foundation and the Bering Sea Fisherman's Association, and represents Alaska fishermen on numerous boards.
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