According to Bonnie Williams, member of Board of Fisheries, if Proposals 38-40 were adopted it would bring disaster to small trawlers’ fleet of Kodiak Island. Even the rest of the board members feel the same and rejected the proposals that would stop the activities of trawlers in Alitak Bay or might require them to maintained 100 percent observer data.
Executive Director of Alaska Draggers Association, Al Burch appreciated the decision of board members saying they were paying attention to the facts and figures. Fishing community who owns boats and trawlers are happy that the proposals failed.
The board has ten final decision to dispose 38 proposals that involved trawlers. Many local fishermen submitted numbers of proposals out of concern for the crab, salmon and herring stocks in the bay. As the gear of trawler harm the king crab during fishing in Kodiak waters. This also affected the salmon and herring also.
Board member John Jenson said that this has brought a lot of discussion included the trawls getting on the bottom and the nets used by them in the bottom harm the sea species.
“In this process the nets of trawler also get damaged thought it happens occasionally,” informed Jenson. Board member Howard Delo was convinced with the reason of the bottom contours and opposed proposals 38 and 39.
Many believed although the proposal defeated but it has raised observer coverage from 30 percent to 100 percent and it would be adopted soon. Jenson appreciated the 100 percent coverage saying that it would benefit the fishing industry in Alaska.
