The association is hoping this time fishermen will approve an assessment of their harvest to help increase the value of seafood products from their region. An initial effort was started in 2005 by the drift net permit holders’ organization of the Southeast Alaska RSDA. They have drift gillnet fleet approve that assessment in the summer of 2006 failed to garner enough votes.
Elizabeth Dubovsky, a harvester and acting executive director of Southeast Alaska Rainforest Wild, explained that the fleet, which numbers about 400 to 500 permit holders, has a June 16 deadline to get their ballots in. She told that approval is dependent on at least 30 percent of the permit holders voting, and then winning by a simple majority.
It is assuming that the fleet approves the 1 percent assessment on its harvest, the initial emphasis at least in the first year would be looking for collaborative opportunities and outside money, including grants, to pay for fulltime staff. Dubovsky said that an advantage of Southeast’s RSDA is that regional permit holders would have control over how their money is spent on projects and activities that they consider a priority. Permit holders would have representation on the RSDA’s board and committees, so that they can weigh in and identify projects and needs they think RSDA money should go towards.
