The Dunleavy administration has declared war on commercial fishermen with the recent decision to add an alternative to the North Pacific Fisheries Management Council to eliminate commercial salmon fishing in the economic exclusion zone in Cook Inlet. This will devastate the drift gillnet fleet — which was already struggling because of poor management decisions made by the Alaska Board of Fisheries, which is stacked with Duleavy appointments and has only one member from a coastal community and has reallocated the salmon resource in Cook Inlet to sport and personal use fishermen.
The Dunleavy alternative in the Council process was added at the last minute, after the Council and a task force with user group members spent years working out a plan that would add federal oversight to the fishery in federal waters to attempt to correct the Board of Fish and Alaska Dept. of Fish and Game mismanagement of the resource.The decision to shut down the Cook Inlet salmon fishery in federal waters will force fishermen into waters within 3 miles of shore and will destroy the economic viability of what was once a vibrant economic powerhouse on the Kenai Peninsula. It will not only affect fishermen, it will demolish the processors that have added millions of dollars to the community, as well as the service providers who relied on a viable fishery.
It is time to send a message from commercial fishermen and those who rely their business to a governor who has worked diligently to take away the viability of an industry that has provided the state with thousands of jobs, not only on the Peninsula but all across the state. And now his administration is going to allow jet skis in Kachemak Bay, a critical habitat area, against overwhelming opposition from local residents. He knows most people in Homer did not vote for him, so this is his “screw you.”
This governor doesn’t care about his constituents in the commercial fishing industry, or the ones who don’t support him. Please sign the recall petition and help remove him from office.
— Cristy Fry
Homer
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