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kenai
Starting Member
USA
17 Posts |
 Posted - 04/04/2009 : 02:43:15
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Dear Representative,
I see that the Alaska Board of Fish has a couple of its members terms expiring this coming June 30, 2009. These members are Bonnie Williams, Fairbanks, Sportfish, Subsistence / Personal Use and Karl Johnstone, Anchorage, Attorney / Judge.
It appears that the Governor reappointed Johnstone and then APPOINTED COMMERCIAL
FISHERIES BRENT JOHNSON TO REPLACE SUBSISTENCE /PERSONAL USE WILLIAMS!
Brent Johnson and Governor Palin are clearly attempting to convert a traditional native, interior
subsistence/personal USE board seat, into a commercial fishing USE board seat.
This is a clear attempt to reallocate fisheries resources away from common fisheries
users and grant them instead to special interests within the commercial fishing industry.
This attempt would basically remove all interior, native, subsistence and personal use
representation on our Board of Fish. It would also knock the current
( 3 sportfish seats, 3 commercial fish seats, 1 subsistence/personal use seat ) ratio, into a
( 3 sportfish seats, 4 commercial fish seats ) ratio, as our traditional subsistence / personal use
seat would be completely eliminated.
This appears to be a plain attempt to lopside future BOF issue votes in favor of the
commercial fishing industry. This looks like a pretty drastic and bad change in my opinion.
Making a board member USE change of this magnitude will cause our BOF to become
less effective in the future simply because of its controversial nature. What on earth is the
Governor thinking? Brent Johnson is the President of the most notorious and extreme
commercial fishing association on our Kenai Peninsula, the Kenai Peninsula Fishermen's Association!
Not only will the BOF lose interior, native, subsistence and personal use representation but the
change will also stir-up huge resentment between commercial & common fisheries USES.
What was so wrong with us having 3 sportfish seats, 3 commercial fish seats and
1 interior, native, subsistence and personal use seat ?
How can having 3 sport user seats & 4 commercial fish seats somehow give the board
a better prospective on fisheries issues? This kind of a blatant "pro-commercial high-jacking"
of the BOF, can only propel the board into becoming an even more controversial body.
The Board would no longer just appear to be ruled by special interests because it will be
obvious that it is TOTALLY controlled by commercial fishing special interests straight
from the KPFA.
Even our commercial fishing interests have agreed that a more diverse BOF, is a better Board.
It would be a much better choice to appointed Mike Smith of Fairbanks and allow him
to represent Alaska's statewide interior, native, subsistence and personal use prospective.
It will be completely IMPOSSIBLE for Brent Johnson or his Kenai Peninsula
Fishermen's Association to represent these common users.
Is that the Governor's mission here; to disenfranchise a huge group of common
fisheries users? The abandonment of 4 substantial groups of common users,
while advancing the commercial fisheries agenda's and the KPFA,
IS AN UNACCEPTABLE POSITION.
I specifically request that the Alaska legislature NOT CONFIRM commercial fisheries
KPFA President Brent Johnson, to replace the common user Bonnie Williams.
Don Johnson
Soldotna, Alaska 99669
Don
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Alaska Board of Fish & BRENT JOHNSON
