The public review process concerning a proposed hatchery at Baranof Warm Springs has ended. Soon it will be up to the Department of Fish and Game Commissioner’s office to determine if there will be a new salmon hatchery.
Private Nonprofit Hatchery Coordinator Sam Rabung said the next step is to compile all the comments and finalize a basic management plan. He said the deadline to present this to the Commissioner for a decision is June 14.
Rabung said public input has had a large impact on the proposal so far, mostly in reducing its scale of operation. He said basic management plan has been changed greatly from what was requested in the original permit application.
“They are significantly different,” he said.
He said the project has also been moved onto state land to remove potential conflicts with local zoning regulations and impacts on neighbors.
Rabung said this application is only for the biological and fishery aspects of the project. Even if this permit is granted, there are a number of others required, including those for land and water discharge.
Rabung said the purpose behind developing a new Southeast hatchery goes back to supply and demand, be it for commercial, sport or subsistence.
“In general, statewide there is a demand for more salmon. That’s evidenced by the continually raising prices,” he said. “Demand is not being met worldwide.”
• Contact reporter Jonathan Grass at 523-2276 or at jonathan.grass@juneauempire.com.
Comments (1)
Add commentCorrupt and Grossly Incompetent Bastards Association
ADF&G has not shown that it knows enough run a hatchery let alone provide oversight. ADF&G has had over 30 hatcheries and 3 or 4 made any sense.
The original Baranof plan was a grandiose ADF&G hatchery plan . They gave up and literally gave me their plans. Then I figured out rational plan and submitted my plan for primary approval not only the ADF&G want it back but also Northern South East, an even dumber bunch, from Sitka wanted my Baranof.
I took it to the State Ombudsman and won. But hand writing was on the wall and I did not want to deal with the incompetent and jealous ADF&G and North Southeast I never filed for the final application. But some else did his plan stank and it finally failed.
If you think the Corrupt Bastards Association was bad, they were the Corrupt and Grossly Incompetent Bastards Association.
Subsequent to that I filed on a hatchery application on a great site in Port Nelly Juan that PWSAA or what every they are called, gave up on. Then they wanted it back after I figure out how to make it work. I was turned down.
A woman from Cordova on the board before which I had to appear wanted a hundred thousand fish. The ADG&G Commissioner had had enough of me from SE and did not want lose again and so the Commissioner over ruled board award it to me.
Again, I decided I did not have where with all to get into legal battle with Corrupt and Grossly Incompetent Bastards Association and never filed a final application. My unhappy partner, because I quit, soldier on with a group of others He really did not understand how to make hatchery function efficiently and it never got off the ground.
There are certain Musts for hatchery either you have them or you do not. You can work around them but you are on very shaky ground and the cost of production escalates.
A hatchery if done correctly, one man can run a hundred million eggs with additional help at egg take time.