Board of Fisheries Upper Cook Inlet meeting begins with spirit of compromise

ANCHORAGE — The Upper Cook Inlet Finfish Meeting began Thursday at the Sheraton Hotel in Anchorage to significantly fewer public participants and a reduced level of tension compared to previous UCI meetings.

“A spirit of cooperation seems to exist among user groups trying to work together,” Al Cain, a longtime adviser to the Board of Fisheries and a current board member, said during the meetings.

Given the usually contentious history of UCI meetings, often referred to as "the Fish Wars of Cook Inlet," Cain said he appreciated this cooperative approach.

This UCI meeting also has fewer proposals for the board to consider than previous meetings. The 174 proposals scheduled to be deliberated at this meeting are a reduction from the normal 230 to 280 proposals common in past meetings.

The meeting began with the introduction of board members and their ethics disclosures, and moved into dealing with administrative notices and other considerations. Stocks of Concern and escapement goals were addressed next. Department scientific reports presenting biological and management data on various species and stocks of finfish around Cook Inlet followed on the agenda.

Presentation of reports wrapped up Friday morning and public testimony began. According to Kevin Delaney, a fisheries consultant and longtime board participant, the smallest numbers of participating members of the public, in his memory, were on hand for the public testimony.

The standout presentation of the day involved an 18-minute Powerpoint presentation by six representatives of the Matanuska-Susitna Borough Fish and Wildlife Commission. Topics covered included protecting the Conservation Corridor, habitat work being done by the borough and partners, stock of concern issues, the department's approach to establishing escapement goals, and the importance of salmon in the economy and lifestyle of borough residents.

After the presentation, Cain approached one of the commission members and said the presentation was the best he had ever seen in decades of being involved in the board process.

The weather on Friday prohibited many potential public testifiers from driving or flying into Anchorage to participate in the meeting. Board chairman John Jensen said that he would be lenient in dealing with this unforeseen situation.

Once all public testimony has been received, the board will move into further information gathering using their committee process, and then on to deliberation and action on the proposals. The meeting is scheduled to continue through March 8.

Howard Delo has contributed a weekly outdoors column to the Frontiersman for more than 15 years. Delo is also a freelance writer who covers fisheries issues for the Frontiersman.