FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE:

August 7, 2014

CONTACTS:

Captain Joel Hanson, Director of Conservation Programs, The Boat Company, (907) 738-1033

Paul Olson, Attorney, The Boat Company, (907) 738-2400

Colin O’Brien, Attorney, Earthjustice, (907) 792-7103

COURT: Agency Changes to North Pacific Observer Program Adopted Unlawfully;

Program May Not Be Reliable for Salmon and Halibut Bycatch Reduction

New Analysis Ordered

Anchorage, AK— Late yesterday, the United States District Court for the District of Alaska

ruled that the National Marine Fisheries Service (NMFS) violated the law when it restructured

the observer program for the North Pacific groundfish fisheries.

The restructured program doubled the daily cost of observer coverage, leading to a sharp

reduction of human observers on certain high-volume trawlers that are responsible for significant

bycatch of salmon and Pacific halibut in the Gulf of Alaska. Trawlers are responsible for

essentially all of the salmon bycatch and 87 percent of the halibut bycatch in the Gulf of Alaska.

The Court ruled that NMFS arbitrarily ignored the potential impacts of increased costs and lower

observer coverage.

In his decision, Judge H. Russel Holland writes:

“NMFS must prepare a supplemental EA [Environmental Assessment] that addresses the

question of when data being gathered by the restructured Observer Program ceases to be reliable,

or of high quality, because the rate of observer coverage is too low.”

Read the Order: http://earthjustice.org/documents/legal-document/north-pacific-groundfishery-observer-order-8-7-14 The lawsuit challenging the restructured observer program was brought by The Boat Company,

a not-for-profit corporation whose mission to protect and conserve Alaska’s fisheries is

supported by a sport fishing and ecotourism operation based in Sitka and Juneau, Alaska.

“Today's decision is an important step toward conservation of salmon and halibut resources and

a healthier ecosystem,” said Captain Joel Hanson, Director of Conservation Programs at The

Boat Company. “Sound fisheries management requires collecting the best available scientific

information, and that means full observer coverage on the high-volume trawlers that account for

the most catch and bycatch.”

“As a result of this decision, NMFS must reassess the observer program to ensure that it provides

the reliable data necessary to combat the serious problem of salmon and halibut bycatch.” said

Colin O’Brien, Attorney for Earthjustice.

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The Boat Company is a not-for-profit corporation whose charitable mission to protect and conserve Alaska’s

fisheries is supported by a sport fishing and ecotourism operation based in Sitka and Juneau, Alaska. With over 30

years of work in Alaska, The Boat Company has reinvested between $25 and $30 million into conservation efforts

throughout Southeast Alaska. To learn more, please visit www.theboatcompany.org.

Earthjustice is a non-profit environmental law firm dedicated to protecting the magnificent places, natural resources,

and wildlife of this earth, and to defending the right of all people to a healthy environment. We bring about far-

reaching change by enforcing and strengthening environmental laws on behalf of hundreds of organizations and

communities. www.earthjustice.org.