APPENDIX 



Prepared Statement of Andrew Golia, Vice Chairman of the Board, Bering 



Sea Fishermen's Association 



Mr. Chairman and members of this Committee: My name is Andrew Golia, vice- 

 chairman of the Board of Directors of the Bering Sea Fishermen's Association 

 (BSFA). BSFA, founded in 1979, represents western Alaska Native small boat fish- 

 ermen from Bristol Bay in the south to Kotzebue on the northwest corner of Alaska. 

 Our members most of whom live in small villages along the coast and rivers harvest 

 salmon, herring, halibut, cod and other species both for subsistence and for commer- 

 cial purposes. 



As residents of the coasts and rivers for thousands of years, our Native culture 

 is bound strongly to the careful use of the bounty that nature provides us. Using 

 the fish, marine mammals and birds in a respectful way and above all, not wasting 

 or abusing the resources has enabled us to survive and prosper in a harsh environ- 

 ment. 



Therefore, the main concerns our members would like to make known to the Com- 

 mittee are aimed at ensuring conservation and sustained use of the marine re- 

 sources both for commerce but above all to sustain our subsistence harvests and the 

 way of life of our ancestors. Our recommendations are as follows: 



• the reauthorization of the Magnuson Act must reaffirm that conservation and 

 sustained yield are the primary goals of the Act; 



• the bycatch of non-target species must be dramatically reduced and managers 

 must manage for the conservation and sustained use of both target and non-target 

 species as well as the marine mammals, birds and other wildlife that rely upon 

 these species for food; 



• the Congress should require some form of use tax on all offshore fisheries (com- 

 mercial, recreational or charter boat) in order to finance better science and better 

 enforcement so as to ensure (not solely through legislation) proper management of 

 the ecosystem; and 



• the reauthorization of the Act should codify the Community Development 

 Quota or CDQ program currently in place for western Alaska villages and formalize 

 this mechanism of regional economic empowerment as a specific goal of the Act not 

 only for Alaska's coastal communities but for coastal towns throughout the nation. 



The goals listed above have been formed based on our experience not only as fish- 

 ermen but as observers and participants in the North Pacific Fishery Management 

 Council and NMFS management process. As the financial investment and participa- 

 tion in the North Pacific fisheries continues to expand the pressure on these re- 

 sources will continue to increase. It is therefore necessary for the Congress to re- 

 mind the Council and NMFS that conservation is the chief goal and that Congress 

 will be watching both managers and fishermen closely. 



One of the most disturbing aspects of the North Pacific groundfish fisheries is the 

 tremendous amount of bycatch and waste of non-target species. Of chief concern to 

 our villagers has been the bycatch of salmon, herring and halibut. Too often what 

 happens to these non-target species is ignored in favor of the "almighty dollar". 

 What managers too often forget is that not only are these non-target species already 

 fully utilized by coastal and river fishermen but these species as well as target spe- 

 cies such as pollock are critical links in the ecosystem. Irreparably damage one spe- 

 cies and the whole food chain could collapse. 



For example, the Council and NMFS have made some progress on capping and 

 reducing the bycatch of herring and halibut but their efforts and those of the indus- 

 try to reduce salmon bycatch have been noted more for their ability to deflect any 

 meaningful conservation measures and master the art of the delaying tactic. 



For the past several years between 30,000 and 40,000 chinook salmon each year 

 have been caught and wasted by the factory trawlers and shore-based trawl boats 

 fishing in the Bering Sea. Most of these chinook or king salmon are headed for west- 

 ern Alaska rivers including the Nushagak River located less than a mile from where 



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