Legislature(2019 - 2020)GRUENBERG 120
03/05/2019 11:00 AM House FISHERIES
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| Presentation(s): University of Alaska Fairbanks | |
| Adjourn |
* first hearing in first committee of referral
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ALASKA STATE LEGISLATURE
HOUSE SPECIAL COMMITTEE ON FISHERIES
March 5, 2019
11:05 a.m.
MEMBERS PRESENT
Representative Louise Stutes, Chair
Representative Bryce Edgmon
Representative Chuck Kopp
Representative Jonathan Kreiss-Tomkins
Representative Geran Tarr
Representative Sarah Vance
MEMBERS ABSENT
Representative Lance Pruitt
COMMITTEE CALENDAR
PRESENTATION(S): UNIVERSITY OF ALASKA FAIRBANKS
- HEARD
PREVIOUS COMMITTEE ACTION
No previous action to record
WITNESS REGISTER
S. BRADLEY MORAN, PhD, Dean
College of Fisheries and Ocean Sciences (CFOS)
University of Alaska Fairbanks (UAF)
University of Alaska
Fairbanks, Alaska
POSITION STATEMENT: Co-provided a PowerPoint presentation
entitled, "UAF College of Fisheries and Ocean Sciences:
Building Alaska's Blue Economy," dated 3/4/19.
MILO ADKISON, PhD, Chair
Department of Fisheries
Juneau Center
College of Fisheries and Ocean Sciences (CFOS)
University of Alaska Fairbanks (UAF)
University of Alaska
Juneau, Alaska
POSITION STATEMENT: Co-provided a PowerPoint presentation
entitled, "UAF College of Fisheries and Ocean Sciences:
Building Alaska's Blue Economy," dated 3/4/19.
ACTION NARRATIVE
11:05:30 AM
[Due to recording difficulties from 11:05 a.m. to 11:07 a.m. the
following was reconstructed from the secretary's log notes.]
CHAIR LOUISE STUTES called the House Special Committee on
Fisheries meeting to order at 11:05 a.m. Representatives
Edgmon, Kopp, Tarr, Vance, and Stutes were present at the call
to order. Representative Kreiss-Tomkins arrived as the meeting
was in progress.
^PRESENTATION(S): UNIVERSITY OF ALASKA FAIRBANKS
PRESENTATION(S): UNIVERSITY OF ALASKA FAIRBANKS
11:07:22 AM
CHAIR STUTES announced that the only order of business would be
a presentation by the College of Fisheries and Ocean Sciences,
University of Alaska Fairbanks.
11:07:35 AM
S. BRADLEY MORAN, PhD, Dean, College of Fisheries and Ocean
Sciences (CFOS), University of Alaska Fairbanks (UAF), provided
a PowerPoint presentation entitled, "UAF College of Fisheries
and Ocean Sciences: Building Alaska's Blue Economy." Dr. Moran
said the main message he seeks to convey is the value of the
college and the return on investment (ROI) provided by the
college to the state and its fisheries. In fact, the theme of
the presentation, Building Alaska's Blue Economy, represents an
opportunity to diversify the state's economy. The College of
Fisheries and Ocean Science (CFOS) is the largest combined
research and academic unit in Alaska with 12 locations and many
partnerships statewide, nationally, and internationally. He
pointed out in fiscal year 2018 (FY 18) $46 million in
expenditures for the college were leveraged from $5.9 million in
general funds, which equals an 8:1 ROI. Further, $22.8 million
in research expenditures were almost entirely federally funded;
as well in FY 18, $11 million was budgeted for the operation of
the research vessel (R/V) Sikuliaq (slide 2).
DR. MORAN reviewed slide 3 which listed research and economic
drivers of the "blue economy" including the Alaska Sea Grant
Program, a partnership with the National Oceanic and Atmospheric
Administration (NOAA), U.S. Department of Commerce, various
institutes, and the R/V Sikuliaq, all of which enable CFOS to
fulfil its mission to the state. Slide 4 illustrated that CFOS
partners with a large cooperative of industry - consisting of
the Pollock Conservation Cooperative Research Center and four
at-sea processors - which is the largest philanthropic donor to
the University of Alaska (UA), contributing $16 million through
2019, and that also supports the Ted Stevens Distinguished Chair
in Marine Policy, CFOS. Further partnerships that leverage
federal funds are the Alaska Sea Grant partnership in the amount
of $1.5 million annually and Bureau of Ocean Energy Management,
Department of the Interior, funding to the Coastal Marine
Institute in the amount of $1 million (slide 5). These funds go
to support coastal communities, research, particularly students
and presentations, to advance knowledge that is very focused on
fisheries, marine biology, and ocean science.
11:12:46 AM
DR. MORAN said the applied side CFOS's work is the building of
innovation and the commercialization of a blue economy (slide
6). He said the company Blue Evolution has been leasing space
at the CFOS facility in Kodiak for the last few years. In this
collaboration Blue Evolution is processing kelp for market.
Industry has begun a new effort, the Blue Pipeline Incubator,
which is completely funded externally by industry and
particularly the town of Seward. It is designed as an industry
business incubator for ocean business and workforce development,
it is active work and space is being leased from CFOS in Seward.
The U.S. Department of Energy has a program called Macroalgae
Research Inspiring Novel Energy Resources (MARINER) through the
Advanced Research Projects Agency - Energy (ARPA-E), a project
on sugar kelp that Senator Lisa Murkowski was out front on. It
is a collaboration with many institutes and organizations in the
Lower 48 and is led by CFOS and the University of Alaska
Southeast (UAS). Another example of collaboration is the
development of pet treats from fish skins for commercialization
that is being done at the CFOS Kodiak facility.
11:14:27 AM
DR. MORAN drew attention to the additional specific facilities,
faculty, and active research in mariculture listed on slide 7.
He pointed out that Kodiak is a seafood research and development
facility and there are other research locations. He said
mariculture is being worked on actively in several locations.
Dr. Moran turned attention to the R/V Sikuliaq, the only ice-
capable research vessel in the U.S. academic fleet. R/V
Sikuliaq is owned by the National Science Foundation (NSF) and
operated since March 2014 by CFOS with operating funds from NSF;
CFOS renewed its $33 million cooperative agreement to continue
vessel operations through 2023. He stressed the vessel is
entirely operated by federal funds, including funding for
certain shoreside staff, and is the largest research asset
operated by UAF in the state. In 2023 under federal mandate,
the R/V Sikuliaq operating funds award will be open for
competitive bidding and CFOS seeks to expand its shoreside
facilities in Seward to demonstrate to NSF its commitment to the
vessel.
11:17:28 AM
CO-CHAIR STUTES inquired as to UAF's competitors in its bid to
operate the R/V Sikuliaq.
DR. MORAN replied there was no open competition for the current
2018-2023 award, but in 2023 the award will be subject to an
open competition. He surmised there will be interest in the
vessel from many institutions such as the University of
Washington, Scripps Institution of Oceanography, the University
of California at San Diego, and Woods Hole Oceanographic
Institution.
11:18:22 AM
DR. MORAN continued his presentation. He said that currently
the R/V Sikuliaq is used by CFOS to support the Northern Gulf of
Alaska Long-term Ecosystem Research (NGA LTER) program - one of
four long-term research studies - which garners $2.5 million in
research and ship time annually. Similar LTER programs are
highly sought in order to understand the ecosystems that support
commercial fisheries in the northern Gulf of Alaska (slide 9).
Another aspect to building Alaska's blue economy is the European
Union (EU) Arctic Research Icebreaker Consortium, which includes
the R/V Sikuliaq, and that receives funding from EU for ship
days at sea in support of joint research activities (slide 10).
Dr. Moran provided statistics on Alaska's commercial, sport, and
subsistence fisheries and noted CFOS graduate students work in
industry and in [ADFG] in support of commercial and inland
fisheries, and he gave two examples (slide 11). He pointed out
47 percent of the CFOS faculty are women, and 70 percent of the
students are women. Finally, he informed the committee CFOS,
through the School of Management, is offering a new online
program, UAF Blue MBA, that is unique in the nation and is a
fully accredited MBA program to address fisheries management,
ocean technology, and business solutions for the changing Arctic
(slide 12).
11:23:25 AM
CO-CHAIR STUTES asked for additional information about the
Alaska Sea Grant program.
DR. MORAN explained the [National Sea Grant College Program Act]
requires a 50 percent match of federal funds, thus NOAA's
contribution of $1.5 million annually to UAF must be matched by
a minimum of $800,000; in fact, UAF pays about $1.2 million in
support of the program.
REPRESENTATIVE VANCE questioned who would gain financially by
operating the R/V Sikuliaq.
DR. MORAN said CFOS receives about $12 million annually to
operate the vessel and the indirect cost recovery (ICR) is
almost $1 million to the college; in FY 18, CFOS has accumulated
about $2.6 million in ICR which is used to pay for college
operations. He observed any entity would want to operate the
vessel because of the ICR benefits to the entity. Furthermore,
operating big facilities such as the R/V Sikuliaq are highly
desired to leverage state investment and support a larger
mission.
REPRESENTATIVE VANCE asked whether CFOS conducts research on
fisheries that would indicate a 10-year ROI from Alaska's
fisheries resources. For example, if the fisheries resources
diminish, what the impact of that loss would be to the economy,
subsistence, and personal use.
11:27:16 AM
DR. MORAN advised CFOS is a resource for state agencies and for
those who manage fisheries inland and offshore. For many years,
faculty members have been instrumental in setting policy
management by the North Pacific Fishery Management Council
[established by the Magnuson-Stevens Fishery Conservation and
Management Act of 1967], and he opined the North Pacific fishery
is managed as well or better than any in the world. He
remarked:
If that were all to go away, ... we would have serious
challenges in managing those fisheries. ... We are a
resource, for that, for that purpose.
REPRESENTATIVE KOPP commended CFOS and the critical research it
does to sustain Alaska's fisheries. He observed over the past
five to six years UAF has developed an exemplary partnership
with NSF which, along with the operation of the R/V Sikuliaq,
are significant successes.
11:30:29 AM
MILO ADKISON, PhD, Chair, Department of Fisheries, Juneau
Center, CFOS, UAF, pointed out most of the research referred to
in the presentation is done through graduate student theses and
dissertations; subsequent to the completion of their research,
many students go to work at ADFG and federal agencies. In
response to Representative Vance's earlier question, he advised
faculty are studying the economic implications of potential
downturns in [fisheries] on subsistence issues and on rural
communities. Slide 13 illustrated an example of industry-funded
research in the Beaufort Sea on fish communities, bioenergetics,
and growth, which is valuable to the oil and gas industry in
support of impact analysis. Slide 14 illustrated an example of
research in the problem of economic losses to longline
commercial fisheries due to depredation by whales; graduate
students are conducting research on stock assessment and on
methods to deter this behavior. Slide 15 illustrated research
into trends in the size of Pacific halibut and the effects of
changes in fisheries yield that may be permanent or
environmentally driven.
DR. ADKISON turned to slide 16 which illustrated analyses of the
Tanner crab limit which suggested the existing size limit may
not be optimal for the fishery. He said analyses are reviewed
by students and faculty. Faculty also serve on numerous
advisory committees where they also review and guide research,
such as the North Pacific Research Council's Scientific and
Statistical Committee, as well as numerous advisory groups for
the Alaska Department of Fish and Game (ADF&G) to help guide and
review the department's research. Dr. Adkison said slide 17
illustrated a study that looked at the fate of Douglas Island
Pink and Chum (DIPAC) Hatchery's chum salmon releases during the
first couple of weeks after leaving the hatchery and the fry
resided in the near-shore waters. The study looked at what was
eating them and what the impact was. The size of the fish at
release was looked at and whether size makes a difference in how
vulnerable they were to predation.
11:35:00 AM
DR. ADKISON continued to slide 18 on fishery management research
into the decline of Chinook salmon returns. Although survival
of salmon cohorts is usually determined early in life, research
at sea revealed a sudden increase in temperature that may
indicate predation of salmon by salmon shark. Another student
study on the effects of hatchery fish on wild stocks found
hatchery fish may not be as successful at reproducing than wild
fish; in fact, about one-half of the hatchery fish died before
releasing their eggs.
DR. MORAN closed the presentation, noting that both UAA and UAS
conduct fisheries research, such as research on shark cartilage
with biomedical applications, including knee meniscus and combat
injuries with veterans. He said CFOS programs include fisheries
economists and policymakers throughout the UA system (slide 19).
The Alaska Sea Grant program at UAS interacts with the CFOS
undergraduate joint program and there is the MARINER program on
kelp.
11:38:56 AM
REPRESENTATIVE EDGMON asked whether the aforementioned
improvements to shoreside facilities for the R/V Sikuliaq would
need to be funded through the state's capital budget.
DR. MORAN replied that CFOS's current strategy is to seek
funding from NSF for replacement of the pier and warehouse
facilities. The NSF has a call for proposals around mid-scale
research infrastructure and CFOS is putting in a proposal for
roughly $40 million to that call for replacement of the pier and
warehouse facilities. He noted that Senator Lisa Murkowski and
Senator Dan Sullivan just successfully got a U.S. Department of
Defense appropriation for a new icebreaker and four cutters plus
shoreside support. He offered his understanding that $31
million was allocated to Seward and $22 million to Kodiak.
University leadership is looking into whether there might be
some funding synergy for the civilian side in this. He
clarified that renewal of the operating agreement in 2023 is not
contingent upon improved shoreside facilities; the agreement is
based upon the track record of successful operation of the
vessel. There are shoreside facilities, but they need to be
improved.
11:42:26 AM
ADJOURNMENT
There being no further business before the committee, the House
Special Committee on Fisheries meeting was adjourned at 11:42
a.m.
| Document Name | Date/Time | Subjects |
|---|---|---|
| 2019 03 05 - UA Fisheries & Ocean Sciences - House Fisheries Committee.pdf |
HFSH 3/5/2019 11:00:00 AM |