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About The daily Astorian. (Astoria, Or.) 1961-current | View Entire Issue (Dec. 1, 2016)
10A THE DAILY ASTORIAN • THURSDAY, DECEMBER 1, 2016 Gillnetters: ‘Unless something changes, there’s no future in this’ Continued from Page 1A Walters estimates that 30 percent of his income comes from gillnetting, while the remainder is made hauling in crab pots during Dungeness season. He said the smaller share of income from gill- netting is a direct result of increasing regulations, some of which are meant to protect Chinook (also called kings) and chum salmon (also called dogs) in the bay. “We basically don’t even get to fish for Chinook any- more. That’s a big part of our season gone. Now we’re losing part of our silver fish- ing because of the kings, and dogs, too. We’ve got nothing left,” Walters said. A gillnet- ter for past 35 years, Walters feels that the future is dim for the industry. Frequent rule- driven closures, increasing costs for fuel, gear and repairs have further distanced a new generation from getting into the gillnetter occupation. “Unless something changes, there’s no future in this,” he said. Finding a new profession isn’t a consideration for Cow- ell, who feels he has found his true calling. “We’ve been here our whole lives. This is more than just a job. This is our culture, a way of life. It’s a calling for very small share of people who are indepen- dent and are willing to take chances. Commercial fishing has always been risky busi- ness financially and physi- cally. We’re ambitious and hardworking men, it’s not like we can’t make a living another way, but we would like to make a living the way we always have and want to. This is a renewable, sustain- able resource and always has been until recently,” he said. Economic impacts The dwindling number of gillnetters has been alarm- ing to others dependent on the industry. The impact of new 2015 regulation com- bined with fewer gillnetters has had a domino effect on other Pacific County indus- tries from processors to wholesalers. “On a good year on the Willapa, there was easily 60 boats fishing,” said Dean Antich, general manager at South Bend Products, a sea- food wholesaler in South Bend. “But this year it might have been 40. With the new policy in place along with the gear and date restric- tions, I’ve seen guys sell their boats. There’s less guys fish- ing now,” he said. “Last year was devastat- ing,” Antich said. “It was a disaster. We had no fishing in November at all. It was the first year of the pol- icy. The fishery was closed because of a very poor return of coho, there just wasn’t a big return.” “Not only is there an eco- nomic impact on the fisher- men, there’s also an impact on my employees. I have fewer employees now than I would normally have and they’re getting a lot less hours. It impacts the industry, the wholesalers and proces- sors, not just the gillnetters.” Antich has about 25 employees on call for when the fish come in, but while fishing is closed, their phones won’t ring with available work. “Right now I’ve got 55 employees. We’re not a Mon- day through Friday 9 to 5. We work when we have fish. On the days they don’t fish, they don’t work.” Tough two years In April 2015, the Wash- ington Fish and Wild- life Commission released a revised Willapa Bay salmon management plan centered largely around conserving and restoring naturally spawning Chinook — the descendants of hatchery fish that now are laying eggs without human intervention. Recent genetic testing found these “natural” salmon are identical to Wil- lapa hatchery stock. For fall Chinook, the plan called for stricter lim- its on mortality rates for nat- ural-origin Chinook salmon by adding new restrictions to the fishing schedule, location and gear for gillnetters, the only commercial fishermen permitted on the bay. This included a 14 percent limit on mortality rates for Naselle and Willapa River natural-or- igin Chinook salmon and a 10 percent rate for chum. “The policy is written pri- marily to support Chinook salmon. We don’t get a lot of fishing time — we don’t get any in August. We don’t get fishing time until mid-Sep- tember. Then we get our coho-directed fishery, which can be impacted by the chum run. We’re allowed 10 percent impact on the chum run, we exceed that and they close the fishery down,” Walters said. The past two years have been particularly bad, accord- ing to Cowell. “That’s when they ini- tiated their new manage- ment plan. Right off the bat, 30,000 Chinook salmon died in the streams and hatcheries because of the new plan. It’s not that we could have caught them all, but we could have maybe caught half. But we didn’t get a chance to even go. The fishermen can deal when there’s years with not good returns, that’s part of fishing,” Cowell said. “But when there’s a lot of fish and you can’t fish, that’s a hard pill to swallow.” Gillnetting nearly gutted Over the past three years, the commercial gillnetting industry on Willapa Bay has gone through a gaunt- let of highs and lows. Record catches were celebrated during 2014 only to be fol- lowed by the devastating 2015 season that was largely stifled under new regulation. “We had 50,000 pounds of mostly silvers in one day,” Cowell said referring to one unforgettable afternoon 2014. “Compare that to 80,000 pounds of silvers and Chi- nook combined this year.” The drastic drop wasn’t the direct result of poor runs, but more to blame on flawed reg- ulations, according to Cowell. “In 2014, our gross income on this dock was over $70,000. In 2015, the first year of the new management plan, I made about $6,000 — about 8 percent of what I made the year before. I went in the hole severely. I lost 92 percent of my income, as did the fishermen,” Cowell said. “Last year, I didn’t break even,” Walters said. So far, the 2016 season has been better, but closures con- tinue to limit the momentum and curb optimism. “This year, because of the silvers, it’s been better,” Cow- ell said. “On this late season, it’s wide open for silvers, but if they catch 110 dog salmon we’ll get shut off.” T HURSDAY E VENING (2) (-) (-) (6) (-) (8) (9) (10) (12) (13) (-) (20) (-) (29) (30) (31) (32) (34) (35) (36) (38) (39) (43) (44) (45) (46) (47) (48) (49) (50) (51) (52) (53) (54) (56) (57) (58) (61) (63) (64) (65) (162) L KATU KOMO KING KOIN KIRO KGW KRCW KOPB KPTV KPDX KCPQ TBS KZJO ESPN ESPN2 NICK DISN FAM FMC LIFE ROOT FS1 SPIKE COM HIST A&E TLC DISC NGEO TNT AMC USA FOOD HGTV FX CNN FNC CNBC BRAV TCM SYFY RFD (2) (4) (5) (-) (7) (-) (3) (10) (12) (-) (13) (20) (22) (29) (30) (31) (32) (34) (35) (36) (38) (39) (43) (44) (45) (46) (47) (48) (49) (50) (51) (52) (53) (54) (56) (57) (58) (61) (63) (64) (65) (162) 6 PM Continued from Page 1A In addition, a K-9 officer could serve as a department mascot, educational tool and public-relations asset. So far, the department has raised about $1,100 of the $15,000 target, according to Warrenton Police Officer Rob- ert Wirt, who will be the K-9’s handler. Donations will pay for the animal, training fees, K-9 equipment and other accoutre- ments. The department plans to outfit an old Tahoe with K-9 travel gear, but next year’s bud- get may include a new K-9- ready vehicle once the older vehicle is taken out of service. Bayshore Animal Hospital in Warrenton will provide vet- erinary care and has offered to give the dog free annual check- ups and shots; nonroutine ser- vices, like surgeries, will be 50 percent off. The K-9 will live at Wirt’s residence in Warrenton, and the officer will receive a contrac- tual 5-percent pay increase for taking care of the animal on and off duty. The right K-9 hasn’t been found yet, but the trainer, John Eckhart, who retired from the Portland Police Bureau, is actively looking for one. Wirt said the department wants a Dutch shepherd or a “good old-fashioned German shepherd.” Eckhart, who also trained K-9 officers for the Clatsop County Sheriff’s Office and the Cannon Beach Police Depart- ment, will work with the cho- sen dog independently, then do a multiweek course with Wirt. The K-9 would become certi- fied at a conference in another city. “We’re hoping to be certi- fied by the end of May,” Wirt said. At a recent City Commis- sion meeting, Wirt said that Eckhart may do “bite work” with the dog — that is, not to train the animal how to bite but when to bite. The dog would learn to bite only on command; to avoid biting, the handler sim- ply doesn’t give the command. This gives the officer more con- trol over the K-9 and makes the dog less likely to bite, Wirt said. Once the dog is trained on narcotics, the department may explore whether to train the dog in search and rescue. This skill would be valuable, Wirt said, for when autistic children or people with dementia get lost, and could dramatically reduce the time it takes to find them. The Warrenton Police Department has had drug-sniff- ing dogs before but not a search- and-rescue dog, Wirt said. Commissioner Tom Dyer, a retired trooper with Oregon State Police, said “a good drug dog is a good deterrent.” When students are tempted to store drugs in their lock- ers, for example, “the chance of getting caught makes them think twice,” Dyer said. Port: Lee replaces Lansing Continued from Page 1A Reached by phone after- ward, Lansing confirmed he has left the budget committee. “I have a lot of emotional equity in the Port,” he said, add- ing that while there is a lot of opportunity at the agency, there also needs to be a change in how commissioners are chosen. Lansing echoed the calls of the former Committee to Restore, Revitalize and Reor- ganize the Port of Astoria, which wanted Port commis- sioners to be state-appointed instead of elected, like in Coos Bay and Portland. The quality of people serv- ing on the Port Commission and their conflicts of inter- est are disheartening, Lansing said, and impeding the Port’s opportunities. Fulton has been accused of conflicts of interest in the past by Clatsop County Board of Commissioners Chairman Scott Lee, who questioned whether Fulton serves the Port or his employer, Warrenton Fiber. members, including Lansing, Mary Iverson, Richard Lee, Frank Spence and Chris Con- naway. After Lansing’s depar- ture, the community mem- bers voted 3-1 to have Lee fill Lansing’s remaining term as chairman, which runs through February. Lee said he had never seen a chairman of a committee walk out of a meeting like Lansing. “He said, ‘I’m out of here.’ I think that is a resignation,” Lee said. Spence, the lone “no” vote, said the budget committee should have the Port’s admin- istration make sure Lansing had resigned. Port commission- ers Robert Mushen and James Campbell agreed. “I think we have to move to replace him at this time … so we can continue on with our budget,” Hunsinger said. Hunsinger called for a vote among fellow Port commis- sioners to announce an opening on the budget committee. The motion was voted down 2-3, with John Raichl, Mushen and Campbell in opposition. Lee replaces Lansing The budget committee is composed of the five Port com- missioners and five community Pensions and pollution After voting to replace Lan- sing as chairman, the budget LISTINGS THE DAILY ASTORIAN A Deputy dog: ‘A good drug dog is a good deterrent’ committee heard a review of the Port’s first-quarter financials. The Port had budgeted a net loss of $775,403 for July through September, but only lost $252,915. The Port also suffered a loss in net position of $1.2 million last fiscal year, which ended in June. Todd Kimball, an accoun- tant for the Port through finan- cial consultants CFO Selec- tions, said the losses are driven by new requirements to account for the cost of potential pollu- tion cleanup and future pension obligations. Pollution remedia- tion costs took $920,000 in rev- enue out of the budget this year, he said, while obligations for the Public Employees Retire- ment System cost just under $500,000 starting last year. In the first three months of the new fiscal year, the Port earned $124,000 less than bud- geted on pier operations, one of the agency’s main sources of revenue, while it earned nearly $69,000 more than expected from marina operations. On expenses, the Port spent $3.1 million less on capital projects than budgeted, nearly $63,000 less on salary and wages and more than $72,000 less on fuel and related costs. Evening listings THURSDAY D ECEMBER 1 A - Charter Astoria/ Seaside - L - Charter Long Beach 6:30 7 PM 7:30 8 PM 8:30 9 PM 9:30 10 PM 10:30 11 PM 11:30 KATU News at 6 Jeopardy! Wheel of Fortune A Charlie Brown Christmas The Great American Baking Show "Cake Week/ Cookie Week" (SP) (N) KATU News at 11 (:35) Jimmy Kimmel KOMO 4 News Wheel of Fortune Jeopardy! A Charlie Brown Christmas The Great American Baking Show "Cake Week/ Cookie Week" (SP) (N) KOMO 4 News (:35) Jimmy Kimmel (5:20) NFL Football Dallas Cowboys at Minnesota Vikings Site: U.S. Bank Stadium -- Minneapolis, Minn. (L) 5th Quarter Evening Evening Dateline NBC KING 5 News (:35) Tonight Show KOIN Local 6 at 6 CBS Evening News Extra Ent. Tonight Big Bang Theory Great Indoors (N) Mom (N) Life in Pieces (N) Pure Genius (N) KOIN 6 News @ 11 (:35) S. Colbert KIRO 7 News CBS Evening News The Insider Ent. Tonight Big Bang Theory Great Indoors (N) Mom (N) Life in Pieces (N) Pure Genius (N) KIRO News (:35) S. Colbert (5:20) NFL Football Dallas Cowboys at Minnesota Vikings Site: U.S. Bank Stadium -- Minneapolis, Minn. (L) Paid Program Paid Program Inside Edition Dateline NBC KGW News at 11 (:35) Tonight Show Last Man Standing Last Man Standing Modern Family Modern Family LegendsTomorrow "Invasion" 4/4 (N) Supernatural "Rock Never Dies" (N) KGW News at 10 Two and a Half Two and a Half Met Your Mother Painting the Town Business (N) PBS NewsHour Oregon Revealed Oregon Revealed 2 "An Oregon Field Guide Special 2" This Land Is Your Land (My Music) 6 O'Clock News Family Feud Family Feud Rosewood (N) Pitch "Scratched" (N) 10 O'Clock News 11 O'Clock News 2 Broke Girls Mike & Molly Mike & Molly Big Bang Theory Big Bang Theory FOX 12's 8 O'Clock News on PDX-TV FOX 12's 9 O'Clock News on PDX-TV The Simpsons Family Guy American Dad Cleveland Show Modern Family Modern Family Big Bang Theory Big Bang Theory Rosewood (N) Pitch "Scratched" (N) Q13 News at 10 Q13 News The Simpsons Seinfeld Seinfeld Seinfeld 2 Broke Girls 2 Broke Girls 2 Broke Girls Big Bang Theory Big Bang Theory Big Bang Theory Big Bang Theory Conan (N) Two and a Half Two and a Half Last Man Standng Last Man Standng Modern Family Modern Family Q13 News at 9 Big Bang Theory Big Bang Theory Friends Friends NCAA Basketball Cincinnati at Iowa State (L) SportsCenter SportsCenter SportsCenter SportsCenter H.S. Basketball (L) SportsCenter E:60 Profile E:60 Pictures 30 for 30 "Hit It Hard" Jalen & Jacoby (N) 30 for 30 "Phi Slama Jama" Henry Danger Henry Danger Paradise Run The Thundermans Ice Age (‘02, Animated) Voices of John Leguizamo, Denis Leary, Ray Romano. Full House Full House Friends Friends Good Luck Charlie, It's Christmas! Bridgit Mendler. (:05) Cali Style Liv Maddie Cali C'mas Light Fight Pt. 1 of 2 Stuck in Middle The Lodge Stuck in Middle Liv and Maddie Austin & Ally (:05) National Lampoon's Christmas Vacation (‘89) Chevy Chase. (:15) The Santa Clause (‘94) Judge Reinhold, Wendy Crewson, Tim Allen. (:20) The Nightmare Before Christmas The Year Without a Santa Claus (5:00) We Bought a Zoo Matt Damon. (:20) We Bought a Zoo (‘11, Com/Dra) Scarlett Johansson, Thomas Haden Church, Matt Damon. (:40) FXM Presents Won't Back Down (2012, Drama) Viola Davis, Maggie Gyllenhaal. Project Runway "Project Pop Up" Runway "Life Is Full of Surprises" Project Runway Project Runway (N) PR Start "They're Ripping You Off" (N) PR Startup NCAA Basketball Mississippi Valley State University at Gonzaga (L) Champions Tennis Legends PowerShares Series AMA Supercross Main Event "178: Johnson vs. Cariaso" UFC Tonight Fox Sports Live TMZ Sports (N) Speak for Yourself Skip and Shannon: Undisputed Opinions on the biggest sports topics of the day. The Shawshank Redemption (1994, Drama) Morgan Freeman, James Whitmore, Tim Robbins. The Shawshank Redemption (‘94) Morgan Freeman, Tim Robbins. Movie (5:50) Futurama (:25) Futurama (:55) Futurama Futurama Comedy...Roast "Rob Lowe" The dais tries to take down an ageless heartthrob. Drunk History South Park The Daily Show (N) @midnight (N) Pawn Stars Pawn Stars Pawn Stars Pawn Stars Pawn Stars Pawn Stars Pawn Stars Pawn Stars Pawn Stars Pawn Stars (:05) Pawn Stars (:35) Pawn Stars The First 48 "Bad Love" The First 48 "Bad Tempered/ The Bully" The First 48 "Deadly Premonition" (N) Nightwatch "New Beginnings" (SP) (N) Gangland Under. (:45) The First 48 (:05) The First 48 "Knock Knock" Married Mom Dad "Meet My Family" My 600-lb Life "Penny's Story" My 600-lb Life "Tara's Story" My 600-lb Life "Milla's Story" Extreme Weight Loss "Georgeanna" My 600-lb Life "Penny's Story" Street Outlaws "Ready, Set, Crow..." Street Outlaws Street Outlaws "OH-HI-NO" Street Outlaws Street Outlaws "I Will Follow" Street Outlaws "Down From Chi-Town" Hippo vs. Croc Python vs. Gator Cobra Mafia Anaconda: Silent Killer Croc Invasion Dark Side of Crocs (5:00) NBA Basketball L.A. Clippers vs Cleveland (L) NBA Basketball Houston Rockets at Golden State Warriors Site: The Oracle -- Oakland, Calif. (L) Inside the NBA NBA Basketball L.A. C./Cle. Back to the Future (1985, Comedy) Christopher Lloyd, Lea Thompson, Michael J. Fox. Back to the Future II (1989, Sci-Fi) Christopher Lloyd, Lea Thompson, Michael J. Fox. (4:30) Monster-in-Law Jennifer Lopez. Law & Order: Special Victims Unit Law & Order: Special Victims Unit Law & Order: Special Victims Unit Law & Order: Special Victims Unit Falling Water (N) Law & Order: Special Victims Unit Chopped "Wasted!" Chopped "Love Bites" Chopped "Chopped Gastropub" Chopped "Jump For Bok Choy" (N) Beat Flay (N) Beat Bobby Flay Beat Bobby Flay Beat Bobby Flay Flip or Flop Flip or Flop Flip or Flop Flip or Flop Flip or Flop Flip or Flop Flip or Flop (N) Flip or Flop House Hunters (N) House Hunters (N) House Hunters House Hunters Neighbors (2014, Comedy) Zac Efron, Rose Byrne, Seth Rogen. Sex Tape (2014, Comedy) Jason Segel, Rob Lowe, Cameron Diaz. Sex Tape (2014, Comedy) Jason Segel, Rob Lowe, Cameron Diaz. Enlighten Us: The Rise and Fall of James Arthur Ray (2016, Documentary) Enlighten Us: The Rise and Fall of James Arthur Ray (2016, Documentary) Anderson Cooper 360 CNN Newsroom The Kelly File With Megyn Kelly Hannity The O'Reilly Factor The Kelly File With Megyn Kelly Hannity On the Record Shark Tank Make Me a Millionaire Inventor (N) Shark Tank Shark Tank Inventor "Just What the Doctor Ordered" Paid Program Paid Program Top Chef "Finale" Million Listing "White Wedding Day" Million Listing "Zeppo Marx the Spot" Million Dollar Listing Los Angeles (N) T Chef "Something Old, Something New" (:15) Watch (N) (:45) Million Listing It Happened on Fifth Avenue (‘47) Ann Harding, Don DeFore. O.Henry's Full House (‘52, Biography) Anne Baxter, Jeanne Crain, Fred Allen. (:15) Meet John Doe (‘41) Gary Cooper. (5:00) The Man Who Came to Dinner Jurassic Park III (2001, Sci-Fi) William H. Macy, Téa Leoni, Sam Neill. Galaxy Quest (1999, Comedy) Sigourney Weaver, Alan Rickman, Tim Allen. Final Destination 3 (‘06) Mary Elizabeth Winstead. SF Machinery Small Town (N) Rural America 'Live' Steve Lantvit Rural Eve. News Market Journal GA Farm Monitor SF Machinery Small Town Time Life Library
