By SHANNON HAUGLAND
Sentinel Staff Writer
The Alaska Trollers Association added more to its resources this week in fighting a lawsuit that could shut down the salmon troll industry in Southeast.
An Elks Lodge fundraising dinner on Sunday brought in $22,326 through donations, a live auction, and a 50-50 drawing that reached $3,036, which was split between Alaska Trollers Association and the drawing winner.
Lisa Langenfeld, one of the organizers of the fundraiser, said she didn’t know how many attended, but it was standing-room-only and was the most successful fundraiser she had seen at the lodge in her 18-plus years of membership.
“That’s a phenomenal amount to raise in one dinner,” commented ATA board president Matt Donohoe. “It seemed like all of Sitka was there.”
Another bright spot for ATA was the news that the Ketchikan Gateway Borough Assembly passed a resolution Monday to oppose the lawsuit, and placed an item on its Feb. 27 agenda to dedicate $25,000 to the Alaska Trollers Association’s legal defense fund.
The Hoonah City Council has an agenda item for its next meeting to dedicate $5,000, ATA said.
ATA is an intervenor in the lawsuit, filed by the Wild Fish Conservancy against the National Marine Fisheries Service. The lawsuit is aimed at protecting southern resident killer whales, which historically have spent part of the year in Puget Sound. Both the state and ATA are intervenors on behalf of National Marine Fisheries Service.
The lawsuit seeks to invalidate a 2019 biological opinion that delegated management authority for king salmon from the federal government to the state of Alaska.
The lawsuit was a frequent topic of conversation at last week’s Southeast Conference, which is a gathering of business and government leaders, Sitka city leaders said.
City Administrator John Leach said at the conference in Juneau he heard about the strong state and federal support for the fishing fleet and toward resolving the lawsuit.
“Representative Peltola, Senator Murkowski and Senator Sullivan, and the governor called in (with speeches) and every single one of them discussed the issue,” the administrator said. “The governor basically said if there’s not a fair decision they will be appealing and they’re putting their full support behind the fishing fleet.”
Sullivan in his address to the Legislature on Tuesday commented on the lawsuit as well.
“This group is weaponizing the Endangered Species Act,” he said of the Wild Fish Conservancy. “They’re not claiming that it’s the fishery near them in Washington state or the pollution in Puget Sound in Washington state. They’re blaming our fishery, hundreds of miles away in Southeast, and they are requesting to the judge to shut it down. We cannot let this kind of craziness stand. I’ve committed to fighting against this kind of abuse of the system with everything I can to make sure the livelihoods of hard-working Alaskan families in Southeast and our economy here remain strong. I ask you to help me to join in that fight, which doesn’t get enough attention.”
The Sitka City and Borough Assembly at next week’s meeting will consider final reading of an ordinance to dedicate $25,000 in city funds to the lawsuit. It passed unanimously on first reading January 24.
Donohoe said the ATA is still seeking donations and resolutions from a number of Southeast Communities, but has already received funds from Petersburg, Craig, Pelican, Port Alexander, with more expected from Yakutat, Ketchikan and Hoonah. In Sitka the city donated $5,000 before proposing the additional $25,000.
The case is currently before U.S. District Court Judge Richard Jones in Seattle.
