Southeast Alaska: Forest Service Cancels Mitkof Island Timber Sale By MARY KAUFFMAN - The U.S. Forest Service has formally withdrawn its March authorization of the Mitkof Island Project's large 35-million-board-foot timber sale. Documents were made available to the public on its website November 17th.

Mitkof Island, and Petersburg, Alaska
Photo courtesy muskegman Google Maps

Five environmental organizations sued the Forest Service in May 2015 to stop the sale. Those organizations - the Greater Southeast Alaska Conservation Community, Cascadia Wildlands, the Center for Biological Diversity, Greenpeace and the Alaska Wildlife Alliance - are represented by attorneys with Crag Law Center in Portland and Cascadia Wildlands in Cordova.

These conservation groups says the formal withdrawal notice provides hope to those who depend on Mitkof for a variety uses, including hunting, recreation, fishing and wildlife viewing, that destructive old-growth timber sales like the Mitkof project will indeed be a thing of the past.

Owen Graham, Executive Director of the Alaska Forest Association, provided a response to the announcement by email to SitNews, "We hope the sale is revised, improved and advertised by early spring so we don't lose another logging season." Graham said, "We were really looking forward to this timber sale, because our timber supply is far short of where we think it should be."

Graham explained, the Mitkof project was done as an Environmental Assessment (EA) instead of an Environmental Impact Statement (EIS) in order to save money and time. Graham said one of the purposes of the project was to improve deer browse -"Removing up to 50 percent of the basal area1 of the stand would improve growth of the remaining trees and allow additional light to reach the forest floor, encouraging the growth of wildlife browse." (Pg 5 of the EA)

The Forest Service also designed the timber sale for helicopter logging to minimize the amount of road construction said Graham.

Graham said, "The Forest Service used a non-typical method to estimate the amount of timber that could be economically recovered by helicopter logging and we believe the volume estimate and the appraised minimum rates are much too high. It didn't help that some of the markets have declined some while the sale was being prepared."

"With the apparent error in the volume and appraised rates, it makes sense for the agency to take another look at their cruise and appraisal and this also give the agency time to address the concerns that the appellant raised," said Graham.

Tongass National Forest Supervisor M. Earl Stewart notified the Petersburg District Ranger on November 6th, that after considering the local industry's concerns with the proposed sale and reviewing certain aspects of the project's implementation, an opportunity exists for improving the project's scope of work to both provide a supply of timber that facilitates the transition to an industry based primarily on young-growth, as well as support the transition of the existing local industry. Stewart directed the Petersburg District Ranger to withdraw the Decision Notice of Finding of No Significant Impact for the Mitkof Island Project Environmental Assessment.

“The agency was forced to walk away from this timber sale because it failed to listen to serious environmental concerns raised by the local community,” said Gabe Scott with Cascadia Wildlands. “If the agency simply intends to redraw the project’s scope, it will still be faced with the same realities about the needs of subsistence hunters and the precarious state of old-growth dependent species on Mitkof Island." - More...
Friday PM - November 20, 2015

Alaska: FDA Approves 1st Genetically Engineered Salmon for Human Consumption By MARY KAUFFMAN - The U.S. Food and Drug Administration announced Thursday it is taking several important steps regarding food from genetically engineered (GE) plants and animals, including the first approval for a genetically engineered animal intended for food, AquAdvantage Salmon.

Atlantic Salmon
Graphic courtesy wikipedia.org

The agency is also issuing two guidances for manufacturers who wish to voluntarily label their products as containing ingredients from GE or non-GE sources: a draft guidance on labeling foods derived from Atlantic salmon, and a final guidance on foods derived from genetically engineered plants.

The FDA approved AquaBounty Technologies’ application for AquAdvantage Salmon, an Atlantic salmon that reaches market size more quickly than non-GE farm-raised Atlantic salmon. The FDA regulates GE animals under the new animal drug provisions of the Federal Food, Drug, and Cosmetic Act, because the recombinant DNA (rDNA) construct introduced into the animal meets the definition of a drug. In this case, the rDNA construct introduces a trait that makes the AquAdvantage Salmon grow faster.

“The FDA has thoroughly analyzed and evaluated the data and information submitted by AquaBounty Technologies regarding AquAdvantage Salmon and determined that they have met the regulatory requirements for approval, including that food from the fish is safe to eat,” said Bernadette Dunham, D.V.M., Ph.D., director of the FDA’s Center for Veterinary Medicine.

In addition to approving AquaBounty Technologies’ application for GE salmon, the FDA issued draft guidance for manufacturers wanting to voluntarily label their products as containing GE or non-GE ingredients. Under this guidance, additional labeling of AquAdvantage Salmon would not be required because the FDA says it found no material difference from its natural counterpart. Manufacturers could voluntarily label their food products as “not genetically engineered” or other variations under the FDA’s guidance.

“We recognize that some consumers are interested in knowing whether food ingredients are derived from GE sources,” said Susan Mayne, Ph.D., director of the FDA’s Center for Food Safety and Applied Nutrition. “The FDA is issuing two guidance documents that explain how food companies that want to voluntarily label their products can provide this information to consumers.”

After years of pushback from consumers, scientific experts and fishing interests, the Alaska Congressional Delegation, who has consistently fought to keep genetically engineered (GE) fish off the nation’s dinner plates and away from our nation’s oceans, shared their disappointment in the FDA’s ill-advised decision.

“I am livid at the FDA’s announcement to approve genetically engineered ‘salmon’ - what seems to be more science experiment than fish or food,” said Senator Lisa Murkowski (R-AK). “I have adamantly opposed the approval of GE salmon, both for the health of Americans and the sustainability of our fisheries, but now that the decision has been made, the next step must be to ensure that Americans know what they are consuming. I have introduced both a bill and provision in the appropriations process to mandate the labeling of Frankenfish, and it is more imperative than ever, after this potentially disastrous decision, to make sure they become law.” - More...
Friday PM - November 20, 2015