The Wrangell sentinel., 1948-10-08
FISHERIES HEARING HELD IN WRANGELL
 LAST SATURDAY

LAST SATURDAY
 Seton Thompson, Chief of Fish cries, Alaska Division, of the U. S. Fish and Wildlife Service, ar rived in Wrangell on the FWS ves- sel BIant, last Friday evening with George Kelez and Frank Hynes, officials from the Juneau office, and conducted hearings on commercial fishing in this area at Elks Hall Saturday morning. i MT. Thompson explained briefly the Services policy in trying to bring back the depicting pink sal mon run and further explained that the reason for opening the i fall fishing season Oct. 15, instead of October 5, was that pink sal- mon would still be caught by fish ermen in the first part of October and wasted.
 It was announced that hearings would be held in Seattle October IS and 19 and that written re- concentrations will be received up to November 20 at the WIS office in Washington D. O., from fisher men or others who have ideas to express concerning regulations for 1 the 1949 season.
 l Earl Dinner, shrimp canner of Petersburg. appeared to represent shellfish packers for Wrangell and Petersburg and read recommends tions they had agreed upon at an earlier meeting. They included the opening of Duncan Canal to shrimp fishing and leaving other regula- tions as last year. John Sivertsen, Wrangell operator of Reliance Shrimp Co.,, urged a research by the Service to determine the mi- grafton and the amount of shrimp and. speaking for all operators In , the area, offered use of their boats to assist in the project. Dinner said operators were very interested in a device, described by the Serv- ice, which allows undersiZed shrimp to be returned to the wa ter unharmeed.
 l Gale Matbisen of Petersburg appeared for the seiners and hali-
 but men of that town and read | their recommendations which in . cluded the curtailment of all her T ing fishing, except for food and
 bait. He also added that the one
 day closure of fishing should be , changed from Sunday to Saturday. I Tn representative of the Pet ] e~sburg trollers. Cecil 0wsley, said
 their recommendations included abolition of fish traps, control of sea lions, and more stringent en- ! forcement of fisheries regulations | pertaining to display of tags on I boats. They also recomm ended \ that the practice of nonresident I fishermen buying resident licenses ! be more closely checked and pre- | vented.
 Andy Barlow, representing the United Trollers of Alaska, read their recommendations, includin |; stricter enforcement of regulations i elimination of fish traps, allow ing trollers to sell incidental fish : they catch. curtailment of herring fishing, except for food and bait, "a bounty on sea lions and closing the Stikine area for all fishing from May to July 5. It was fur
 ther recommended that fishing be opened from Icy Point to Fair : weather, and that the season for trolling be definitely opened July 18th.
 Appearing for the Stkine Gill; netters, Ben EngdaI read their re- commendations: elimination of fish
 traps. a bounty on sea lions and
 seals, brailling of traps by 6 D. : -'m m. on Saturdays and closing of all l trolling and gillnetting between -lJune 1 and 25. He added that the ., Gillnetters had employed a seal . hunter at cost of $900 to the ., Stikine Gillnetters Association : and that his disposal of seals had 3 saved each gillnetter many times that amount.
 George Gunderson, local fish trap operator, reported on his op- erations during the past season.
 He explained an. experiment con- ., Continued on Page Ten)