CORDOVA REMINDS EXXON THAT WE HAVEN'T FORGOTTEN!!!
On September 2nd, 2006, over 100 vessels in the Cordova fishing fleet held a demonstration to (1) commemorate the 1993 blockade of Valdez Narrows, (2) remember the 6000 souls lost while still waiting for the punitive damages to be paid, and (3) show the world that we are still here, still fighting, still concerned about the future, and not going to give up until Exxon "makes Cordova Whole".
Links to website with more information are provided below, and more will be added as they are discovered and/or sent in to us. If you know of a link that should be included, please email it as soon as you can to exxonmail@cordovaradio.com.
A BRAND NEW SITE CREATED BY LISA MARIE JACOBS, FEATURING OUR KLAM AUDIO EXCERPTS , PICTURES, AND A NEWS STORY.
http://www.crsalmon.org/blockade.htm
A slideshow created by an observer:
http://www.photoshow.net/view/BycGTnIbf
Another observer's slideshow, along with access to other video files having to do with the EVOS
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=v2EwiE_Zr2w
A very well done movie about the history of this problem.
http://www.sierraclub.org/tv/
-- select Episode 2 "The Day the Water Died"
Alaskans react to the reopener -- press release:
A couple of documents from the state:
Letter from Jennifer Gibbins on 5/31/06
HI folks-
Thanks to your very good and hard work, Governor Murkowski has made a statement indicating that the state will file a claim on the re-opener (see below). We do not yet have the details of what the filing will entail and probably will not until after the filing is completed. At this point we anticipate that the filing may include lingering oil, clams, sea otters and possibly orcas ? but not herring. In the end, the filing may not be as comprehensive as we would ideally like, however, your efforts over the past several months have moved this issue farther than what we thought was possible!!!
I encourage folks to continue to call Senator Murkowksi and now Governor Murkowski to express your appreciation for their support on this issue and to press for inclusion of herring - see the suggested message under item #2 below. Several folks have told me that they have been trying to call but the mailboxes are full ? please keep trying when you have a moment!
Cheers and thank you so very much!!
Jennifer
1) Murkowski statement
Murkowski says state will pursue Exxon Valdez reopener By the Associated Press, read by host Lori Townsend, APRN
ANCHORAGE, AK (2006-05-30) Governor Murkowski says state and federal claims against Exxon Mobile to pay another $100 million to clean up Prince William Sound will be filed by this week's deadline. Murkowski says the U.S. Department of Justice and the state attorney general are preparing Alaska's claim over the 1989 Exxon Valdez oil spill.
http://www.publicbroadcasting.net/apti/news.newsmain?action=article&ARTICLE_ID=921729
2) Numbers to take action and make the call
Senator Lisa Murkowski, Anchorage office # 907-271-3755
http://murkowski.senate.gov/
Governor Murkowski, Juneau office #907-465-3500
Website with e-mail contact: http://www.gov.state.ak.us/govoffices/
The message is simple:
“Hello, my name is ______________________. I am a (commercial
fisherman, school teacher, small business owner, etc.) from Cordova, Alaska,
I am calling to thank you for your support on the $100 million EVOS Re-Opener.
Restoration of Prince William Sound is needed for the benefit of the environment
and the economy. I also want to draw you attention to the Herring Restoration
Proposal submitted to your office on behalf of our community by Mr. Vince
Patrick. I encourage you to give this information every consideration as
the state prepares to file in the courts.
Thank you again for your support.”
Jennifer Gibbins
Director
Eyak Preservation Council
www.redzone.org
PO Box Cordova, AK 99574
907-424-5890
Subject:
FYI Date:
Wed, 31 May 2006 11:48:24 -0800 From:
HI folks-
I am bringing this to your attention. The following message and attachments have been sent to representatives of the state government and various state agencies. This is the herring restoration plan that is being suggested to the state government by the Cordova community. In your capacity as journalists you may wish to contact these representatives for comment on this material.
Thanks ?
Jennifer Gibbins
To All Concerned EVOS Re-Opener Parties:
Attached are the basic components of a Herring Restoration/Re-Opener Plan developed for the Alaska Department of Law and Federal Department of Justice, by the Prince William Sound Fisheries Research Applications and Planning group, with the assistance of the many stakeholder groups that reside in Cordova, Alaska and the Prince William Sound Alaska region. We had desired to present a completely detailed research plan for the recovery of PWS herring that remain severely impacted by the Exxon Valdez Oil spill after 17 years of non-recovery. Lack of funding for an extensive planning effort was not available for this community based effort, so, as a consequence, we are submitting a budget and time line of tasks that will be required for the recovery of the PWS herring resource. It is incorporated in a format originally devised to accommodate federal endangered species. Also included is a cover letter from Dr. Vince Patrick to Governor Murkowski that explains the evolution of the plan as well as several other documents in various formats.
Living, as we do, in the PWS region and continuing to be deprived of a healthy ecosystem as a consequence of the Exxon Valdez Oil Spill ,we plead with those of you in positions of responsibility to take full advantage of the opportunity before you to seek additional funds from Exxon that can be used to assist in restoring Prince William Sound to its condition prior to the 1989 disaster. If we can be of any assistance in helping to move this recovery process forward please do not hesitate to contact Ross Mullins or Ken Adams at 424-4790, the PWSFRAP office- or at our respective homes, 424-3664 and 424-5456. Email will reach us at pwsfrap@gci.net.
In closing I would like to quote from a recent letter to the DOJ and
AK Dept of Law from Justin Massey, an attorney for Trustees of Alaska.
It seems to me that this paragraph sums up the options before you:
"As attorneys general, you have before you two courses of action with
starkly different
consequences: You can file a plan that focuses on a limited number
of resources and waive your ability to seek a court order requiring Exxon
to address the range of unanticipated injuries caused by the Spill, or
you can file a plan that addresses the range of unanticipated injuries
and preserve your ability to seek a court order on September 1, 2006 requiring
Exxon to fund all or part of the plan. The latter course preserves
your discretion to enforce the Re-opener to an extent that
reflects the range of unanticipated injuries caused by the Spill, and
it thus best fulfills your trust
responsibility to restore the natural resources damaged by the Spill.
"
We sincerely hope that the opportunity for funding the full recovery of the PWS ecosystem that is presently before you will not be missed for lack of courage to confront Exxon or a feeling that the linkages necessary are weak or contradictory. It can be shown that they are not! If it comes to a battle in court I am confident that the State and Federal Governments WILL prevail. We here in PWS will do our utmost to assist that process in any way that we can.
Respectifully submitted this 30th day of May, 2006.
The PWSFRAP group:
Ross Mullins, Ken Adams, Dr. Vince Patrick
Subject:
EVOS Approves Invitaiton for Proposals-ADNR MEDIA
RELEASE Date:
Fri, 02 Jun 2006 09:57:55 -0800 From:
PICWEB <picweb@dnr.state.ak.us> To:
undisclosed-recipients: ;
Alaska Department of Natural Resources Media Release
Exxon Valdez Oil Spill Trustee Council
Contact: Michael Baffre or Cherri Womac
Phone: 907-278-8012
Release Date: June 2, 2006
Subject: Trustee Council Approves 2007 Invitation for Proposals
On May 23 the Exxon Valdez Oil Spill Trustee Council approved the development and release of the fiscal year 2007 Invitation for Proposals. This year’s Invitation will focus on lingering oil, injured resources (with an emphasis on Pacific herring) and lost or diminished human services. The Invitation will also seek projects related to the integration of information that will help assess or restore groups of interrelated species or services. The Invitation supports the ongoing program of restoration, research, and monitoring of the resources and services injured by the 1989 oil spill.
The Trustee Council is currently synthesizing past and current research to understand the present-day status of injured resources and services in order to guide restoration plans for the future. The Council wants to shift the emphasis of the annual request to projects that can directly inform or conduct effective restoration activities. The Council is seeking to use the information gained from more than a decade of applied research, to identify and implement direct restoration actions.
Among other things, the Trustee Council will request restoration proposals specifically targeted at human uses of injured natural resources. Specifically, the Council will look for restoration actions that will benefit human services such as subsistence use and commercial fisheries. For example, the Council is interested in projects that would facilitate the ability of subsistence users to more fully utilize and be confident in the safety of subsistence resources injured by the Exxon Valdez oil spill.
Importantly, the Council is seeking proposals that will lead to effective restoration actions to respond to the continued failure of herring in Prince William Sound to recover from the population crash they experienced in 1993. The Prince William Sound stock of herring has been depressed by consistent disease problems since that time and the Trustee Council is aggressively pursuing restoration measures. At its May 23 meeting, the Council approved the development of a long-term restoration plan for herring. The planning process will include stakeholders, community members, and scientists, and will begin this summer. In addition to this commitment, the Council has requested a wide range of herring restoration projects in the Invitation for Proposals it just approved.
The Trustee Council also emphasized the importance of mapping the location of the remaining oil, both inside and outside of Prince William Sound.
For more information, contact the Trustee Council Office at 441 W. 5th
Avenue, Suite 500, Anchorage, Alaska 99501, or call 278-8012, toll-free
within Alaska at 1-800-478-7745.
There are 3 segments. First you see the copy for the anchor, and then the audio clip is accessible by a link below the copy.
(Note: The "select for download" check-boxes were on the ABC news site, but are just part of the image here -- those links don't actually do anything. If you want to save the clip, use the blue buttons below)
Here's the audio:
Here's the audio:
This is Segment 3:
Here's the audio:
If you want to hear the 1/27/06 9th circuit court hearing, follow this link, and enter "04-35182" in the submission window:
http://www.faegre.com/articles/article_751.aspx#down
We jointly decided at Tuesday nights meeting for each person to jot down specific issues:
(a) those important to each of our situations
AND
(b) those issues that need to be clarified for the media & general public
Examples of personal issues:
Invested in equipment & gear that has become worthless as result of loss of Herring fishery.
Continual economic hardships, peripheral businesses closing
Emotional distress, losses of investments and retirement options
Public misconceptions:
The general public thinks that ‘ WE’ have been compensated, whereas the Compensatory $$’s rarely covered 1 years losses.
Exxon cleaned it up…they didn’t and what they spent was mostly provided by their insurance companies.
The sound has recovered and is back to normal ? NOT, no herring and still plenty of visible oil to be found.
The punitive damages are excessive ? nil compared to the record corporate annual earnings & corporate officers salaries.
PLEASE CORDOVA LET’S PULL TOGETHER ONE MORE TIME TO GET OUR MESSAGE OUT THAT EXXON IS IGNORING THE FEDERAL COURT DECISION AND TERRIBLY NEGLIGENT IN THEIR PROMISES & OBLIGATIONS TO OUR COMMUNITY.
Make a short concise list and join us on Friday to produce a document that will be forwarded to a variety of news media to attract their attention to our grievance with Exxon prior to the next anniversary ? the 17th!!!
Episode 2 "The Day the Water Died"
This is the result of the Brave New Films crew that was in Cordova in
September. One of the best pieces of video on our situation since the
spill that has been done.
Note from J.R.: this is a big file, and will take time to download -- but it's worth a look.
http://seattlepi.nwsource.com/local/262707_exxonsettle13.html
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