Oil Spill | Alaskan Harvest Seafood Blog

A Special Announcement Regarding the Recent Oil Spill

Filed under: News — Tags: oil spill —

It’s tough to be in a celebratory mood when we’re constantly learning of more damage being done in the Gulf of Mexico due to the recent oil spill and it’s spreading contamination. Regardless of what caused such an accident, or where it occurs, such an event is a true disaster, in more ways than just one.

Unfortunately, we are seeing trends that point to a potentially dramatic increase in fish and shrimp prices coming from Alaska. At first glance, an ocean disaster in the Gulf wouldn’t seem to be tied to Alaska, but as the oil spreads and poisons fish and shrimp species in the Gulf, the fishermen who made their living off of the southern coast of the United States are out of work. The lack of supply from the Gulf could lead to a higher strain and demand on the fish from the other areas, including Alaska. As the demand for seafood increases, we expect the prices to continue to rise as they have over the past few years, but at an even faster rate.

We’ve always taken pride in our ability to keep our prices competitive while only selling the highest quality available, but we warn that if trends continue, this may be the best time to purchase any fish or shellfish that you may need. We will always do our best to keep the prices reasonable, and are always looking for new sources and ways to deliver a good value to our customers.

-The Alaskan Harvest Team

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Exxon Valdez - 20 Years After

Filed under: News — Tags: Alaska, exxon, exxon valdez, exxon valdez oil spill, fish, fishing industry, killer whale, oil spill, oil spill clean up, otter, Prince William Sound, seabird, seagull, seal, spillionaires, twentieth anniversary, wildlife, wildlife conservation —

Tuesday marked the twentieth anniversary of the Exxon Valdez oil spill in Prince William Sound, an ecological and economic disaster of historic proportions, resulting in untold damage to wildlife, regional ecosystems, local industries, and generations of people who subsisted on natural resources in the area.

Around 10.9 million gallons of crude oil were spilled into the Sound, making it the largest such accident in U.S. history. An estimated 250,000 seabirds were killed, along with at least 3,000 sea otters, 300 harbor seals, 250 bald eagles, 22 killer whales, and untold numbers of fish populations, both at the spill site and throughout the Northwestern Pacific region, as toxins spread through the food chain. Over 1100 miles of coastline were affected. Millions of dollars were also lost by the local economy, which depended in part on tourism, and recreational as well as commercial fishing.

While some captains and crews managed to recoup some of their losses during fishing season that year and years following by leasing their boats or time to clean-up operations, the majority of the Alaskan fishing fleet experienced a major set-back in economic stability and a blow to their future resources, as well. It wasn’t until August of 2008 that Exxon agreed to pay 75% of the $507.5 million dollars in damages they were ordered to pay. Many fishing families never recovered, and most took a major hit to their plans for retirement.