NOAA Announces Appointment to North Pacific Fishery Management Council
January 7, 2008
The Commerce Department today announced the appointment of Robert E. Dersham, of Anchor Point, Alaska, to the North Pacific Fishery Management Council.
The North Pacific Fishery Management Council is one of eight regional bodies established by the Magnuson-Stevens Fishery Conservation and Management Act that prepare fishery management plans for marine fish stocks in their respective geographical areas of responsibility. NOAA’s Fisheries Service submits the management plans to the Secretary of Commerce for review and approval.
A charterboat operator for more than 23 years, Dersham has been an active participant on the Alaska Board of Fisheries for more than eight years, is a fisheries coordinator with the Alaska Department of Fish and Game, and is co-owner and operator of a fishing lodge on the east side of Cook Inlet. Dersham represents the recreational sector. Under this appointment, Dersham will serve on the Council until August 10, 2009. He will replace a council member who resigned January 1, 2008.
Council members represent diverse fisheries’ interests. Their combined knowledge and experience represent commercial and recreational fishermen as well as environmental, academic, and other interests from each geographical area concerned. They are selected from nominations submitted by governors from the areas served by the eight councils and are appointed by the Secretary of Commerce.
The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, an agency of the U.S. Commerce Department, is dedicated to enhancing economic security and national safety through the prediction and research of weather and climate-related events and information service delivery for transportation, and by providing environmental stewardship of our nation's coastal and marine resources. Through the emerging Global Earth Observation System of Systems (GEOSS), NOAA is working with its federal partners, more than 70 countries and the European Commission to develop a global monitoring network that is as integrated as the planet it observes, predicts, and protects.