This Alaska Wild Salmon Day, Alaska fishermen remember that Dan Sullivan broke transparency laws when he failed to report trading tens of thousands of dollars of stock in the world’s largest farmed salmon company, and has repeatedly failed to stand up for Alaska fishermen.
“As Alaska’s fisheries struggle, Dan Sullivan is reeling in campaign cash from out-of-state trawlers, and profiting off of farmed fish at the expense of Alaska fishermen,” said Alaska Democratic Party Chair Eric Croft. “We’ve seen how much Alaska’s fisheries have declined in his first two terms, and with his pro-Pebble Mine, anti-fisheries agenda, a third term would be catastrophic.”
In addition to breaking federal law by failing to report tens of thousands of dollars in sales of stock in Mowi – the “world’s largest farmed salmon company” – Sullivan was recently caught taking hundreds of thousands from donors connected to the trawling industry. While Southwest Alaska fisheries are facing “growing challenges,” Sullivan has been in lockstep with his Lower 48 trawl donors, including his second-largest donor Trident Seafoods, which was fined millions of dollars after repeatedly engaging in practices that harmed Alaska’s sea life.
Check out how Dan Sullivan has devastated Alaska’s fisheries this Alaska Wild Salmon Day:
Protecting Pebble Mine: Sullivan has a nearly two-decade “long relationship of advocacy” for Pebble Mine, a project that is overwhelmingly opposed by Alaskans because it would jeopardize Bristol Bay, the world’s largest sockeye salmon fishery. Not only does Sullivan have a history of association with Pebble Mine, he broke his promise to Alaskans to donate Pebble Mine-tied campaign cash and has continued cashing checks from the current Pebble CEO while staying silent publicly as executives push to resurrect the mine.
Betting Against Alaska Fishermen: Self-Serving Sullivan broke federal law by failing to report tens of thousands of dollars in sales of stock in Mowi – the “world’s largest farmed salmon company.” He reported trading stock in a direct competitor to Alaska’s salmon fishermen and got caught red-handed concealing it.
Selling Out to Special Interests: Dating back to his time as the head of Alaska’s Department of Natural Resources, Sullivan approved a controversial coal mine on the Chuitna River that would “obliterate” 11 miles of important salmon-spawning streams in Southcentral Alaska. The mine would have completely dewatered the streams in order to mine coal set to be exported to China. The mine would have wiped out salmon in the river and faced intense opposition from locals and the fishing community. As a result of his greenlighting the project, Sullivan was called “anti-salmon” and was criticized by the fishing community for siding with “outside companies at the expense of everyday Alaskans.”
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