This notice was published today in the Federal Register regarding the proposed buyback of Southeast Alaska salmon seine permits.
The notice lays out a schedule of public meetings to be held in Seattle, Petersburg, Ketchikan and Sitka, and lists people eligible to vote on whether to go forward with the buyback.
Showing posts with label Southeast Alaska. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Southeast Alaska. Show all posts
Who wants out of Southeast salmon seine fishery?
Last month we told you the National Marine Fisheries Service had published regulations for a potential buyback of Southeast Alaska salmon seine permits.
The fishery currently has 379 permits.
Naturally, Deckboss was wondering how many permits we might retire, and at what cost.
Well, here's a reduction plan buyback organizers submitted to NMFS.
They accepted bids on 67 permits, with the bids totaling $13.65 million.
The document lists the owners of the 67 permits, and bid amounts for each.
The idea of the buyback is to trim the number of permits, especially latent permits, to preserve the value of the fishery for those who remain.
With the high price of pink salmon seen the past couple of seasons, active seiners are worried new boats might pile back into the fishery and water down profits.
Thus, they say, the timing for the buyback is ideal.
The expectation is that permit holders soon will vote on whether to shoulder a federal loan to actually carry out the buyback.
The fishery currently has 379 permits.
Naturally, Deckboss was wondering how many permits we might retire, and at what cost.
Well, here's a reduction plan buyback organizers submitted to NMFS.
They accepted bids on 67 permits, with the bids totaling $13.65 million.
The document lists the owners of the 67 permits, and bid amounts for each.
The idea of the buyback is to trim the number of permits, especially latent permits, to preserve the value of the fishery for those who remain.
With the high price of pink salmon seen the past couple of seasons, active seiners are worried new boats might pile back into the fishery and water down profits.
Thus, they say, the timing for the buyback is ideal.
The expectation is that permit holders soon will vote on whether to shoulder a federal loan to actually carry out the buyback.
Southeast red king crab fishery opens tomorrow; commissioner delegates authority to deputy
The Southeast Alaska red king crab fishery opens at noon tomorrow.
It's a fairly big deal, as this will be the first opener in six years for this fishery. The quota is a modest 201,000 pounds.
Fish and Game Commissioner Cora Campbell has recused herself from any involvement in managing the fishery "due to participation by an immediate family member."
What's more, Campbell is going on personal leave starting Wednesday through Nov. 15.
It's a fairly big deal, as this will be the first opener in six years for this fishery. The quota is a modest 201,000 pounds.
Fish and Game Commissioner Cora Campbell has recused herself from any involvement in managing the fishery "due to participation by an immediate family member."
What's more, Campbell is going on personal leave starting Wednesday through Nov. 15.
Last call for coho
Low coho abundance precludes an extension of the Southeast Alaska summer salmon troll fishery, which will close at midnight.
That's the official word from the Department of Fish and Game.
The state's latest tally shows a Southeast summer troll catch of just over 1.1 million coho.
That's the official word from the Department of Fish and Game.
The state's latest tally shows a Southeast summer troll catch of just over 1.1 million coho.
Move over, salmon, here come the Dungies!
Somebody pass the butter, please? ASMI photoCommercial salmon fisheries are now open all along the coast, from Southeast Alaska to the Copper River to Lower Cook Inlet to Kodiak to Chignik to Bristol Bay.
But salmon isn't the only game in town.
At noon tomorrow, the 2011-12 Dungeness crab season opens in Southeast. Here's the announcement.
Adam Messmer, a state fishery manager in Juneau, tells Deckboss 126 permit holders have signed for the Dungeness harvest so far.
Dungeness, like salmon, long has been a target of Alaska commercial fishermen. The crab was first commercially canned at Seldovia in 1920, an Alaska Department of Fish and Game species profile says.
Dungies typically are caught in circular pots baited with herring, squid or clams.
Commonly served whole, the Dungeness crab is "treasured for its beautiful orange shell color, distinctive sweet flavor and tender flaky white meat," the Alaska Seafood Marketing Institute says.
Southeast Dungeness is quite a valuable crop.
The 2010-11 season produced a harvest of nearly 3.25 million pounds, worth more than $5.5 million at an average price of $1.78 per pound.
Most of the catch comes in the summer segment of the fishery, which is the part that opens tomorrow. A fall segment opens Oct. 1.
The Dungeness stock is in good shape in Southeast, Messmer says.
Unfortunately, the same can't be said up the coast at Yakutat. The Dungeness fishery there has been closed for the past 11 seasons due to weak stocks, and it'll remain closed this season.
Southeast seine buyback advances
The National Marine Fisheries Service today published this notice in the Federal Register regarding another proposed round of permit buybacks in the Southeast Alaska purse seine salmon fishery.
Halibut opens tomorrow; 2C charter catch limited
Can you believe it? Another halibut season is upon us with the 2011 fishery starting at noon tomorrow.
The season last eight months, closing at noon Nov. 18.
Here are the catch limits by regulatory area.
Be safe and good fishing, everybody.
In a related note, the National Marine Fisheries Service today announced it will implement controversial measures to control halibut catches on charter boats in Southeast Alaska (Area 2C).
Specifically, charter clients will continue to face a one-fish daily bag limit. A new twist this year is that keepers can be no more than 37 inches long.
Charter operators say a 37-inch halibut weighs around 23 pounds.
Here's the NMFS press release:
March 11, 2011
Halibut stock decline forces increased charter measures
The National Marine Fisheries Service today announced it is implementing the regulatory recommendations of the International Pacific Halibut Commission due to concerns over declining halibut stocks. These regulations include limiting the maximum size of a halibut caught by charter anglers in Southeast Alaska to 37 inches, and retaining the one-fish-per-person-per-day rule that began in 2009.
The halibut stock is declining due to reduced numbers of fish reaching a catchable size range, lower growth rates, and higher than target harvest rates. The stock remains at risk of further declines. Conservation of the halibut resource is the primary concern and management objective of the measures.
At its annual meeting in January, the IPHC recommended the maximum size rule for charter anglers in Southeast (Area 2C) as a way to maintain charter harvests at the annual guideline harvest level of 788,000 pounds in 2011. The Southeast charter fleet catch has exceeded its harvest level every year since 2004.
The IPHC's recommendation is based on the analysis and methods adopted by the North Pacific Fishery Management Council. Because of particular concerns for impacts on small businesses in Southeast, NMFS intends to ask the council to review the methodology used to determine maximum size limits, including a 42-inch limit. If the council chooses to adopt a different limit than the IPHC has recommended, NMFS will go back to the IPHC to ask that it modify its recommendation to match that of the council.
"The declining halibut stock is impacting both charter and commercial halibut fishers all along the West Coast from Washington state to Alaska," said James Balsiger, NMFS administrator for Alaska.
NMFS is committed to working cooperatively with Canada to jointly manage the halibut stock "for the long-term benefit of both our countries," Balsiger said.
NMFS has implemented numerous restrictions on the Area 2C charter fleet in an attempt to more closely align charter harvest with the limit, but those measures have been insufficient. Even with the one-fish bag limit in 2010, the charter halibut fleet exceeded its harvest limit by 491,000 pounds, or 62 percent. Each year that the charter fleet exceeds its harvest limit, it leads to a lower fixed quota for the commercial fishery the following year. The commercial catch limit in Area 2C is 73 percent lower in 2011 than it was in 2003.
The purpose of the rule is to allow charter halibut fishermen to continue their operations while staying within the harvest limit, and minimizing adverse effects on the charter fishery, its sportfishing clients, and the coastal communities that serve as home ports for the fishery. Allowing halibut to rebuild will best serve the economic interests of both the charter and commercial fisheries over the long term.
The harvest limit was adopted by the NPFMC and implemented by NMFS in 2003. It is expected to be replaced by a catch-sharing plan in 2012, which would establish management measures designed to prevent overharvesting of the halibut resource and result in a sustainable fishery.
The season last eight months, closing at noon Nov. 18.
Here are the catch limits by regulatory area.
Be safe and good fishing, everybody.
In a related note, the National Marine Fisheries Service today announced it will implement controversial measures to control halibut catches on charter boats in Southeast Alaska (Area 2C).
Specifically, charter clients will continue to face a one-fish daily bag limit. A new twist this year is that keepers can be no more than 37 inches long.
Charter operators say a 37-inch halibut weighs around 23 pounds.
Here's the NMFS press release:
March 11, 2011
Halibut stock decline forces increased charter measures
The National Marine Fisheries Service today announced it is implementing the regulatory recommendations of the International Pacific Halibut Commission due to concerns over declining halibut stocks. These regulations include limiting the maximum size of a halibut caught by charter anglers in Southeast Alaska to 37 inches, and retaining the one-fish-per-person-per-day rule that began in 2009.
The halibut stock is declining due to reduced numbers of fish reaching a catchable size range, lower growth rates, and higher than target harvest rates. The stock remains at risk of further declines. Conservation of the halibut resource is the primary concern and management objective of the measures.
At its annual meeting in January, the IPHC recommended the maximum size rule for charter anglers in Southeast (Area 2C) as a way to maintain charter harvests at the annual guideline harvest level of 788,000 pounds in 2011. The Southeast charter fleet catch has exceeded its harvest level every year since 2004.
The IPHC's recommendation is based on the analysis and methods adopted by the North Pacific Fishery Management Council. Because of particular concerns for impacts on small businesses in Southeast, NMFS intends to ask the council to review the methodology used to determine maximum size limits, including a 42-inch limit. If the council chooses to adopt a different limit than the IPHC has recommended, NMFS will go back to the IPHC to ask that it modify its recommendation to match that of the council.
"The declining halibut stock is impacting both charter and commercial halibut fishers all along the West Coast from Washington state to Alaska," said James Balsiger, NMFS administrator for Alaska.
NMFS is committed to working cooperatively with Canada to jointly manage the halibut stock "for the long-term benefit of both our countries," Balsiger said.
NMFS has implemented numerous restrictions on the Area 2C charter fleet in an attempt to more closely align charter harvest with the limit, but those measures have been insufficient. Even with the one-fish bag limit in 2010, the charter halibut fleet exceeded its harvest limit by 491,000 pounds, or 62 percent. Each year that the charter fleet exceeds its harvest limit, it leads to a lower fixed quota for the commercial fishery the following year. The commercial catch limit in Area 2C is 73 percent lower in 2011 than it was in 2003.
The purpose of the rule is to allow charter halibut fishermen to continue their operations while staying within the harvest limit, and minimizing adverse effects on the charter fishery, its sportfishing clients, and the coastal communities that serve as home ports for the fishery. Allowing halibut to rebuild will best serve the economic interests of both the charter and commercial fisheries over the long term.
The harvest limit was adopted by the NPFMC and implemented by NMFS in 2003. It is expected to be replaced by a catch-sharing plan in 2012, which would establish management measures designed to prevent overharvesting of the halibut resource and result in a sustainable fishery.
Tensions mount ahead of halibut annual meeting
Big week coming up, friends, with the International Pacific Halibut Commission convening its 87th annual meeting on Tuesday in Victoria, British Columbia.
The six-member commission will recommend 2011 catch limits to the governments of Canada and the United States. It also will take care of such chores as setting the season opening and closing dates.
This promises to be a fairly intense meeting.
Deckboss already has noted the discontent among commercial fishermen in Southeast Alaska (Area 2C), which is expected to take a severe reduction to its catch limit.
Halibut charter boat operators also are feeling anxious. Check out this action alert from SEAGO, the Southeast Alaska Guides Organization.
As usual, the IPHC staff has posted its Bluebook of key reports for the meeting. My favorite chapter is the "Assessment of the Pacific halibut stock at the end of 2010," which begins on page 60.
Regrettably, I can't make it to Victoria. But I'll try to cover the action from afar.
The six-member commission will recommend 2011 catch limits to the governments of Canada and the United States. It also will take care of such chores as setting the season opening and closing dates.
This promises to be a fairly intense meeting.
Deckboss already has noted the discontent among commercial fishermen in Southeast Alaska (Area 2C), which is expected to take a severe reduction to its catch limit.
Halibut charter boat operators also are feeling anxious. Check out this action alert from SEAGO, the Southeast Alaska Guides Organization.
As usual, the IPHC staff has posted its Bluebook of key reports for the meeting. My favorite chapter is the "Assessment of the Pacific halibut stock at the end of 2010," which begins on page 60.
Regrettably, I can't make it to Victoria. But I'll try to cover the action from afar.
This will take only a few minutes...
The National Marine Fisheries Service wants to know: What is the contribution of fishing and seafood processing to the Southeast Alaska economy?
The agency is conducting a survey to find out, and you might be asked to participate.
More information here.
The agency is conducting a survey to find out, and you might be asked to participate.
More information here.
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