Tag: absc

NOAA Fisheries Denies Emergency Action Request For Red King Crab Savings Area
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NOAA Fisheries Denies Emergency Action Request For Red King Crab Savings Area

NOAA Fisheries has denied a request to institute emergency action closing the red king crab savings area in Alaska to all fishing gears through June 30, 2023. The decision was made on the grounds that the petition did not meet criteria necessary to determine that an emergency exists. According to the federal agency, the available information does not support a finding that the proposed emergency regulations would address the low abundance and declining trend of mature female Bristol Bay red king crab. The decision was issued in mid-January. In response, Jamie Goen, executive director of Alaska Bering Sea Crabbers (ABSC) said she was dismayed and disappointed. She noted that the need for protection of crab stocks was denied on the same day that NOAA Fisheries opened pollock fisheries w...
Demise of Alaska’s Bering Sea Crab Fisheries Expected to Have Ripple Effect
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Demise of Alaska’s Bering Sea Crab Fisheries Expected to Have Ripple Effect

Analysis published by Seattle-based online nonprofit news website Crosscut predicts the collapse of crab fisheries in Alaska’s Bering Sea will have ripple effects in Washington state as well as Alaska. Since 2006, 57% of snow crab fleet vessels have been registered to Washington addresses. During the 2020-2021 season, 27 members of that 60-boat crab boat fleet were registered in the Seattle metropolitan area. That same year, Bering Sea snow crab generated $62.6 million in revenue across King, Pierce and Snohomish counties, plus $6.8 million elsewhere in Washington, according to a rebuilding plan drafted by the North Pacific Fishery Management Council. Also, according to the Seattle-based Alaska Bering Sea Crabbers (ABSC), compounded with several poor harvests, the canceled crabbing se...
NPFMC Requests December Review of Crab Fisheries Emergency Rule Request Analysis
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NPFMC Requests December Review of Crab Fisheries Emergency Rule Request Analysis

Federal fisheries managers have requested a December review of National Marine Fisheries Service’s analysis of an emergency rule request to prohibit pelagic trawl, pot and hook-and-line fisheries in the Red King Crab Savings Area and Subarea from Jan. 1 through June 30, 2023. Council members said they would review the information in the analysis so that they can make an informed recommendation on the emergency rule request. During its October meeting in Anchorage, the North Pacific Fishery Management Council (NPFMC) declined to impose any restrictions on trawl fisheries, as requested by the Alaska Bering Sea Crabbers (ABSC) and others concerned that trawling is having an adverse impact on crab abundance. The Bristol Bay red king crab fishery subsequently was closed for a secon...
Crab Rebuilding Issues on NPFMC’s Oct. 9-10 Agenda
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Crab Rebuilding Issues on NPFMC’s Oct. 9-10 Agenda

The North Pacific Fishery Management Council is set to hear reports on shellfish stocks and adopt acceptable biological catch limits and overfishing limits during its Oct. 6-11 meeting in Anchorage. King crab and snow crab are among the major issues up for discussion, with final action still months off, as Bering Sea crabbers face a second year of multi-million-dollar loses due to the demise of Bristol Bay red king crab as well as snow crab. The October meeting will be held virtually and in person at the Hilton Hotel in downtown Anchorage. The Zoom link is https://us06web.zoom.us/j/81451130091 and the meeting ID is 814 5113 0091. The council is also slated to take final action on Pacific cod small boat access, to provide greater stability for participants with smaller than 60-...