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Cook Inlet Commercial Salmon Fishery Run Exceeds Preseason Forecast

14Dec

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Cook Inlet Commercial Salmon Fishery Run Exceeds Preseason Forecast

The Alaska Department of Fish and Game’s preliminary summary of the Upper Cook Inlet commercial salmon fishery shows the area’s sockeye salmon total run of 5.2 million fish was 6% greater than the preseason forecast of 4.9 million fish. The commercial salmon fishery harvest of 1.4 million salmon however was 44% less than the recent 10-year average annual harvest of 2.5 million fish. The 2022 ex-vessel value of all salmon species was $12.3 million and 535 less than the previous 10-year average annual ex-vessel value of $23.0 million. ADF&G biologists said that of the five species of Pacific salmon harvested in Upper Cook Inlet the sockeye salmon accounted for 91% of the total ex-vessel value over the past decade. The 2022 chinook salmon harvest of 2,278 fish is the lowest on reco...

Tanner Crab Fishery Opens Jan. 15 in One Section of Eastern Aleutian District

7Dec

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Tanner Crab Fishery Opens Jan. 15 in One Section of Eastern Aleutian District

A Tanner crab fishery opens on Jan. 15 in the Makushin/Skan Bay section of the Eastern Aleutian District, but is to remain closed in the Akutan and Unalaska/Kalekta Bay sections for lack of sufficient mature male abundance. Alaska Department of Fish and Game biologists said the 2022 survey of estimated mature male abundance managed to exceed regulatory thresholds necessary for a commercial crab season in the Makushin/Skan section and calculated guideline harvest level (GHL). That 2023 fishery now has a GHL of 49,000 pounds. A commercial Tanner crab fishery may occur when estimated abundance of mature male Tanner crab meets or exceeds stock size thresholds established in regulation and requires a GHL of at least 10,000 pounds in the Makushin/Skan Bay and Akutan Sections and 15,000 pound...

30Nov

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Alaska Fisheries Board Meeting Focuses on Bristol Bay Finfish

Bristol Bay finfish are on the agenda this week during a five-day meeting running through Dec. 3 at the Alaska Board of Fisheries meeting in downtown Anchorage. Hot topics include whether to approve an action plan designating Nushagak River Chinook salmon as a stock of concern. All portions of the meeting are open to the public. A live video stream is expected to be available on the board’s website at www.boardoffisheries.adfg.alaska.gov. All meeting information including the agenda, roadmap, agency reports, and public and advisory committee comments are available on the meeting website at: https://tinyurl.com/3n5sdrxr or by contacting Boards Support Section at (907) 465-4110. People not attending the meeting in person can still submit Record Copies via fax or on the board's webs...

16Nov

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2022 Alaska Salmon Harvest Valued at $720M

A preliminary commercial harvest summary recently issued by the Alaska Department of Fish & Game puts the value of 160.7 million salmon caught in 2022 at $720.4 million, compared to the 2021 harvest of 233.8 million salmon harvested. The 31% decrease in the total harvest is explained by the relatively low pink salmon run size in 2022, a consistent trend for even-numbered years over the last decade, ADF&G biologists said in their mid-November report. The 2022 total harvest sockeyes accounted for 66% of the total value of $473.8 million and 47% of the harvest of 74.8 million fish. Chum salmon, numbering 14.9 million, contributed 15% of the overall value at $110.6 million. Coho salmon made up about 2% of the value $15 million and 1% of the harvest at 1.6 million fish, while the...

2023 Bristol Bay Sockeye Salmon Forecasts Anticipate Lower Harvest

16Nov

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2023 Bristol Bay Sockeye Salmon Forecasts Anticipate Lower Harvest

Early forecasts from the University of Washington Alaska Salmon Program (UW-ASP) and Alaska Department of Fish and Game (ADF&G) foresee a 2023 Bristol Bay sockeye salmon harvest of nearly 35 million to 38 million sockeye salmon, compared to the 2022 harvest of 60 million fish. Forecasts differ due to the modeling used by researchers at the two entities. The UW-ASP preseason forecast, based on historical catch and escapement data collected by ADF&G, plus additional stock, plus 38 individual stocks by age class forecasts, is 13% lower than the recent 10-year average of 57 million fish and 4% higher than the recent 20-year average of observed runs of 48 million sockeyes to Bristol Bay. In recent years, the UW-ASP program has increasingly relied on Dynamic Linear Models (DLM) to g...

NPFMC Requests December Review of Crab Fisheries Emergency Rule Request Analysis

19Oct

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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...

24Aug

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Alaska’s Commercial Salmon Harvest Tops 148M Fish

Alaska’s commercial salmon harvests continue to rise for all five species, with all but the coho fishery having peaked. As of Tuesday, Aug. 23, the Alaska Department of Fish and Game documented the preliminary harvest on its online Blue Sheet at nearly 149 million fish, including nearly 74 million sockeyes, 62.5 million pinks, over 11 million chum, 815,000 cohos and 255,000 Chinook salmon. In a single day, the preliminary numbers indicated the catch of more than another 100,000 sockeye, more than two million humpies, nearly 300,000 chums, 58,000 silvers and 6,000 kings. For statistical week 34, following a string of three unseasonably slow harvest weeks, the state’s salmon harvests rose up nearly 18% year-to-date from 2021, according to research analyst Sam Friedman, who compi...

3Aug

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Round 2 CARES Act Fisheries Relief Applications Due By Oct. 31

Applications for Round 2 CARES Act for Alaska fishery participants are available now on the Pacific States Marine Fisheries Commission website. They must be filled out and postmarked by Oct. 31 to be eligible for relief funds. The announcement from the Alaska Department of Fish and Game refers to aid being made available to fishermen financially impacted by the global COVID-19 pandemic, which is ongoing more than two years after it began. The relief funds are from the Coronavirus Aid Relief and Economic Security Act, also known as the CARES Act, which was signed into law on March 27, 2020 in response to the economic fallout of the pandemic. ADF&G officials noted that applicants need to carefully review Alaska’s spend plan, https://relief.psmfc.org/wp-content/uploads/2022/07/A...

Norton Sound Fishermen Harvest 308,623 Pounds of Red King Crab

27Jul

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Norton Sound Fishermen Harvest 308,623 Pounds of Red King Crab

Alaska’s only summer red king crab fishery concluded on Sunday, July 24, with the entire guideline harvest of 308,623 pounds of the succulent crab delivered by Norton Sound small boat fishermen, with retail prices commanding up to $74.95 a pound. Biologists with the Alaska Department of Fish and Game said they expected that by that date the quota would be achieved, given the catch rate for the open access fishery which began on June 15. Eight permit holders for the 2022 winter commercial fishery harvested 7,357 pounds of the 27,328-pound guideline harvest level for the winter fishery. The average weight of the king crab caught in the fishery is about 2.8 pounds, according to ADF&G biologists. The total Norton Sound red king crab guideline harvest level is 341,600 pounds, w...

27Jul

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Alaska Commercial Salmon Harvests Exceeds 101M Fish

Commercial harvesters delivered some 101 million salmon to processors through Tuesday, July 26, in the 2022 Alaska fisheries, wrapping up a record harvest season. That includes nearly 59 million fish in the Bristol Bay area alone, led by the Nushagak District with over 22 million fish, the Egegik District exceeding 15 million fish, the Naknek-Kvichak District with over 14 million fish and the Ugashik District with nearly six million fish. Retail prices for the Bristol Bay fillets were holding at about $12.95 a pound for fillets in most Alaska retail shops, but prices dropped in the last week of July to about $10.99 a pound, while retail demand remained high. New Sagaya fish counters in Anchorage had fillets of Alaska salmon at $41 a pound with five-pound purchases. Both New Sagay...