October 5, 2018 — The harvesters of snow crab in Alaska’s Bering Sea have received the good news they anticipated just days before their next season is set to begin. The Alaska Department of Fish and Game (ADF&G) has set their total allowable catch at 12,620 metric tons, a 47% increase over the 8,600t TAC permitted in the 2017/18 season.
The season begins Oct. 15 and closes on May 15 or May 31, depending on the subdistrict.
There was much optimism about the coming TAC for snow crabs (Chionoecetes opilio) given the stock assessments delivered roughly a week ago to the North Pacific Fishery Management Council, as reported by Undercurrent News. A survey had shown a biomass of 198,400t of mature male snow crabs, a 136% increase over the 84,000t found in 2017. That’s the largest it’s been since 1998, the Stock Assessment and Fishery Evaluation (SAFE) report noted. Also, there are 165,000t of females, up 55% from the 106,800t found in 2017.
The SAFE report also noted earlier high estimates of recruitment.
The new TAC is much better news than the TAC that ADF&G delivered before the 2017/18 season, which represented a decrease of 12% over the 2016/17 season (9,800t), and the 2016/17 season TAC, which was half of what was allowed during the 2015-16 season.
The new TAC breaks down this way: 24.8 million lbs for the individual fishing quota; and 2.8 million lbs for the community development quota.
“A higher quota for snow crab this year could have significant market implications,” said the Pacific Seafood Processors Association in a statement about the new TAC.