Saving Seafood

ALASKA: Alaska Wildlife Troopers to measure Bristol Bay gillnet vessels

February 24, 2023 — The Alaska Wildlife Troopers are advising Bristol Bay commercial salmon drift gillnet permit holders that their vessels will be measured during the 2023 season to ensure that all boats in the fleet conform to the 32-foot overall rule.

“The Alaska Wildlife Troopers are aware of the increasing concern fishermen have regarding drift gillnet vessel lengths in the Bristol Bay Salmon Fishery,” Col. Bernard Chastain, the agency director, wrote in a Feb. 14 letter to permit holders.

“AWT has inspected multiple vessels post-season and have noted several areas of concern regarding overall length in the fleet,” wrote Chastain, referring to state regulation of Bristol Bay vessel specifications.

“The regulation limits drift gillnet vessels to 32 feet in overall length, with a few exceptions. One exception is an anchor roller may extend no more than eight inches beyond the 32-foot overall length and may not be more than eight inches in width or height,” Chastain noted. “The regulation defines ‘overall length’ as the straight-line measurement between the extremities of the vessel, but does not include fish drop-out baskets, anchor rollers, gillnet rollers, trim tabs, outdrives or outdrive guards.”

“The Alaska Wildlife Troopers understand that some adaptations in equipment have occurred over the years to promote product quality and overall safety within the fleet. However, other modifications have been made for operational performance,” Chastin wrote.

Read the full article at the National Fisherman

ALASKA: Crabbers seek solutions as they feel pinch of harvest closure

February 23, 2023 — Some emergency relief money is on the way to help crabbers impacted by the historic closure of the Bering Sea snow crab and Bristol Bay red king crab harvests in Alaska.

Washington-based fishermen, however, say more lasting attention, research and action is needed to preserve the industry as a sustainable way of life for generational small businesses.

Mark Casto owns the fishing vessel Pinnacle and says he’s been crabbing since he graduated from high school in 1986.

“I grew up in it, as a little kid I used to do it growing up, it got in my blood and it’s just been a way of life for me,” Casto said.

He’s crabbed with the same crewmates for years- some, for decades- and they’ve become a team that can anticipate each other’s next move. When Bering Sea snow crab was cancelled, they were scattered- all forced to find another way to make a living during the season.

“A few years ago I saw some stuff coming and geared up to tender, so we tendered salmon for a few years and this year with the closure of the king crab and the snow crab, we’re doing some cod tendering, just enough to keep the boat busy, get it up there, and we’ll do a small Bairdi after that,” Casto said. “But it’s a trickle-down effect. It’s hitting everybody, from the bait people to the shipyard people to the meat guys that’ve been supplying boats for years and years.”

Read the full article at King 5

ALASKA: Gearing up for season’s start, Alaska’s pollock fishery faces salmon bycatch questions

February 22, 2023 — A vigorous debate over bycatch and calls for marine habitat protections is underway in advance of the beginning of Alaska’s lucrative pollock fishery in March.

The pollock fishery hit a wholesale value of USD 1.329 billion (EUR 1.358 billion) in 2022; However, that coincided with a devastating collapse in the state’s crab stocks and deteriorating returns in chinook and chum salmon fisheries. All of those fisheries are interconnected.

Read the full article at SeafoodSource

ALASKA: House Special Fisheries Committee advances resolution in support of Alaska’s salmon trollers

February 17, 2023 — A legislative resolution in support of Alaska’s salmon troll fleet has cleared its first hurdle, although it has a way to go before seeing a full vote of the Alaska House and Senate.

House Joint Resolution 5 is the first piece of legislation introduced by Sitka Rep. Rebecca Himschoot, who was elected to a first term last November, and was sworn in this past January.

HJR5 was heard in the House Special Fisheries Committee on February 14, Valentine’s Day. Rep. Himschoot used the day as a springboard to focus attention on Southeast trollers, whose livelihood has been jeopardized by a lawsuit in the federal court in Seattle.

“I want to start by wishing everyone a Happy Valentine’s Day,” Himschoot opened. “And if there’s one thing Alaskans love, it’s our fishermen. So we’re going to talk about some fishermen today.”

Himschoot and co-sponsor Ketchikan Representative Dan Ortiz are the only two Southeast Alaskans on the Special Fisheries Committee. Himschoot explained the significance of the troll fleet to the other members.

Read the full article at KCAW

Alaska sues NMFS for over designating critical habitat for ice seals

February 17, 2023 — The State of Alaska filed a complaint yesterday against the National Marine Fisheries Service (NMFS) asking a U.S. District Court to vacate the critical habitat designations for ringed and bearded seals.

Alaska Governor Mike Dunleavy sees the science giving way to politics. “Washington D.C. continues to see our state as the nation’s sole wildlife preserve, to the detriment of the opportunities we were promised at statehood to be able to build a robust economy,” Governor Dunleavy said.

Read the full article at KINY

Sitka Assembly donates $25K to support trollers’ legal fund

February 16, 2023 — The Sitka Assembly will give $25,000 to support the Alaska Trollers Association’s legal defense fund. The group unanimously approved the funding in a final vote on February 14.

The Alaska Trollers Association is an intervenor in a lawsuit that a Washington-based nonprofit brought against the National Marine Fisheries Service three years ago. The Wild Fish Conservancy aims to protect an endangered population of killer whales in Puget Sound by targeting the Southeast troll fishery. In December, a US District Court Judge issued a recommendation that could shut the troll fishery down until the NMFS makes some policy changes.

Read the full article at KCAW

Long John Silver’s, 7-Eleven, and other chains ramp up seafood promotions for Lent

February 14, 2023 — Convenience store chain 7-Eleven is bringing back its Alaska pollock fish sandwich it featured during the 2022 Lenten season.

Via a partnership with Genuine Alaska Pollock Producers, Seattle, Washington, U.S.A.-based Trident Seafooods is supplying the fish for the sandwiches, the company’s vice president of communications, Alexis Telfer, confirmed to SeafoodSource. The sandwich will feature garlic- and herb-flavored Alaska pollock fillet topped with American cheese and tartar sauce and served on a brioche bun.

Read the full article at SeafoodSource

ALASKA: Fish & Game task force suggests updates to fishing industry in managing bycatch

February 15, 2023 — Alaska Department of Fish and Game’s Alaska Bycatch Review Task Force provided its recommendations on how to manage bycatch to the North Pacific Fishery Management Council last Thursday.

Bycatch describes any marine species unintentionally harvested in a fishery that cannot be sold or kept due to regulations or a lack of demand, according to Fish & Game’s Extended Jurisdiction Program Manager Karla Bush.

“(The) purpose of the task force was to explore the issue of bycatch and provide recommendations to policymakers, and in this case, that’s the governor of Alaska as the lead policymaker for the state,” Bush said.

Read the full article at Alaska News Source

Amputations, broken bones among the injuries caused by winches on fishing boats

February 14, 2023 — For crews working on fishing boats in Alaska, danger lurks in a helpful and possibly innocent-looking device: the winch.

Winches are hauling devices on which cables are wound. On fishing boats, they are used to lift anchors, nets and other objects. The combination of speed, force and close quarters on deck can lead to accidents involving them.

Over a 20-year period, there were 125 serious injuries to Alaska fisheries from winches, including amputations and crushed bones, according to a newly published study by experts from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. The study is published in the Journal of Agromedicine.

The study tracked winch-related traumatic injuries from 2000 to 2020 that were reported to the Alaska Fishermen’s Fund, the state-administered entity that administers fishing-related injury and illness claims. Because the tally is limited to reports filed to the fund, it is almost certainly an undercount, and possibly a significant undercount, the study said.

Read the full article at the KTOO

ALASKA: Trident reopening processing plant in Wrangell Alaska

February 14, 2023 — Trident Seafoods will open its processing plant in Wrangell, Alaska, U.S.A. for the upcoming salmon season.

The Seattle, Washington, U.S.A.-based company, which operates seafood-processing plants around Alaska, including in Akutan, Chignik, Cordova, False Pass, Ketchikan, Kodiak, North Naknek, Petersberg, Sand Point, and Saint Paul, had closed its Wrangell plant for the past three seasons, citing weak chum salmon returns.

Read the full article at National Fisherman