Saving Seafood

Feds deny Bering Sea Crabbers’ request for emergency area closure

January 23, 2023 — The National Marine Fisheries Service denied a request for emergency action to close red king crab habitat areas to all fishing gears, ruling that “available evidence 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 Alaska Bering Sea Crabbers association filed the emergency petition Sept. 28, days widespread fishery shutdowns were ordered in response to declining red king and opilio. The crabbers sought closures in red king crab savings areas, “to protect Bristol Bay red king crab and their habitat at a time of historically low crab abundance,” according to NMFS’ announcement Friday that the petition was rejected.

The red king crab savings area was established in 1996. It is permanently closed to bottom trawling but is open to pelagic trawling, pot fishing, and longlining. The crab fleet, facing a virtually complete shutdown, asked for a Jan. 1 to June 30 closure to keep away all gears, contending that all bycatch and habitat impacts need to be addressed.

In a response Friday afternoon, the Bering Seas Crabbers said NMFS is discounting the effects of other gear types

Read the full article at the National Fisherman

ALASKA: Northwest, Alaska crabbers strike for better prices

January 19, 2023 — The new year started off with a fizzle for West Coast and Alaska crab fisheries, with fleets in Oregon and Alaska striking for higher ex-vessel prices. 

In Oregon, the Dungeness Dec. 1 opening was delayed in hopes that meat fill in the crabs would increase, and that levels of domoic acid would decrease in some of the test areas. Equally driving delays was the fleet’s effort of nudging processors’ offers closer to $4.75 per pound, like they started with in 2022, rather than the $2.25 per pound they offered in the advent of the 2023 season. 

The official date of the opening had been moved to Jan. 15, with areas in Washington opening on Feb. 1, but many opted to stay tied to the docks in hopes that prices among processors would start closer to $4.

Read the full article at National Fisherman

Bering Sea crabbers welcome disaster relief, seek temporary area closure

December 28, 2022 — The first steps in declaring and funding a fisheries disaster declaration for Bering Sea crab “happened in a record time of only two months,” a hopeful sign for what could be a $500 million setback for the industry, according to the Alaska Bering Sea Crabbers association.

“The $300 million  included in the omnibus appropriation package for fishery disasters is a great start for much-needed money to help fishermen and communities pay their bills,” said Jamie Goen, executive director for the Alaska Bering Sea Crabbers. “We commend the Secretary of Commerce, NOAA Fisheries, and members of Congress, particularly the Alaska and Washington delegations, for their swift action and attention to this issue affecting so many hard-working Americans and family fishing businesses.”

In mid-December U.S. Secretary of Commerce Gina Raimondo issued disaster declarations for several fisheries in Alaska and Washington state, a first step toward delivering both federal relief and science research into the collapses. In a surge of year-end legislation before Christmas,  Congress authorized the funding as part of the annual federal omnibus appropriations law.

Read the full article at the National Fisherman

Crabbers Applaud Bipartisan Effort to Combat Illegal Fishing

November 9, 2015 — The following was released by the Alaska Bering Sea Crabbers:

The Alaska Bering Sea Crabbers (ABSC) applaud the Obama Administration and members of Congress from both sides of the aisle for their bipartisan effort to combat Illegal, Unreported, and Unregulated (IUU), or “pirate” fishing. Late last week President Obama signed into law H.R. 774, the “Illegal, Unreported, and Unregulated Fishing Enforcement Act.”

Originally introduced in the House by Representatives Bordallo (D-GU) and Young (R-AK) and championed in the Senate by Senators Murkowski (R-AK), Sullivan (R-AK), and Schatz (D-HI), this vital legislation will help “level the playing field” for America’s commercial fishermen who often face stiff market competition with illegally harvested seafood products. This legislation complements other ongoing efforts to prevent illegal seafood from entering US ports.

The legislation also allows the US to continue its leadership on the issue of pirate fishing at the international level through formal ratification and implementation of the Port State Measures Agreement. The Agreement is the first global instrument specifically designed to address the issue and calls upon signatory nations to effectively police their ports and prevent illegally harvested seafood products from entering into commerce.

These efforts are particularly relevant for crabbers and coastal communities in Alaska. For nearly two decades the Alaskan crab industry has been the “poster child” of what can happen to law-abiding fishermen when their markets are flooded with illegal product. According to a 2013 Wall Street Journal article, Administration officials estimate that illegal Russian crab has cost Alaskan crabbers $560 million since 2000. This translates to millions of dollars in lost tax revenue to Alaskan coastal communities.

While crab poaching in Russia has declined over the past few years, recent comments by the Russian Association of Crab Catchers indicate the very high likelihood that poaching will resume on a larger scale in the coming year as a result of reduced legal quotas in the Russian Far East. As such, passage of this legislation is particularly timely and welcomed by Alaskan crabbers.

Read a PDF of the release