Saving Seafood

Alaska Halibut Season Opens March 14

March 18, 2020 — The following was released by NOAA Fisheries:

From Southeast Alaska to the Bering Sea, Alaska fishermen are heading out to catch halibut with the March 14 opening of the 2020 halibut season.

This season’s regulations were adopted at the annual meeting of the International Pacific Halibut Commission last month and are included in a Final Rule NOAA Fisheries filed with the Federal Register. They go into effect immediately.

Included in this season’s federal regulations are the catch limits established by the IPHC, and basic regulations for the commercial and sport halibut fisheries. Overall, the 2020 catch limits for the combined commercial and charter halibut fisheries in Alaska are 9 percent lower than the 2019 limits.

This final rule also implements management measures for the charter halibut fisheries in Areas 2C and 3A. These measures are necessary to keep charter harvests to within their respective allocations under a catch sharing plan with the directed commercial fishery.

Charter management measures in Area 3A (Gulf of Alaska) are more restrictive than 2019. All Tuesdays and Wednesdays will be closed to halibut retention in Area 3A. There is a daily bag limit of two halibut, but one fish must be no greater than 26 inches.

In Area 2C (Southeast Alaska), charter anglers are restricted to one halibut per day, with a reverse slot limit where retained halibut must be less than or equal to 40 inches, or greater than or equal to 80 inches.

Unguided halibut sport fishers in Alaska will continue to observe a daily bag limit of 2 fish of any size per person per day.

Alaska commercial IFQ halibut season dates are March 14 through November 15, 2020 for all IPHC management areas in Alaska.

Reminder: March 3-9, 2020 PFMC Meeting Notice and Agenda Now Available

February 20, 2020 — The following was released by the Pacific Fishery Management Council:

The Pacific Fishery Management Council (PFMC or Council) and its advisory bodies will meet March 3-9, 2020 in Rohnert Park, California, to address issues related to groundfish, salmon, Pacific halibut, highly migratory species, ecosystem, habitat, and administrative matters. The meeting of the Council and its advisory entities will be held at the Doubletree by Hilton Hotel Sonoma Wine Country, One Doubletree Drive, Rohnert Park, CA 94928: telephone, 707-584-5466.

Please see the March 3-9, 2020 Council meeting notice on the Council’s website for meeting detail, schedule of advisory body meetings, our new E-Portal for submitting public comments, and public comment deadlines.

Key agenda items for the meeting include Council considerations to:

  • Adopt Public Review Alternatives for 2020 Ocean Salmon Fisheries
  • Adopt Final Forecasting Methods for Willapa Bay Coho Salmon
  • Consider Range of Alternatives for Transitioning Management of Non-Indian Directed Commercial Halibut Fishery from International Pacific Halibut Commission (IPHC) to PFMC/National Marine Fisheries Service
  • Adopt Public Review Options for Pacific Halibut Retention in 2020Salmon Troll Fishery
  • Adopt Final Pacific Halibut Retention Limits for 2020 Fixed Gear Sablefish Fishery
  • Annual Report on California Current Ecosystem
  • Adopt Final Updates to Fishery Ecosystem Plan Chapters 1 and 2, Including a Vision Statement, and a Revised Set of Goals and Objectives; Review Proposed Changes to Remaining Chapters
  • Update on 2021-2022 Groundfish Harvest Specifications and Management Measures
  • Consider Exempted Fishing Permits for 2021-2022 Groundfish Fisheries, Including Electronic Monitoring
  • Adopt Final Groundfish Inseason Adjustments for 2020, Including Shorebased Carryover
  • Review the Final Rule, Revisit Previous Council Recommendations, and Provide Guidance on Future Council Considerations for Drift Gillnet Swordfish Fishery Hardcaps

For further information:

Please contact Pacific Fishery Management Council staff at 503-820-2280; toll-free 1-866-806-7204.

Fish dip: Commission cuts Pacific halibut quotas based on sex study

February 12, 2020 — As expected, the International Pacific Halibut Commission set quotas down for 2020 at its annual meeting in Anchorage last week.

Quotas for Pacific halibut will be reduced by just over 5 percent this year as a result of declining stocks. Alaska’s share of the 36.6 million pound total catch is 28.13 million pounds for all user groups. The halibut fishery will open on March 14 and close on Nov. 15.

Industry leaders predicted late in 2019 that the fishery had maxed out its value proposition and likely would not be able to expect a higher dock price to make up for a lower quota.

Read the full story at National Fisherman

Several fish bills before the Alaska Legislature have wide support from fishermen

February 12, 2020 — Alaska lawmakers are making fast work of several fish bills that have wide support from Alaska’s fishermen.

“I was anticipating a somewhat slow start, but they’re organized and they’re diving right into these issues and taking these bills up. So there’s lots of opportunities to participate,” said Frances Leach, executive director of United Fishermen of Alaska.

The much-discussed bill (HB 35) that would resolve a conflict of interest fix at the state Board of Fisheries has been moving through committee hearings in Juneau and could finally be settled after a 14-year push.

“One of the reasons they’re chosen for that board is they may have a regional expertise or they may have a user group expertise. So we want them to be able to not vote, but participate and lend that expertise in deliberations to provide clarification to other board members who may not be as familiar with that region or fishery,” Leach said.

Read the full story at the Anchorage Daily News

IPHC Adopts 2020 Halibut TCEY of 36.6 Million Pounds, Two Million Pounds Less than 2019

February 10, 2020 — The International Pacific Halibut Commission adopted a total catch limit of 36.6 million pounds for the 2020 season, slightly less than last year. But the Total Constant Exploitation Yield (TCEY) includes non-commercial removals, so when those are subtracted, a commercial fishery catch limit of 27.48 million lbs remains. That amount includes charter sector allocations, and is about one million pounds less than what was caught last year.

The season will start on March 14 and close November 15, 2020.

Read the full story at Seafood News

DNA tests show commercial halibut catch 90% female, influencing catch limits being set this week

February 6, 2020 — For the first time in its 96 year history, the International Pacific Halibut Commission will be setting catch limits for halibut this week with the knowledge that the commercial fleet’s catch has been around 90 percent female, a notably higher proportion than previously thought.

“The Commission has long known that the directed commercial Pacific halibut fishery catches mostly female, but we’ve had indications over time that perhaps the fishery is able to capture even more females than we see on a set line survey relative to males,” said Ian Stewart, a quantitative scientist for IPHC.

Stewart works to develop the stock assessment for Pacific halibut, which IPHC commissioners use to set catch limits for the U.S. and Canada. Knowing what percentage of the catch is female is an important factor that could influence how the stock is managed and thus, what restrictions and limitations are put on fishermen. New data from the IPHC shows that the sex ratio of the commercial catch ranged from 81 percent female in some regions of the Gulf of Alaska to 97 percent female in some regions in the Bering Sea.

“For conservation purposes we track female spawning biomass. And in order to understand that we need to know not only how many females are out there, but how many we’re catching in a given year,” Stewart said.

Biologists with IPHC use setline surveys fishing the same gear in the same places with the same bait year after year to estimate trends in the population and collection biological information including size, age and sex.

Read the full story at KTUU

PFMC: March 3-9, 2020 PFMC Meeting Notice and Agenda Now Available

January 31, 2020 — The following was released by the Pacific Fishery Management Council:

The Pacific Fishery Management Council (PFMC or Council) and its advisory bodies will meet March 3-9, 2020 in Rohnert Park, California, to address issues related to groundfish, salmon, Pacific halibut, highly migratory species, ecosystem, habitat, and administrative matters. The meeting of the Council and its advisory entities will be held at the Doubletree by Hilton Hotel Sonoma Wine Country, One Doubletree Drive, Rohnert Park, CA 94928: telephone, 707-584-5466.

Please see the March 3-9, 2020 Council meeting notice on the Council’s website for meeting detail, schedule of advisory body meetings, our new E-Portal for submitting public comments, and public comment deadlines.

Key agenda items for the meeting include Council considerations to:

  • Adopt Public Review Alternatives for 2020 Ocean Salmon Fisheries
  • Adopt Final Forecasting Methods for Willapa Bay Coho Salmon
  • Consider Range of Alternatives for Transitioning Management of Non-Indian Directed Commercial Halibut Fishery from
  • International Pacific Halibut Commission (IPHC) to PFMC/National Marine Fisheries Service
  • Adopt Public Review Options for Pacific Halibut Retention in 2020Salmon Troll Fishery
  • Adopt Final Pacific Halibut Retention Limits for 2020 Fixed Gear Sablefish Fishery
  • Annual Report on California Current Ecosystem
  • Adopt Final Updates to Fishery Ecosystem Plan Chapters 1 and 2, Including a Vision Statement, and a Revised Set of Goals and Objectives; Review Proposed Changes to Remaining Chapters
  • Update on 2021-2022 Groundfish Harvest Specifications and Management Measures
  • Consider Exempted Fishing Permits for 2021-2022 Groundfish Fisheries, Including Electronic Monitoring
  • Adopt Final Groundfish Inseason Adjustments for 2020, Including Shorebased Carryover
  • Review the Final Rule, Revisit Previous Council Recommendations, and Provide Guidance on Future Council Considerations for Drift Gillnet Swordfish Fishery Hardcaps

For further information:
Please contact Pacific Fishery Management Council staff at 503-820-2280; toll-free 1-866-806-7204.

North Pacific Council to Hear From Alaska Charter Operators on Halibut Catch Limits

January 30, 2020 — This week the North Pacific Fisheries Management Council (NPFMC) will hear from eminent scientists about prioritized research in Alaska that is underfunded, ways to change data reporting that maintains “best science available” standards, how to best fund the all-important observer program in areas not yet 100% covered, how to balance bycatch with directed halibut fishing, and what will done about the sablefish overage from last year, among other agenda items.

The solidly-packed agenda is not unusual, but among those weighty issues, the one that has illicited the most comments from industry — 62 compared to 5 for the next most commented-on topic — was the halibut catch limit for Gulf of Alaska (Area 3A) charter operators.

Read the full story at Seafood News

Russian cod and halibut get MSC certification

January 9, 2020 — Members of the Russia-based Longline Fishery Association (LFA) have earned Marine Stewardship Council (MSC) certification for their Pacific halibut and Pacific cod fisheries in three zones of the Bering Sea.

Six fisheries got certificates: Interrybflot, YAMSy, Polaris, Sigma Marine Technology, Tymlatsky rybokombinat, and Dalrybprom. The certification covers the Chukchi, West Bering Sea, and East Kamchatka fishery zones of the Bering Sea.

Read the full story at Seafood Source

PFMC: Reminder: Area 2A Pacific Halibut Manager’s Webinar Meeting to be held on January 7, 2020

December 31, 2019 — The following was released by the Pacific Fishery Management Council:

The Pacific Fishery Management Council (Pacific Council) will host a webinar meeting of the Area 2A Pacific halibut governmental management entities on Tuesday, January 7, 2020 from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. Pacific Standard Time, or until business for the day is completed. No management actions will be decided by the attendees.  The webinar will be open to the public, and the agenda, which will be posted on the Pacific Council website prior to the meeting, will provide for a public comment period.

Please see the Area 2A Pacific Halibut Manager’s webinar notice on the Council’s website for participation details.

For further information:

  • Please contact Pacific Fishery Management Council staff officer Ms. Robin Ehlke  at 503-820-2410; toll-free 1-866-806-7204.