January 31, 2018 — Commercial crabbers in Southeast Alaska will have some opportunity to fish in offshore waters for king and Tanner crab fishing following decisions by Alaska’s Board of Fisheries in January.
The board didn’t go for other changes to those fisheries proposed by crabbers though.
A couple proposals sought to expand the boundaries of king and Tanner crab fishing areas into federal waters beyond three miles offshore.
The Southeast Alaska Fishermen’s Alliance’s Kathy Hansen said other crab fisheries were not limited to 3 miles from shore.
“This would just bring us consistent with the rest of the state and possibly give somebody an opportunity to try something a little different,” Hansen said.
With no federal management plan in place for crab stocks in those waters, the state can manage fisheries there instead.