Pacific halibut Archives - Page 2 of 5

Over 74 percent of Pacific halibut quota caught before Dec. 7 closure

December 12, 2024 — Alackluster Pacific halibut season closes on December 7 in fisheries across Alaska, British Columbia and along the U.S. west coast.

By December 6, just over 74% of the 28.86 million pound coastwide commercial catch limit had crossed the docks since the fishery opened on March 15, with a net weight barely topping 21.43 million pounds. Fishermen for the most part reported sketchy catches and lots of smaller sized halibut.

Alaska always get the lion’s share of the annual commercial halibut catch which this year totaled 18.47 million pounds, a 2.7% decrease from 2023. By the season’s closure, Alaska fishermen had delivered nearly 14 million pounds to fishing communities across the state.

Fishermen at Southeast, Area 2C, caught 87% of their halibut limit, the harvest at the Central Gulf, Area 3A, came in at 91%, 3B, the Western Gulf, at 88%, at 4A, the Aleutians region, 55% of the allowable halibut was taken, and the Bering Sea areas of 4B were at 31% and 43% of the halibut catch limit.

Read the full article at the National Fisherman

Judge dismisses lawsuit that opposed halibut bycatch regulations

November 25, 2024 — In a recent decision, the United States District Court in Alaska ruled against a Seattle-based fishing trade group, Groundfish Forum, which challenged new federal rules affecting new limits on halibut bycatch in the Bering Sea and Aleutian Islands.

The National Marine Fisheries Service developed the regulations after a 2021 recommendation by the North Pacific Fisheries Management Council to limit bycatch from the groundfish fleet. Proponents say the limits protect halibut populations from the trawl group, which accounts for more than half of the halibut bycatch in the area.

Groundfish Forum, which represents a group of large trawl catcher-processors, filed a suit to stop those limits. They said the rules change the way halibut bycatch is managed, tying the cap to the abundance of halibut in the area: when halibut populations are high, the cap stays steady. But if populations dip, the cap goes down, by as much as 35%.

The fishing group said this puts an unfair burden on their sector, while other fisheries in the region aren’t facing the same constraints. They also said the proposed cap is unrealistic because it’s too strict to implement, which they claim violates conservation laws.

Read the full article at KUCB

Federal judge dismisses Alaska trawlers’ lawsuit that sought to overturn halibut limits

November 14, 2024 — A federal judge has dismissed a lawsuit that sought to overturn new halibut bycatch limits on deep-sea trawlers that fish in federal waters off Alaska.

The lawsuit was filed by Groundfish Forum Inc., a Seattle-based trawl trade group, after the North Pacific Fishery Management Council passed a rule that reduces halibut bycatch limits for many trawlers when there are fewer halibut in Alaska waters.

The National Marine Fisheries Service, in charge of implementing the rule, moved to dismiss the lawsuit, and U.S. District Court Judge Sharon Gleason ruled in favor of the agency on Nov. 8. Undercurrent News, a trade publication, first reported on the ruling.

Read the full article at Alaska Beacon

ALASKA: Pacific Halibut Fishery Closes; Commercial Catches Come Up Short

December 10, 2022 — The Pacific halibut fishery closed Wednesday (Dec. 7) after nine months of fishing.

The overall halibut removals came up just 7% short of the 2022 catch limit of 42.4 million pounds, an increase of 5% over the previous year.

That includes takes by commercial, sport, subsistence users and as bycatch in British Columbia, Washington, Oregon, California and Alaska.

Alaska’s commercial halibut fishery produced nearly 19.3 million pounds, 10% under the Alaska catch limit.

Read the full article at Seafoodnews.com

March 2022 Briefing Book available online (March 2022 PFMC meeting)

February 18, 2022 — 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 8-14 in a hybrid format with the Council and its salmon Advisory Bodies meeting in San Jose, California with live streaming and remote participation options. All other ancillary meetings will be held by webinar only. The Council is scheduled to address issues related to salmon, groundfish, highly migratory species, Pacific halibut, ecosystem, and administrative matters.

Briefing materials for the hybrid format Council meeting are available on the Council’s March 2022 briefing book webpage. .

For further information:

•Visit the March 2022 briefing book webpage

•Please contact Council staff

•See the March 2022 Council meeting webpage

Pacific halibut stock increases after four years of decline

December 7, 2021 — The Pacific halibut stock appears to be on an upswing that could result in increased catches for most regions in 2022.

At the interim meeting of the International Pacific Halibut Commission last week, scientists gave an overview of the summer setline survey that targets nearly 2,000 stations over three months. The Pacific resource is modeled as a single stock extending from northern California to the Aleutian Islands and Bering Sea, including all inside waters of the Strait of Georgia and the Salish Sea.

The survey results showed that coast-wide combined numbers per setline increased by 17% from 2020 to 2021, reversing declines over the past four years. The coast-wide weights of legal size halibut (over 32 inches) also increased by 4%.

“We’re seeing some new trends this year,” said Ian Stewart, lead scientist for the IPHC, which has managed the fishery for the U.S. and Canada since 1923. “The first is we saw some improving trends from our survey that correspond to a shift both in the fish and in the fishery to younger fish.”

Read the full story at the Anchorage Daily News

PFMC: Area 2A Pacific Halibut Managers online meeting will be held January 4, 2022

December 1, 2021 — The following was released by the Pacific Fishery Management Council:

The Pacific Fishery Management Council (Pacific Council) will host an online meeting of the Area 2A Pacific halibut governmental management entities that is open to the public. The online meeting will be held Tuesday, January 4, 2022, from 10 a.m. until 1 p.m. Pacific Time, or until business for the day has been completed.

Please see the Area 2A Pacific Halibut Manager’s online meeting 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.

Pacific Fishery Management Council to hold online webinar only meeting in November 2021 to adopt management measures for ocean fisheries

October 19, 2021 – The following was released by the Pacific Fishery Management Council:

The Pacific Fishery Management Council (PFMC or Council) and its advisory bodies will meet November 15-19 and 21-22, 2021 by webinar only, to address issues related to coastal pelagic species, groundfish, highly migratory species, salmon, Pacific halibut, and administrative matters.

Please see the November 2021 Council meeting webpage for further updates and details regarding webinar participation; schedule of advisory body meetings, our E-Portal for submitting public comments, and public comment deadlines. The meeting of the Council general session will be streamed live on the internet. The broadcast will begin at 10 a.m. Pacific Standard Time (PST) Tuesday, November 16, 2021. The meeting will continue daily at 8 a.m. through Monday, November 22nd, except there will be no meetings scheduled on Saturday, November 20th. Broadcasts end daily at 5 p.m. or when business for the day is complete.

Instructions for how to connect to the online meetings will be posted on the Council’s November 2021 meeting webpage prior to the first day of the meeting.

For further information:

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

Instructions for how to connect to the online meetings will be posted on the Council’s November 2021 meeting webpage prior to the first day of the meeting.

For further information:

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

New MSC Recertification for Pacific Halibut and Sablefish Now Includes Inside Waters

August 19, 2021 — A team effort over several months resulted in MSC’s recertification of Pacific Halibut and North Pacific sablefish fisheries to include the inside waters of the northern section of Southeast Alaska, including the waters of Chatham Strait, east of Sitka.

Last week the expanded recertification was announced by the Marine Stewardship Council (MSC) and that it now included for the first time the Northern Southeast Inside (NSEI) sablefish fishery.

Read the full story at Seafood News

Alaska captain hit with $1 million fine, six-month sentence for misreporting

August 12, 2021 — A commercial fisherman in Alaska will pay a fine of $1 million and spend up to a six months in prison for misreporting his catch.

Kodiak fisherman James Aaron Stevens was sentenced last week for “knowingly submitting false records concerning the locations and regulatory areas where fish were harvested,” according to the U.S. District Attorney’s Office, Alaska District.

The attorney’s office announced last August that Stevens had plead guilty to one count of false labeling, which constituted a Lacey Act violation. The false reporting occurred during 26 fishing trips between 2014 and 2017, when Stevens served as the owner and operator of the F/V Southern Seas and the F/V Alaskan Star.

“Specifically, Stevens knowingly falsified International Pacific Halibut Commission (IPHC) logbooks, daily fishing logbooks, Alaska Department of Fish and Game fish tickets, and landing reports to show that fishing gear had been deployed in areas where the vessels did not fish, and omitted areas in which the fish were actually harvested,” the district attorney’s office said. “In addition to his falsified logbooks, the investigation further revealed that Stevens maintained the accurate fishing information in a separate, personal log.”

Stevens falsely reported the harvest of some 903,208 pounds of halibut and sablefish, which added up to around $4.5 million in ex-vessel value and $13.5 million in market value.

Read the full story at National Fisherman