Gulf of Alaska Chinook bycatch. Intolerable Willful Destruction
- Thread starter Downchild
- Start date
Downchild
Active Member
Charlie
Well-Known Member
There is NO poor ocean survival for Chinook in the Bering Sea. The poor ocean survival is from those Atlantic salmon open net pen feedlots and NO... you have all the closures due to Canada not doing anything to protect your Chinook and sees "no value in Pacific salmon" in relation to your GDP!
I agree with Charlie that Canada has quietly exited out the side door when prioritizing salmon management and access for our sports-, commercial- and FN-needs.
The start of this ongoing debacle was after the BC government (under the newly-elected BC Liberals) gutted and destroyed the BC Fishery Renewal program, after Glen Clarke and the NDP lost.
That signified to the feds that the time was right to follow suit since the political outfall would be less as the province demonstrated that a branch of government could destroy grass-roots support for salmon and get away with it.
The feds then pulled the rug out from the federal funding equivalent - the HRSEP (Habitat Renewal and Salmonid Enhancement) program. Many of you posters on here may well remember this.
This gutted any government support for community-minded fisheries.
Then the feds caved-in to Alaska's allocation requests for the next negotiation of the 1999 Pacific Salmon Treaty, where BC lost many millions in forecasted revenue, while Alaska fishermen received an ever increasing share of most Pacific salmon species at the expense of BC, Wash, & Ore.
The pay-off recorded on paper was the abysmal support for Canada where Canada kicked-in an astounding low $2 million, while the US payed-off with a ~20 Million investment into the Northern and Southern Funds.
The writing has been on the wall since.
Another beneficary of that allocation shift has been the pollock fishery in Alaska - presented as a mid-water trawl fishery. The figures below are from: http://alaskafisheries.noaa.gov/npfmc/PDFdocuments/bycatch/GOAChinook311.pdf
They take upwards of ~150,000 pieces of sub-adult salmon every year; mostly chinook and chum. The average weight of Chinook salmon caught as bycatch varied from 6 to 9 pounds, depending on the time of year.
In 2010, over five Chinook salmon were estimated to have been caught for each metric ton of pollock. Over 21,000 Chinook salmon were estimated to have been caught in one week, alone. The annual pollock catch is approx. 50,000-80,000 metric tons, but has been substantially higher than that some years - upwards of 150,000 mts.
In 2007, the Chinook bycatch was 130,000 pieces.
They say they release the fish - but what is the survival rate for the trawl-caught fish?
They also have a low percentage of observer coverage, especially the smaller boat fleet - which means if you have an observer aboard for this trip - you head to the fishing areas that normally have less by-catch interception - so these are low estimates.
I have not eaten another McFish burger from McRotten's since I found this out.
The start of this ongoing debacle was after the BC government (under the newly-elected BC Liberals) gutted and destroyed the BC Fishery Renewal program, after Glen Clarke and the NDP lost.
That signified to the feds that the time was right to follow suit since the political outfall would be less as the province demonstrated that a branch of government could destroy grass-roots support for salmon and get away with it.
The feds then pulled the rug out from the federal funding equivalent - the HRSEP (Habitat Renewal and Salmonid Enhancement) program. Many of you posters on here may well remember this.
This gutted any government support for community-minded fisheries.
Then the feds caved-in to Alaska's allocation requests for the next negotiation of the 1999 Pacific Salmon Treaty, where BC lost many millions in forecasted revenue, while Alaska fishermen received an ever increasing share of most Pacific salmon species at the expense of BC, Wash, & Ore.
The pay-off recorded on paper was the abysmal support for Canada where Canada kicked-in an astounding low $2 million, while the US payed-off with a ~20 Million investment into the Northern and Southern Funds.
The writing has been on the wall since.
Another beneficary of that allocation shift has been the pollock fishery in Alaska - presented as a mid-water trawl fishery. The figures below are from: http://alaskafisheries.noaa.gov/npfmc/PDFdocuments/bycatch/GOAChinook311.pdf
They take upwards of ~150,000 pieces of sub-adult salmon every year; mostly chinook and chum. The average weight of Chinook salmon caught as bycatch varied from 6 to 9 pounds, depending on the time of year.
In 2010, over five Chinook salmon were estimated to have been caught for each metric ton of pollock. Over 21,000 Chinook salmon were estimated to have been caught in one week, alone. The annual pollock catch is approx. 50,000-80,000 metric tons, but has been substantially higher than that some years - upwards of 150,000 mts.
In 2007, the Chinook bycatch was 130,000 pieces.
They say they release the fish - but what is the survival rate for the trawl-caught fish?
They also have a low percentage of observer coverage, especially the smaller boat fleet - which means if you have an observer aboard for this trip - you head to the fishing areas that normally have less by-catch interception - so these are low estimates.
I have not eaten another McFish burger from McRotten's since I found this out.
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Whole in the Water
Well-Known Member
SO lets sends some letters like the article says to the decisions makers below to change this shameful, stupid waste!
From The Alaska Marine Conservation Council Website:
The North Pacific Fishery Management Council is scheduled to take final action at their June meeting in Juneau. This is your chance to speak up for meaningful reductions. Send a letter to the Council by May 28th (see instructions and letter writing tips below) and sign our open letter to the Governor and North Council asking for meaningful bycatch reductions.
In August 2012, a 25,000 Chinook bycatch cap went into effect in the Gulf of Alaska pollock fishery. This historic cap is important, but there is another offender out there. Other trawl fisheries in the Gulf also catch Chinook salmon as bycatch while targeting flatfish, cod and rockfish. On average these other fisheries are responsible for about a third of the Chinook salmon bycatch every year but in some years these fisheries have been responsible for 60% or more of the bycatch. In 2010, non-pollock trawl fisheries in the Gulf caught nearly 10,000 Chinook salmon as bycatch.
This waste occurs despite recent and dramatic declines in Chinook returns in the Gulf and across the state. Runs were so poor in 2012 that the Secretary of Commerce declared a fisheries disaster for Cook Inlet Chinook salmon. The set net fishery was almost completely shut down in 2012, and the Kenai River was closed to all Chinook salmon fishing. Economic losses in Cook Inlet to commercial fishing alone are estimated at almost $10 million, with another $17.7 million to sport fisheries and additional losses to subsistence fishers.
Preseason forecasts and fishing restrictions across the Gulf for Chinook salmon in 2013 are further cause for concern. In short, the situation for families and communities dependent on Chinook salmon throughout the state remains dire. Yet even at a time of low returns, fishing closures and declared disasters, Gulf trawl fisheries are allowed to catch thousands of kings as bycatch. The Gulf non-pollock trawl fisheries are the only fishery left which catches a significant amount of salmon bycatch, yet does not have a limit. This is unacceptable. It’s critical that we close this loophole and put a cap in place.
This year the Alaska State Senate passed SR5, a resolution introduced by Senator Peter Micciche of Soldotna urging the North Pacific Fishery Management Council to work to reduce Chinook bycatch in both the Gulf of Alaska and the Bering Sea. The Alaska House Bush Caucus also sent a letter to the North Council requesting bycatch reductions in trawl fisheries. The North Council also needs to hear from you!
Letters must be received by Tuesday, May 28th. Make sure to write agenda item “C-4 GOA Salmon Chinook bycatch” on your letter.
Send letters to:
North Pacific Fishery Management Council
605 West 4th Ave, Suite 306
Anchorage, AK 99510 (ck)
Email: npfmc.comments@noaa.gov
Anchorage, AK 99501
Fax: (907) 271-2817
For more information visit the North Pacific Fishery Management Council's website.
Points to Include in Letters/Testimony:
Attend the June Council Meeting in Juneau
The Council is scheduled to take up Gulf Chinook salmon bycatch starting June 7th at Centennial Hall. You can provide testimony in person at the Council meeting. It’s critical that the Council hears directly from people impacted by the Chinook salmon shortages and closures about the need to reduce bycatch in the trawl fleet.
Here is the agenda for the meeting.
From The Alaska Marine Conservation Council Website:
The North Pacific Fishery Management Council is scheduled to take final action at their June meeting in Juneau. This is your chance to speak up for meaningful reductions. Send a letter to the Council by May 28th (see instructions and letter writing tips below) and sign our open letter to the Governor and North Council asking for meaningful bycatch reductions.
In August 2012, a 25,000 Chinook bycatch cap went into effect in the Gulf of Alaska pollock fishery. This historic cap is important, but there is another offender out there. Other trawl fisheries in the Gulf also catch Chinook salmon as bycatch while targeting flatfish, cod and rockfish. On average these other fisheries are responsible for about a third of the Chinook salmon bycatch every year but in some years these fisheries have been responsible for 60% or more of the bycatch. In 2010, non-pollock trawl fisheries in the Gulf caught nearly 10,000 Chinook salmon as bycatch.
This waste occurs despite recent and dramatic declines in Chinook returns in the Gulf and across the state. Runs were so poor in 2012 that the Secretary of Commerce declared a fisheries disaster for Cook Inlet Chinook salmon. The set net fishery was almost completely shut down in 2012, and the Kenai River was closed to all Chinook salmon fishing. Economic losses in Cook Inlet to commercial fishing alone are estimated at almost $10 million, with another $17.7 million to sport fisheries and additional losses to subsistence fishers.
Preseason forecasts and fishing restrictions across the Gulf for Chinook salmon in 2013 are further cause for concern. In short, the situation for families and communities dependent on Chinook salmon throughout the state remains dire. Yet even at a time of low returns, fishing closures and declared disasters, Gulf trawl fisheries are allowed to catch thousands of kings as bycatch. The Gulf non-pollock trawl fisheries are the only fishery left which catches a significant amount of salmon bycatch, yet does not have a limit. This is unacceptable. It’s critical that we close this loophole and put a cap in place.
This year the Alaska State Senate passed SR5, a resolution introduced by Senator Peter Micciche of Soldotna urging the North Pacific Fishery Management Council to work to reduce Chinook bycatch in both the Gulf of Alaska and the Bering Sea. The Alaska House Bush Caucus also sent a letter to the North Council requesting bycatch reductions in trawl fisheries. The North Council also needs to hear from you!
Letters must be received by Tuesday, May 28th. Make sure to write agenda item “C-4 GOA Salmon Chinook bycatch” on your letter.
Send letters to:
North Pacific Fishery Management Council
605 West 4th Ave, Suite 306
Anchorage, AK 99510 (ck)
Email: npfmc.comments@noaa.gov
Anchorage, AK 99501
Fax: (907) 271-2817
For more information visit the North Pacific Fishery Management Council's website.
Points to Include in Letters/Testimony:
- As a ________ (commercial halibut fisherman, charter operator, sport halibut fisherman, subsistence fisherman, consumer of halibut, etc.) I strongly support reductions in Gulf of Alaska Chinook salmon bycatch in all trawl fisheries.
- The Council should set a cap of 5,000 Chinook salmon for the non-pollock fisheries in the GOA as a starting point. Bycatch must be reduced further in future actions.
- Chinook salmon have declined severely throughout Alaska: Commercial fishery failures and disasters were declared for the Upper Cook Inlet, Yukon River and Kuskokwim River.
- The Gulf non-pollock fisheries are the only fishery left which catches significant amounts of salmon bycatch, yet has no limit.
- Chinook salmon is critical to subsistence, sport and commercial fisheries, and a major contributor to the economy and culture of Alaska.
- All other users have to reduce their harvest to conserve Chinook salmon in years of low returns, the trawl fisheries must do the same.
- National Standard 9 of the Magnuson-Stevens Act requires that bycatch be reduced.
Attend the June Council Meeting in Juneau
The Council is scheduled to take up Gulf Chinook salmon bycatch starting June 7th at Centennial Hall. You can provide testimony in person at the Council meeting. It’s critical that the Council hears directly from people impacted by the Chinook salmon shortages and closures about the need to reduce bycatch in the trawl fleet.
Here is the agenda for the meeting.
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