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Alaska/Pacific Coast

Bycatch rules published for pollock fleet

The Arctic Sounder, August 30th, 2010

Fishers trawling for pollock in the Bering Sea will have new guidelines beginning next year to

minimize the accidental catch — or "bycatch" — of Chinook salmon in their nets, according

to a press release from NOAA's National Marine Fisheries Service.

http://thearcticsounder.com/article/1035bycatch_rules_published_for_pollock_fleet

NOAA Fisheries Bulletins/Update:

75 FR 53026, August 30, 2010. Final regulations to implement management measures for

Chinook salmon bycatch in the Bering Sea pollock fishery - Amendment 91 to the Fishery

Management Plan for Groundfish of the BSAI. Effective September 29, 2010. NEW!

81. NMFS Prohibits Directed Fishing for Northern Rockfish for Vessels Participating in the Rockfish Entry Level Fishery in the Central Regulatory Area of the Gulf of Alaska.

80. NMFS Prohibits Directed Fishing for Pelagic Shelf Rockfish for Vessels Participating in the Rockfish Entry Level Fishery in the Central Regulatory Area of the Gulf of Alaska.

79. NMFS Prohibits Directed Fishing for Pacific Ocean Perch for Vessels Participating in the Rockfish Entry Level Fishery in the Central Regulatory Area of the Gulf of Alaska.

Gulf/East Coast Fishery

NOAA Reopens More than 4,000 Square Miles of Closed Gulf Fishing Area

Today NOAA reopened 4,281 square miles of Gulf waters off western Louisiana

to commercial and recreational fishing. The reopening was announced after consultation

with FDA and under a re-opening protocol agreed to by NOAA, the FDA, and the Gulf states.

http://www.noaanews.noaa.gov/stories2010/20100827_reopen.html

Politics

Alaska Primary results/updates:

http://www.adn.com/2010-election/

International

B.C. sockeye salmon bounty estimate upped to 30 million

The Globe and Mail, August 28, 2010

As fishermen haul in massive loads of sockeye salmon, the official estimate of this summer’s near-

record bounty has been upped to 30 million, the second increase in four days, deepening one of

Canada’s great scientific mysteries.

http://www.theglobeandmail.com/news/national/british-columbia/bc-sockeye-salmon-bounty-estimate-upped-to-30-million/article1688547/

Richmond's Ocean Fisheries handling 100,000 pounds of BC sockeye daily

SEAFOOD.COM NEWS [Richmond Review] By Rebekah Hammond - August 30, 2010 -
Richmond's Ocean Fisheries cannery and fish processing plant kept up with the boatloads of salmon arriving at its docks during the sockeye opening this week. The Rice Mill Road plant, which is Richmond's last operating cannery and fish processer, handled about 100,000 pounds of salmon a day. “It's by far the biggest run I've seen in my career and I've been working here since 1980,” said Greg Taylor, Ocean Fisheries vice-president of fisheries management. While some nearby processing plants struggled to keep up with the number of fish coming in, Ocean Fisheries prepared for the windfall. “It was a challenge because we haven't seen so many fish in a few years, but a challenge we met comfortably,” said Taylor. “One has to be adaptable because things change in the fish business.” More shifts and workers helped them keep up. “All the fisherman were able to move the fish off boats in a timely matter and get back out,” Taylor said. Gillnetters can bring in about 1,000 fish per trip. That equals about 5,000 pounds, according to Ocean Fisheries' Bryan Safarik. A bigger seiner can bring in 50,000 to 100,000 pounds. Ocean Fisheries is Richmond's last cannery in a city that used to boast many more. “In the 1890s we had about 24 canneries in the Steveston area,” said Coun. Harold Steves who grew up in the fishing industry during the ‘50s and ‘60s. “It's been a story of many canneries getting few and fewer over the century as canning became more efficient and were bought out by larger players,” said Steves, who worked at the Gulf of Georgia Cannery, now a national heritage site. “(Consolidation) was seen as a good thing at the time because of better efficiency and they could ensure a better product,” he said. As fishing changed and fish populations declined, however, the number of processors continued to also diminish. “It's become a lot more competitive and branched out into international markets,” Taylor said. Ocean Fisheries processes a variety of different products including canned and frozen fish products which are shipped around the world. Taylor hopes this year is an indication that the fish population will begin to make a turn for the better. “We're seeing more bountiful returns first in the north and now in the south,” said Taylor. “Contrary to what they say about global warming, our stocks on the B.C. coast are, in general very, very healthy.”