Alaska
ADF&G Extends Closure of Copper River, Fleet on Standby
SeafoodNews.com by Peggy Parker - June 1, 2021
While Prince William Sound opened two sockeye fisheries on Monday, the Copper River remains closed to commercial fishing until escapement numbers increase. The Alaska Department of Fish and Game’s Sunday announcement put Cordova's fleet on notice that fishery “may open on short notice should indices of sockeye salmon abundance support fishing.” The Prince William Sound sockeye fisheries at Coghill and Eshamy opened for a 36-hour fishing period starting at 8:00 am yesterday. Catch reports have not yet been posted on landings or number of deliveries.
The openings in Prince William Sound signal a division of the gillnet fleet and the onset of Cordova's seine fishery. At least some, and perhaps a majority of Cordova’s 540-vessel gill net vessels have gone west to the Sound rather than east to the Flats for this week. The next commercial opening of the Copper River District may occur as early as tomorrow June 2. Open seine areas in PWS include two districts: Montague Island and Southwest, which are open initially for a 48-hour period which started 8:00 am yesterday, followed by additional 36-hour periods at 8:00 am on Thursday, June 3, and 8:00 am on Saturday June 5. A regular schedule of three fishing periods per week is anticipated to remain in effect until further notice.
The good news is that sockeye and Chinook daily escapemens up the Copper River have increased from about a third of the daily projected number to a little over half of the projected daily number since May 26, when sonar on both sides of the river became operational. But as of May 30, the river count is the 15th lowest on record (since 1978).
Cumulative sonar count through May 29 is 38,652 fish, about 38% of the projected 102,208 fish projected to meet the Inriver Run Goal by this date. The 6 a.m. count for May 30 is 1,199 fish.
The last open period on the Flats was Monday, May 24, when 2,031 Chinook and 32,720 sockeye were landed, about 58% of the projected harvest of 56,100 sockeye salmon for that period.
A total of 5,000 Chinook and 52,000 sockeye have been landed to date. Sockeye weight has averaged 5.1 pounds per fish so far, similar to last year’s average weight. That is equal to the record small size seen in 2018 and 0.8 pounds smaller than the 30-year average (1990‒2019) of 5.9 pounds.
https://www.seafoodnews.com/Story/1200178/ADFG-Extends-Closure-of-Copper-River-Fleet-on-Standby
International
Lloyd’s Register backs MSC certification for Russia’s West Bering Sea pollock fishery, with conditions
Seafood Source by Ivan Stupachenko - May 31, 2021
Lloyd’s Register, a third-party assessor of the North West Bering Sea/Navarinsky Area pollock fishery, has determined the fishery has met the basic requirements of the Marine Stewardship Council (MSC) standard and can further proceed to gain full certification.
https://www.seafoodsource.com/news/environment-sustainability/lloyds-register-backs-msc-certification-for-russia-s-west-bering-sea-pollock-fishery-with-conditions
FYI’s
Coast Guard, AMSEA team up to offer dockside vessel exams
Cordova Times - June 1, 2021
Coast Guard officials are teaming up with the Alaska Marine Safety Education Association (AMSEA) to offer dockside exams of commercial fishing vessels and maritime safety education to fishermen in advance of the 2021 Bristol Bay salmon season.
https://www.thecordovatimes.com/2021/06/01/coast-guard-amsea-team-up-to-offer-dockside-vessel-exams/
Pacific Seafood Processors Association 1900 W Emerson Place Suite 205, Seattle, WA 98119 Phone: 206.281.1667 E-mail: admin@pspafish.net; Website: www.pspafish.net Our office days/hours are Monday-Friday 8:00 A.M. - 5:00 P.M. In accordance with Title 17 U.S.C. Section 107, any copyrighted work in this message is distributed under fair use without profit or payment to those who have expressed a prior interest in receiving this information for non-profit research and educational purposes only. *Inclusion of a news article, report, or other document in this email does not imply PSPA support or endorsement of the information or opinion expressed in the document.