News Articles

Following is a selection of recent news articles about Bristol Bay. Click into any news story to read the full article.

Bristol Bay 2010 red king crab haul slower than last year; price up
November 4, 2010
KUCB NEWS; Unalaska
The Alaska Department of FIsh and Game notes that approximately 6 million pounds of red king crabs have been landed in Bristol Bay since the season opened in mid-October. The IFQ fishery's allowable catch is 13.4 million pounds. Crab pots are averaging 20 legal's per lift, down from the average of 22 last year. By this time in the 2009 season, some 7 million pounds had been caught. This year's price, $6.25 per pound, is substantially higher than last year's.
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United Fishermen of Alaska ask EPA help in protecting Bristol Bay
November 1, 2010
Trout Unlimited
Nick Hall
United Fishermen of Alaska (UFA) sent a letter to EPA Administrator Lisa Jackson on Oct. 12 asking her to use her agency’s authority under the Clean Water Act to protect the Bristol Bay watershed from discarges of waste. Bristol Bay accounts for more than a quarter of Alaska’s ex-vessel salmon value and provides an economic foundation for fishermen, tenders, processing, support businesses, and communities.
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New video tells Bristol Bay Native Corporation's story and its connection to Bristol Bay and its future
October 25, 2010
Bristol Bay Native Corporation/Bristol BayTimes
An impressive new video released by the Bristol Bay Native Corporation explains the corporation's attachment to the communities and peoples of Bristol Bay and its goal of maintaining the renewable resources of the region for generations to come. The video warns that some projects are either too big, don't meet acceptable risk tolerance levels, won't benefit the region, or would result in severe harms. As reported in the Bristol BayTimes in August, the BBNC has asked federal authorities to tailor provisions of the Clean Water Act regarding discharge and fill materials from the propsed Pebble mine and said the mine represented "unacceptable risks" to BBNC resources and its shareholders' ways of life.
Alaska's sustainable seafood policy cited in culinary blog that warns against global overfishing
October 21, 2010
The Culinary Gadabout
The October 20, 2010, edition of The Culinary Gadabout, an online blog devoted, it appears, to good living through fine food and spirits, focuses on global efforts at promoting sustainable fishing policies. Part of the 10/20 blog cites a film called The End of the Line, which in turn cites Alaska as an example of responsible and sustainable fishing. It specifically notes this year's Bristol Bay's red king crab harvest limits as a good-management example designed to prevent overfishing. The End of the Line is available on DVD. Click on the link.
North Pacific Fishery Management Council offers real-time audio of meetings vie Internet
October 18, 2010
Can't make North Pacific Fishery Management Council meetings? Now you can follow along in real time, thanks to the council's new audio broadcasts. They will be available any time the council is in session through Widows Live Meeting. A link will be provided on the council website. Directions for connecting will be provided there. The link will allow you to access electronic handouts as well.
ADF&G announces Bristol Bay red king crab allowable catch for 2010/2011 season
October 18, 2010
Oct. 15 was opening day for the Bristol Bay red king crab season. It runs through Jan. 15, 2011. The total allowable catch is 14.84 million pounds divided into Individual Fishing Quotas (13.36 million) and Community Development Quotas (1.48 million). For the official announcement, go here.
2010 Bristol Bay Salmon Harvest Exvessel Value Tops 20-year Average
October 15, 2010
State of Alaska Dept. of Fish and Game
This year's total inshore salmon run at Bristol Bay was 6 percent above the 20-year avarege, according to the Alaska Department of Fish & Game's Division of Commercial Fisheries. The recently released 2010 summary report* said the summer run was 1 percent higher than the preseason forecast. Almost 10.7 million sockeye were harvested in the Naknek-Kvichak District, while the Egegik District saw over 4.9 million harvested. Other districts produced: 8.3 million at Nushagak, 3.99 million at Ugashik, and nearly 670,000 at Togiak. In all, some 28.59 million sockeyes were harvested, weighing almost 156 million pounds with a value of more than $148.7 million. When chinook, chum, pink and coho are included, the total haul reaches 31.16 million fish weighing in at 168.65 million pounds with a value of just over $153.1 million. While the haul wasn't spectacular, fishermen enjoyed a healthy price of 95-cents per pound. *(Note: The PDF on the state website lists the issue date as "09/22/2009." That is a typo).
Diversified portfolio yields benefit for salmon stocks
June 22, 2010
ScienceNews
Susan Milius
As Dr. Seuss noted, it’s good to have both red fish and blue fish. A new study of a salmon fishery expands on this concept, showing the importance of having lots of different red fish. The millions of sockeye salmon that spawn in the watershed of Alaska’s Bristol Bay each year represent several hundred distinct populations of the same species, says ecologist Daniel Schindler of the University of Washington in Seattle.
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Rethinking Risks of Offshore Drilling
June 14, 2010
Politico
David Pettit
Life is risky, and accidents are going to happen. Some will happen on oil rigs. Many accidents are preventable — as may have been the case with BP’s Deepwater Horizon. But one thing the BP incident makes clear is that, as a society, we need to decide how much risk we are willing to stomach in order to maintain or expand our current levels of offshore oil and gas drilling.
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Nature cover study provides new standards for reliable fisheries
June 2, 2010
e! Science News
The many populations of sockeye salmon in Bristol Bay, Alaska act like a diversified portfolio of investments, buffering fisheries and incomes from the ups and downs of particular stocks.
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