|
This e-mail address is being protected from spam bots, you need JavaScript enabled to view it
With the 2009 commercial salmon season
set to open in Sand Point in a few days, the fishery is looking forward to another
good year. And after last year's unexpectedly positive returns, there's always
hope in Sand Point of exceeding preseason projections.
KMXT's Erik Wander has
more.
The Alaska Department of Fish and
Game in Sand Point does not have the resources to produce a formal forecast for
its commercial salmon fishery, according to Fish and Game area biologist Aaron
Poetter. He made a distinction between a forecast and a projection, which Fish
and Game does make for Sand Point each year. The projection is based on an average
of total commercial harvest over the past five years. Poetter said this year's
projection is slightly over two-million sockeye and about eight-million pink
salmon.
-- (Poetter
1 40 sec. "Those will kind of be our ... to
work out for everybody.")
Poetter
said it's too early to tell if things will work out quite as well this year or to
predict whether or not similar conditions will produce similar results as last
year. However, he said some early signs could be positive indicators.
-- (Poetter
2 20 sec. "We do have some more ... quality
that they were getting.")
Poetter expects effort
this season to be similar to that of last year, but he said
that the more promising forecasts for pink salmon in Southeast
Alaska this year compared with last could affect effort in Sand
Point.
-- (Poetter
3 15 sec. "We did see a few boats ... talking
about five, ten boats.")
The
Sand Point area will see few changes in its management strategy this year from
previous years. Poetter said June openings are on schedule, and that after
that, Fish and Game will evaluate local stocks and escapements for post-June
plans.
-- (Poetter
4 33 sec. "We'll see how our local ... some good harvests over there.")
The test fishery will
begin the first week of July, during which Fish and Game will charter a vessel
and test the threshold for immature salmon, which is set at 100 immature salmon
per set that are caught in a three-and-a-half inch seine web. The test fishery
determines whether certain areas will re-open to seiners and set-netters, or
remain closed.
-- (Poetter
5 44 sec. "Basically, we go out and ... do not go into the threshold.")
Fish and Game will hold a
preseason fishery stakeholders' meeting Wednesday at 6 p.m. at the Aleutians
East Borough building in Sand Point. Poetter said the
open-forum meeting is an opportunity to discuss the upcoming salmon season.
Included on the agenda will be 2009 projections, management strategy and the
test fishery. Poetter said fishermen, industry representatives and interested
members of the community are encouraged to attend.
I'm
Erik Wander.
###
|
