Somass Sockeye Stock Assessment Update
Pre-season forecast:
Somass (Great Central and Sproat) 700,000 (range: 500,000 to 1,000,000);
Henderson Lake sockeye outlook ~ 25,000
Escapement to June 13: ~ 20,000 (2000 Great Central, 18,000 Sproat Lake)
Test Fishery: June 11-12: Estimate 10K inside 10-mile Point; 15K outside
Expected Somass Stock Composition: 47% Great Central, 53% Sproat Sockeye
Expected Somass Age Composition: 36%, 51%, and 13% for age 42, 52, 53 / 63 adults, respectively.
First in-season reforecast: June 28 (Preliminary Review June 21)
Catch Estimate: ~ 69,500 adults
Port Alberni Tsu-ma-uss Economic Opportunity fishery - 56,000
Maanulth First Nations Domestic harvest - 2000
Commercial Gillnet - 11,500
Recreational - 1,200
NEXT WEEK'S FISHING PLANS:
First Nations
Tsu-ma-uss (Hupacasath ,Tseshaht)-The First Nations have reduced fishing effort due to high catch rate.
Gill-nets - Sunday noon to Monday night 8 pm; 32 hours.
Communal Drag Seine - Papermill Dam Thursday to Saturday 6 am to 2 pm.
Maa-nulth - The harvest plan includes contracting of designated Area D Gill-netters to harvest sockeye. These vessels will be displaying Maa-nulth identification flags.
Commercial
Area D Gill - net fishery will operate 14 hours from 6 am. To 8 pm Tuesday June 19th in the same areas as the June 12th fishery, from the Bamfield line to the Pocahontas line.
Area B Seine - fishery planned for June 25th. There will be a closed area for seines as recommended by the recreational sector. This area is subject to adjustment by the Area 23 Salmon Harvest committee, depending on sockeye abundance in-season. The initial seine closed area will be bounded in the north by a line from Dunsmuir Point to the pilings north of China Creek and, in the south by a line drawn from Hocking Point due easterly to the opposite shore.
Recreational
Fishing continues at 4 per day in Alberni Inlet except for the tidal portions of Somass River which is to 2 per day with no night fishing.
For more information please contact the DFO office in Port Alberni at 250 720-4440