Southeast Alaska is shutting down their chinook fisheries...gulp

[Drewski Canuck]

As for Alaskans protecting BC Salmon, or any salmon, they have a big bi catch from the winter Black Cod and Pollock fishery that up to recently did not get counted against their allotment by the Pacific Salmon Commission. Yes, salmon were swimming in the same waters! I understood that the dead bi catch had to be thrown overboard, but it was considerable, and considerable waste of Salmon. Now that bi catch is counted against them.

It was the Alaskans fishing wide open that started the "Salmon Wars" of the early 1990's, and it was only after the US Federal Government threatened to take jurisdiction by declaring Puget Sound Chinook endangered, which got the Alaskans to play along to keep the Feds out.

All the retaliatory fishing by BC against the very threatened California Sacramento River run as well as the Oregon and Washington runs, did not make a difference to the Alaskans.

It is nice to see a change in attitude from Alaska, albeit too late for this year.

I suspect that some of the prized Alaskan (Kenai) runs are now in very big trouble, and is the real motivation for Alaska. In other words, Alaskans worried about Alaska, not Canada or the southern US.

However, Alaska has a habit of saving face. Otherwise, they would have done something about their commercial fishing practices long ago.

Drewski

 

[Sharphooks]

Incidental Chinook salmon by-catch in a winter black cod fishery? Please clarify where you got that information.

 

[agentaqua]

Incidental Chinook salmon by-catch in a winter black cod fishery? Please clarify where you got that information.

I suspect he meant the pollock fishery instead...

 

[Drewski Canuck]

Yes, Pollock fishery.

But you get the point. For years the Chinook bycatch was just dumped. Now at least it gets APPARENTLY counted.

And yes it was the Alaskans fishing wide open in the 90's that hammered our fish and all the runs to the south so I don't have a lot of faith in them.

Drewski

 

[SpringVelocity]

At least in this article - MacDuffie and Taylor acknowledge (at the bottom of the article) their affiliations - and with that - biases.

There should be a question asked of Taylor in his capacity of "buyer for Oceans Seafood", though: Does it financially benefit him and Oceans if they buy from inriver [Fraser], verses offshore commercial suppliers? What do they pay the inriver suppliers and bands $ per lb verses offshore??? What does that save them wrt costs and profits?? Is there a financial incentive to advocate for the closure of marine fisheries???

Yes that is interesting point. Its just if you watch since that Fraser band court case started those activists groups who wrote article have been gunning for the rec sector to close, so it makes me wonder what the agenda is.

 

[agentaqua]

DFO officers step up salmon fishing enforcement
The Fraser River sockeye salmon run is just 10 per cent of pre-season forecasts
By Rafferty Baker, CBC News Posted: Sep 01, 2017 5:58 PM PT
http://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/briti...-step-up-salmon-fishing-enforcement-1.4273026

 

[SpringVelocity]

DFO officers step up salmon fishing enforcement
The Fraser River sockeye salmon run is just 10 per cent of pre-season forecasts
By Rafferty Baker, CBC News Posted: Sep 01, 2017 5:58 PM PT
http://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/briti...-step-up-salmon-fishing-enforcement-1.4273026

Where is the divine PLAN from Ottawa?

 

[mbowers]

Alaska is also busy dumping pink salmon from hatcheries into the ocean. Alaska plants over 1 billion pinks per year. There is only so much food in the ocean and Alaska seems to be using pink salmon to capture most of it. Sockeye and chinook are returning after fewer years in the ocean because there just isn't enough food out there to justify another year at sea. Meanwhile pinks are getting bigger. Alaska hatchery pink salmon catches have risen just as wild fish catches have dropped..

http://www.ktoo.org/2016/04/27/unusually-big-pink-salmon-may-be-related-to-smaller-coho-and-kings/

https://craigmedred.news/2016/05/05/the-dying-kenai-kings/

 

[ericl]

I have talked to a few people very involved in this & similar issues & thru genetic sampling those in the "know" know very well where the various runs of Chinook migrate to/from, who catches them & when/where they are caught.
Knowledge is power & those in control would like to remain in control so it appears to me that little of this info is shared with the public. If there is any "dirty little secret" being concealed, I'll bet that when it comes to Chinook salmon, the year-around commercial troll fishing in SEAK is devastating the runs from SEAK down to California with few exceptions (like the Chinook runs that don't migrate to SEAK.

Since Spring Chinook tend to not migrate north, going straight-out far to sea instead, and these runs are also in trouble, I believe the answer is the question is (D); all the above.

FYI fished the Kenai in the early 80's with friends who live there I have somewhat kept-up. There runs have been in trouble since back then & restrictions on jet boats & large HP outboards (they wash the eggs out of the Redds) have been in place. I'd say that what is happening in Alaska north of SEAK has limited effect on "our" Chinook.

 

[agentaqua]

Why Tearing Down Dams Could Help Save Endangered Killer Whales
Dams, pollution and development have taken a toll on salmon populations in Washington State. Now researchers find that the lack of fish is causing pregnant orcas to miscarry, further imperiling the endangered killer whales.
Written by Hanna Brooks Olsen Published on  Sep. 25, 2017
https://www.newsdeeply.com/oceans/a...dams-could-help-save-endangered-killer-whales

 

[Lil pepper]

Does anyone know what how many pieces are in the Commercial troll quota ?? You would think that it would be the first segment closed if any action is taken by the DFO. Rec sector contributes significantly more $ to the economy

Last year quota was 800 chinook per boat area f north coast... this year was significantly less my gues was 500 pieces...what they don,t mentions that coho are on the rebound coastwide. Se al
Aska is expecting a run of over 5 million coho ...big numbers with spillover to QCIs ..it is not all doom gloom..cooler ne pacific temperatures should see an uptick in salmon production as food for salmon will increase ie. shrimp and herring