AK Bering Sea, Aleutian Islands Pollock Trawl Fishery - MMPA List of Fisheries

U.S. fisheries are classified under the Marine Mammal Protection Act according to the level of interactions that result in incidental mortality or serious injury of marine mammals.

Alaska

Current Classification on the List of Fisheries

Category	II
Estimated Number of Participants	102
Target Species	pollock
Applicable Take Reduction Plans	N/A
Observer Coverage	Observer coverage is calculated by the percentage of observed biomass (percentage of tons caught which were observed). Observer coverage in groundfish fisheries is assigned according to vessel length: vessels greater than 125 ft (30.5 m) have 10% coverage; vessels 60-125 ft (18.3-30.5 m) have 30% coverage; and vessels less than 60 ft (18.3 m) are not observed. Observer coverage in groundfish fisheries varies by statistical area and the pooled percent coverage for all areas is provided in the SARs and is reported here. Pooled observer coverage for all areas from 1998-2005 were 66.9%, 75.2%, 76.2%, 79.0%, 80.0%, 82.2%, 92.8%, and 77.3%, respectively.
Marine Mammal Species/Stocks Killed or Injured	Bearded seal, AK; Beluga whale, Bristol Bay; Beluga whale, Eastern Bering Sea; Beluga whale, Eastern Chukchi Sea; Harbor seal, Bering Sea; Northern fur seal, Eastern Pacific; Ribbon seal, AK; Spotted seal, AK; Steller sea lion, Western U.S.¹

^ Number of participants estimates are based on state and federal fisheries permit data. The estimated number of participants is expressed in terms of the number of active participants in the fishery, when possible. If this information is not available, the estimated number of vessels or persons licensed for a particular fishery is provided. If no recent information is available on the number of participants, then the number from the most recent LOF is used. NOAA Fisheries acknowledges that, in some cases, these estimations may be inflating actual effort.

*Observer coverage levels include the latest information reported in the most current final Stock Assessment Report (SAR).

¹Indicates the stock or species is driving the classification of the fishery.

Basis for Current Classification

The total annual mortality and serious injury of killer whales (Eastern North Pacific, GOA, Aleutian Islands, and Bering Sea transient stock) and Steller sea lions (Western U.S. stock) in the AK Bering Sea, Aleutian Islands (BSAI) pollock trawl fishery is greater than 1% and less than 50% of each of the stocks’ Potential Biological Removal (PBR) level.

Distribution

Fishing effort in this fishery takes place in the U.S. Exclusive Economic Zone of the Eastern Bering Sea and the portion of the North Pacific Ocean adjacent to the Aleutian Islands, which is west of 170°W. long. up to the U.S.-Russian Convention Line of 1867.

Gear Description

This fishery uses trawl gear. The use of non-pelagic trawl gear in the directed fishery for pollock is prohibited.

Management

Management measures for the BSAI groundfish fisheries constrain fishing both temporally and spatially. This fishery is federally managed under the BSAI FMP. The authorized gear, fishing season, criteria for determining fishing seasons, and area restrictions by gear type are defined in the regulations implementing the BSAI FMP (50 CFR 679).

Historical Information

Original Category (Year added to the LOF)	II (1996)
Original Number of Participants	490
Basis for Original Classification	This fishery was proposed for Category II listing because incidental take of killer whales (transient and resident stocks unknown) was 8% of the stock’s PBR. However, population estimates of both stocks were known to be biased low (because estimates were based on direct counts) and NOAA Fisheries had good estimates of incidental take in this fishery as a result of 60% observer coverage. Therefore, the levels of take were not thought to have a significant effect on the population and the fishery was listed as Category III.
Past Names	AK BSAI groundfish trawl (until 2004)
Species/stocks historically documented as killed or injured (but not currently on the list)	Dall's porpoise, AK; Humpback whale, Central North Pacific; Humpback whale, Western North Pacific; Ringed seal, AK;

Timeline of Changes

2021	Removed humpback whale (Central North Pacific), humpback whale (Western North Pacific) and ringed seal (AK).
2020	Removed Dall’s porpoise (AK).
2019	Added the Bristol Bay, Eastern Bering Sea and Eastern Chukchi Sea stocks of beluga whale.
2015	Estimated number of participants updated from 95 to 102.
2013	Added the following stocks to the list of species/stocks killed/injured in this fishery: ringed seal (AK) (M/SI documented in 2008 and 2009); bearded seal (AK) (M/SI documented in 2007, 2008, 2009, and 2010); Northern fur seal (Eastern Pacific) (M/SI documented in 2007, 2008, and 2010). Removed two stocks from the list of species/stocks killed/injured in this fishery: killer whale (Eastern North Pacific, Gulf of AK, AI, and BS transient) (no M/I since 2003) and minke whale (AK) (no M/I since 2000).
2010	Removed the superscript "1" after humpback whale (Central North Pacific) and humpback whale (Western North Pacific). While there are known historical interactions with these stocks, these interactions are not the basis for classifying the fishery as a Category II fishery (i.e., the level of serious injury and mortality of these stocks in the ‘‘BSAI Pollock trawl’’ fishery is below 1 percent of the stocks’ PBR levels). The continued inclusion of the superscript following these stocks in this fishery on Table 1 was a typographical error.
2009	Estimated number of participants updated from 120 to 95.
2006	Added the following species/stocks to list of species/stocks incidentally killed/injured in this fishery to update the stocks associated with the fisheries delineated fisheries in 2004: harbor seal (Bering Sea), Dall's porpoise (AK), spotted seal (AK), ribbon seal (AK), and minke whale (AK) Changed the name of the killer whale transient stock from “Eastern North Pacific transient” to "Eastern North Pacific, GOA, Aleutian Islands, and Bering Sea transient" to reflect the stock name in the 2005 SAR. Deleted killer whale (Eastern North Pacific resident) from list of species/stocks incidentally killed/injured in this fishery. Since the 2005 LOF, NOAA Fisheries performed genetic testing on biopsy samples of killer whales incidentally killed/injured in this fishery and determined that the fishery only interacts with the transient stock of killer whales. Added a superscript “1” after humpback whale (Central North Pacific), humpback whale (Western North Pacific), killer whale (Eastern North Pacific, GOA, Aleutian Islands, and Bering Sea transient) and Steller sea lion (Western U.S.), indicating that takes of these stocks are driving the classification of the fishery.
2005	Elevated to Category II based on interactions with Steller sea lions (Western U.S. stock), killer whales (Eastern North Pacific resident and transient stocks), and humpback whales (Central and Western North Pacific stocks). Estimated serious injury and mortality of Steller sea lions (Western U.S. stock) was 2.5 animals/year, or 1.2% of PBR (PBR=209); estimated serious injury and mortality of killer whales (Eastern North Pacific resident stock) was 0.6 animals/year, or 8.33% of PBR (PBR=7.2); estimated serious injury and mortality of killer whales (Eastern North Pacific transient stock) was 0.6 animals/year, or 21.43% of PBR (PBR=2.8); estimated serious injury and mortality of humpback whales (Central North Pacific stock) was 0.3 animals/year, or 4.05% of PBR (PBR=7.4); estimated serious injury and mortality of humpback whales (Western North Pacific stock) was 0.3 animals/year, or 42.86% of PBR (PBR=0.7).
2004	The “AK BSAI Pollock trawl” fishery was split from the Category III "AK Bering Sea and Aleutian Islands Groundfish trawl" fishery. The newly delineated fishery was listed as a Category III until the completion of analyses of serious injury and mortality in the new fishery, with an estimated 120 participants. The list of marine mammal species/stocks incidentally killed/injured in the larger fishery was also delineated to correspond to the more discrete fisheries listed for the first time in 2004. The list of species/stocks incidentally killed/injured in the “AK BSAI Pollock trawl” fishery included: Steller sea lion (Western U.S.), Killer whale (Eastern North Pacific resident), killer whale (Eastern North Pacific transient), humpback whale (Central North Pacific), and humpback whale (Western North Pacific).
Changes on the LOF when the “AK BSAI pollock trawl” fishery was included in the larger “AK BSAI groundfish trawl” fishery
2003	NOAA Fisheries proposed to elevate this fishery to Category II, but did not elevate the fishery at that time based on public comments and the fact that this fishery is made up of a diverse group of trawl fisheries targeting different groundfish. NOAA Fisheries stated its intent to propose fishery delineations within this fishery to accurately reflect the fishing regimes, and evaluate incidental take, in the 2004 LOF. Added fin whale (Northeast Pacific) to the list of species/stocks killed/injured in this fishery because this stock is known to interact with the fishery and was inadvertently omitted from lists of species in the past. NOAA Fisheries proposed to deleted harbor seals (Gulf of Alaska) from the list, but decided not to do so after verifying that the species range overlapped with the fishery range. Estimated number of participants updated from 166 to 157.
2001	Added humpback whale (Central North Pacific) and humpback whale (Western North Pacific) to the list of species/stocks killed/injured in this fishery based on the mortality of a single whale in 1998. The stock identification for the whale was uncertain; therefore, the mortality was attributed to both the Central and Western North Pacific stocks. Estimated number of participants updated from 193 to 166.
1999	Estimated number of participants updated from 186 to 193.
1998	Estimated number of participants updated from 490 to 186.