Alaska salmon troller Bay of Pillars in Chatham Strait. Credit: NOAA Fisheries
A Southeast Alaska trolling vessel. Credit ASMI
AK Peninsula/Aleutian Islands Salmon Drift Gillnet 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.
Current Classification on the List of Fisheries
Category |
II |
|
Estimated Number of Participants |
162 |
|
Target Species |
salmon |
|
Applicable Take Reduction Plans |
None |
|
Observer Coverage |
Observer coverage is calculated by the percentage of estimated sets observed (in South Unimak area only). Observer coverage was 4% in 1990. The fishery was not observed from 1991-2005. |
|
Marine Mammal Species/Stocks Killed or Injured |
Dall’s porpoise, AK; Harbor seal, GOA; Harbor porpoise, GOA; Northern fur seal, Eastern Pacific. |
^ 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).
1 Indicates the stock or species is driving the classification of the fishery.
Basis for Current Classification
Based on analogy to other Category II AK drift gillnet fisheries that use similar gear and operate in the same manner as this fishery.
Distribution
The fishery operates from mid-June to mid-September in two districts north of the Alaska Peninsula (Northern and Northwestern) and four districts south of the AK Peninsula (Unimak, Southwestern, Southcentral, and Southeastern).
Gear Description
This fishery uses drift gillnet gear with soak times of 2-5 hours. The gear is set during the day and night, with 3-8 sets per day.
Management
This drift gillnet fishery is managed by the AK Department of Fish and Game as a limited entry fishery with gear restrictions on the mesh and net size, and area closures.
Historical Information
|
Original Category (Year added to the LOF) |
II (1996) |
|
Original Number of Participants |
107 |
|
Basis for Original Classification |
This fishery was categorized as a Category II by analogy with other category II AK drift gillnet fisheries, and because of inadequate observer data since 1991. The low levels of observer coverage across all fisheries were inadequate to determine mortality and serious injury levels of marine mammals across all fisheries, but available data suggested that mortality and serious injury may have exceeded 10% of the Potential Biological Removal (PBR) level for some stocks. Known Dall's porpoise mortality and serious injury was 28 animals/year, or 1.8% of PBR (PBR=1,556). Also, level of harbor porpoise take documented in logbooks was more than 10% across all fisheries, and because logbook reports represent an underestimate of total take, the total impact to harbor porpoises may be more than 1% in this fishery. |
|
Past Names |
AK Peninsula/Aleutians salmon drift gillnet (until 1999) |
|
Species/stocks historically documented as killed or injured (but not currently on the list) |
N/A |
Timeline of Changes
|
2009 |
|
|
2006 |
|
|
2001 |
|
|
1999 |
|
|
1998 |
|
Alaska salmon troller Bay of Pillars in Chatham Strait. Credit: NOAA Fisheries
A Southeast Alaska trolling vessel. Credit ASMI
