Web posted Sunday, June 10, 2007

Strong harvest predicted as Bristol Bay salmon fishery gets underway

By Margaret Bauman
Alaska Journal of Commerce

Bristol Bay's sockeye salmon fishery is up and running, with an anticipated harvest of 26.3 million reds, out of some 34.4 million fish expected to return to the bay.

That forecast is 14 percent higher than the previous 10-year average of total runs of 30.2 million reds, with a run range of 17.8 million to 43.4 million fish. State biologists said all Bristol Bay systems are expected to exceed their minimum spawning escapement goals.

A run of 34.4 million sockeye can potentially produce a total harvest of 26.3 million fish, if escapement goals are met for all managed stocks and the commercial fishing industry is capable of taking the surplus fish, biologists said. A harvest of this size would be 40 percent higher than the previous 10-year mean harvest of 18.7 million reds.

The forecasted run to each district and river system is as follows: 11.54 million reds to Naknek-Kvichak District, including 3.88 million to Kvichak River; 2.03 million to Alagnak River; 5.64 million to Naknek River; 9.20 million to Egegik District; 4.18 million to Ugashik District; 8.9 million to Nushagak District, including 5.85 million to Wood River, 1.87 million to Nushagak River and 1.2 million to Igushik River; and 0.59 million to Togiak District.

The 2006 harvest of Bristol Bay sockeyesalmon was valued at about $91 million. Adding in a chinook harvest of 106,200 fish valued at $1.3 million, a chum harvest of 2 million fish valued at $1.3 million, a pink harvest of 142,500 fish valued at $30,000, and a silver harvest of 53,150 fish valued at $165,000, the fishery as a whole was worth nearly $94 million, according to state fisheries reports.

The 2006 inshore Bristol Bay sockeye salmon run of slightly more than 43.1 million fish, was the ninth largest in-shore run since 1952, and 23 percent above the 20-year average. The harvest of nearly 29 million sockeye was the eighth largest since 1893.

The Egegik District was the only district that came in below forecast, dropping by 3 percent. The Naknek-Kvichak District sockeye salmon run was 18 percent above, Togiak District was 61 percent above, Nushagak District was more than double the forecast, coming in at 16 million sockeye, and Ugashik District was 5 percent above.

State fisheries statisticians also said the commercial harvest of approximately 106,000 chinook salmon was the fifth largest in the last 20 years and 51 percent above the 20-year average of 70,000. The chum salmon harvest of approximately 2.1 million fish was the largest in the last 20 years. The coho salmon harvest of approximately 53,000 fish was well below the 20-year average of 103,000.

Margaret Bauman can be reached at margie.bauman@alaskajournal.com.

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