By Margaret Bauman
Alaska Journal of Commerce

Federal fisheries managers, responding to concerns over rapidly rising halibut harvests by Alaska's charter boat owners, have agreed to dialogue with the International Pacific Halibut Commission over how to resolve the issue.

The North Pacific Fishery Management Council, meeting in Anchorage voted Dec. 8 to send a letter to the IPHC, stating that if the commission decides to cut the bag limit, it should do so by considering options which would do the least damage to the charter fleet.

The IPHC is a joint U.S.-Canadian commission that regulates the halibut fishery

The council is also considering a moratorium on charter vessel licenses and long-term solutions, but final action is still months away.

The council's action came in the aftermath of two days of testimony and an announcement from the IPHC that it is considering cutting the catch limit dramatically in Southeast Alaska.

Among those testifying for the commercial fishing industry were Mark Vinsel, executive director of United Fishermen of Alaska in Juneau, and Linda Behnken, executive director of the Alaska Longline Fishermen's Association in Sitka.

UFA, whose membership includes many halibut fishermen, urged the federal panel to impose a bag limit on the charter industry. “The overage in area 2C (Southeast Alaska) represents up to 680,000 pounds, or approximately $2.7 million in ex-vessel value to fishermen; and the overage in Area 3A (the Gulf of Alaska) represents 300,000 pounds or $1.2 million in exvessel value,” Vinsel said. Ex-vessel value is the price paid to fishermen when they deliver their harvest.

“Monetary value lost to commercial harvesters is huge, but its overshadowed by the fundamental fact that the rampant and unchecked growth of the charter halibut fishery is putting the good name of Alaska fisheries management, this council and Alaska seafood at risk,” Vinsel said.

Behnken told the council that the problem, as she sees is it, the rapidly expanding halibut charter harvest in Southeast Alaska and the difficulty of accurately forecasting that harvest. “The problem can not be addressed by re-allocating halibut from the commercial to the charter sector, nor can it fairly be addressed by imposing bag limits on all recreational fishermen,” Behnken said.

Behnken urged the council to enter into dialogue with the IPHC to help resolve the problem.

The council also received extensive correspondence regarding growth in the charter boat harvests, from harvesters like Tom McLaughlin of the Seafood Producers Cooperative, the oldest and largest fisherman-owned cooperative in the nation. The SPC urges the council to take control of the fishing by implementing a one fish bag limit for charter clients, establish resource management accountability within the charter fishery, and impose the moratorium (on charter vessel licenses) — but recognize that a moratorium will not address the reallocation issue,” McLaughlin said.

The SPC further identified individual fishing quotas for charter operators as a long-term solution, noting that since the IFQ program went into effect for commercial fishermen, they had not exceeded their quota.

The council also heard from a number of those in the charter boat industry, including Frank and Jan Casey of Alaska Wildrose charters in Clam Gulch.

“Sport fishermen need a fair and equitable allocation of the resource with regards to the highest and best use for the American public's benefit,” the Caseys said in written testimony. “Wastage and bycatch mortality resulting from commercial operations need to be part of the solution. Sports fishermen need fair and equitable representation on the council and advisory panel for the recreational fishery, which includes both the charter recreational/sport and the non-charter recreational/sport fishery.”

Christopher Hashiguchi, owner of LegaSea Fishing charters in Sitka, said he felt the charter fishing industry does not have adequate representation on the federal council. The number of charter operations currently running in Alaska demands that a minimum of at least one representative for the charter fishing industry be on the council, he said.

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