Reported trawling too close to Kuskokwim Bay draws industry response

Kuskokwim Bay (From NOAA ShoreZone)

Coastal communities adjacent nan rima of nan Kuskokwim River person expressed interest astir bottom-trawling vessels operating successful adjacent proximity to wherever salmon participate nan river. But trawl manufacture leaders opportunity that this is thing new.

In caller weeks, posts wide shared connected a celebrated Facebook group captious of nan trawl manufacture person raised issues pinch vessels apparently conscionable a fewer miles offshore. The posts connected nan STOP Alaskan Trawler Bycatch page featured marine postulation maps showing nan location of nan trawlers, pinch one post reading “six trawlers correct extracurricular nan rima of Kuskokwim.”

Chris Woodley, executive head of Groundfish Forum, a trawl manufacture relation that represents 17 catcher-processor vessels operating successful nan Bering Sea and Aleutian Islands regions, testified astir nan rumor earlier nan North Pacific Fishery Management Council during its June 7 meeting in Kodiak.

“Over nan past 2 days, I’ve been proceeding concerns coming from stakeholders from nan Yukon-Kuskokwim region regarding nan beingness of trawl vessels sportfishing southwest of Kuskokwim Bay, and concerns regarding those fisheries’ impacts upon occidental Alaska salmon,” Woodley said. “This is simply a nationalist cognition issue. What we person been proceeding successful nan past, and this year, is that boats are sportfishing successful nan rima of nan river. And that is conscionable simply not true.”

Woodley told nan assembly that nan vessels were operating successful afloat compliance pinch national regulations and that nan maps could beryllium misleading, making vessels look person to statement than they really were.

According to Woodley, nan vessels flagged connected Facebook were sportfishing good extracurricular of an established 8.2 cardinal acre conservation zone off-limits to bottommost trawling. The area encompasses nan entirety of Kuskokwim Bay and extends to buffer adjacent coastal communities.

“In nan spring, a constricted number of our vessels food for yellowfin sole successful nan national waters, astir 25 miles southwest of Kipnuk,” Woodley said.

David Bayes, a Homer-based fisheries advocator who besides runs a halibut charter company, says that nan beingness of nan conservation area that Woodley referred to doesn’t needfully easiness concerns astir threats to Kuskokwim River salmon stocks.

“The point that group get concerned astir is nan food don’t person fences down there,” Bayes said. “So if personification is dragging correct adjacent to nan residence zone, they mightiness not beryllium successful it, but nan food theoretically would spell backmost and forth. And it’s not for illustration nan food conscionable enactment successful 1 spot.”

Bayes is 1 of nan moderators for STOP Alaskan Trawler Bycatch, nan Facebook page wherever galore of nan concerns person been posted.

Beyond nan nonstop effect connected fish, Bayes besides says nan ecological harm to nan area from trawling can’t beryllium overstated.

“They do person a batch of residence damage. So each their worldly is difficult connected nan bottommost trawl,” Bayes said. “We’ve heard from crews talking astir nan corals getting mashed down twelvemonth aft year. They utilized to get large chunks, but now they get smaller and smaller, and now there’s nary astatine all. So you tin ideate nan residence broadside of that.”

According to Woodley, nan bottom-trawl vessels operating adjacent nan rima of nan Kuskokwim person yet to scoop up a azygous protected salmon successful nan area this year.

“In 2024, location person been zero incidental drawback of chum salmon and zero incidental drawback of chinook salmon successful this fishery,” Woodley said. “These bycatch information are confirmed by 2 federally trained fishery observers connected committee our vessels, 100% of nan time.”

However, nan groundfish fleet that Woodley represents is responsible for only a small percentage of Alaska’s salmon bycatch. The vessels are alternatively responsible for nan immense mostly of halibut bycatch in Alaska waters, a type which coastal communities for illustration Kipnuk trust connected arsenic a nutrient source.

“The rates successful this area are overmuch little than immoderate spot other successful nan Bering Sea. I judge astatine this constituent we have, I want to say, 7 metric tons of [halibut] bycatch for nan play successful this area,” Woodley said.

Following Woodley’s grounds successful Kodiak, assembly personnel Andy Mezirow asked whether nan Groundfish Forum head had immoderate ideas for changing nationalist perception. Woodley didn’t person a nonstop answer.

“This is becoming a benignant of an yearly thing, some for nan Togiak fishery arsenic good arsenic for this fishery, and we’re conscionable trying to do our champion successful this process wherever a batch of these issues are raised and concerns are expressed to pass what’s going connected here,” Woodley said.

Beyond his testimony, Woodley didn’t outline a scheme for addressing organization concerns astir trawling successful nan Kuskokwim Bay area astatine nan June 7 meeting. Online, nationalist cognition appears to stay wide skeptical astir nan proximity of trawlers to Kuskokwim salmon.