Meateater- Trawl Bycatch

Well this crawler business IS affecting the fish I catch/eat. In the short period of time I've been fishing Kodiak (most years since 2019, so not even talking 'the good old days') there is an observable and regulatory difference. King salmon this year is emergency order of 1 (down from 2). In addition to additional days added for zero halibut fishing. Halibut used to be 2 with one over either 31" or 32" which was doable, they lowered it to 28" and those were only occasionally caught (plenty of 28-32" though), this year it looks like that is reduced to 27".

Just so other people know, those halibut regs and no fish days are for charters only. Private boats aren't effected.....yet, but its only a matter of time.



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Meanwhile, king salmon fishing across most of southcentral and northwestern Alaska is and has been closed, minus a few hatchery fisheries, for the last handful of years due to runs not meeting minimum escapement goals.

Halibut and groundfish IFQ quotas, the share of these fish that go to commercial fisherman, are at an all-time low this year due to population declines.

Crabs live on the bottom of the ocean, in case anyone was wondering...
 
Maybe some time but it would be Louisiana no one cooks better food than the cajuns. I guess as long as i can get crawfish shipped here i will be fine and some oysters. Do we still get crab since they are caught in traps?
Several of the Bering Sea crab seasons have been cancelled or quotas have been reduced so much that they’re hardly worth fishing - there’s one pretty obvious big flashing red light as to why…..

No one hates the trawling industry more than the Bering Sea crab guys.
 
Several of the Bering Sea crab seasons have been cancelled or quotas have been reduced so much that they’re hardly worth fishing - there’s one pretty obvious big flashing red light as to why…..

No one hates the trawling industry more than the Bering Sea crab guys.
Well then f those trawling guys. I really like king and snow crab.
 
Don't forget that trawlers were dragging during the king salmon "good old days." Orcas and other marine mammals are the primary cause for king salmon declines - https://www.pnas.org/doi/10.1073/pnas.1910930116. "Killer whales are estimated to currently consume over 2.5 million adult Chinook salmon each year."

We will not cull orcas or other marine mammals so we must reduce human mortality. Commercial and sport salmon fisheries have been closed and its way past time for trawl bycatch of salmon to be reduced or ideally eliminated. Trawl bycatch of halibut, crab and other bottom fish is entirely unacceptable.
 
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