In Alaska, salmon come first. Alaska has a long and successful track record of handling and preserving its abounding salmon resources. Record salmon runs with a recent average annual catch of 165 million salmon is the evidence of this successful approach.
Nearly 95% of all commercially caught salmon in the States are cropped in Alaska. Alaska is the top producer of wild, high-value salmon, producing nearly 80 percent of the world supply of king, sockeye, and coho. Alaska’s commercial salmon fishery is critical to the Alaskan economy and the Alaskan way of life.
Each year, the salmon industry provides thousands of roles and hundreds of bucks to the state’s economy. Commercial fishing is imperative to communities and fishing
families across the state.
Alaska’s fishing industry leads the state in providing 47% of non-public sector jobs, and is 2nd only to the oil industry in providing income to the state. In 2002, the exvessel price for mixed fisheries totaled $955 million with $162 million from salmon.
Salmon fishing allows are given out to people, not firms, thru the “limited entry permit system”. The total number of available allows for each fishery is strictly limited. Fishermen may not own more than one salmon permit for a similar gear type and area. This creates a fishery made from many individuals and families.
Three main gear types catch Alaska salmon : trolling, gillnetting, and purse seining. All commercial salmon fishing boats are relatively small vessels; averaging thirty to 50 feet.
Trollers use long trolling poles to tug or troll two to four deep weighted lines thru the water, each with 8 - 12 leaders attached. At the end of each leader there’s a lure or baited hook. Ship size varies from small skiffs to vessels of 50 feet or more with many ranging between 25 to 40 feet.
Trollers essentially target king, coho, and pink salmon as they enter Alaskan waters on their way to the spawning grounds. Trollers catch a relatively low volume of top quality fish. The fish they catch are bright and powerful from fresh ocean waters. They are regularly
sold dressed, or filleted in the fresh or fresh frozen market.
Gillnetters set curtain-like nets in the water postponed from a float line at the surface and a weighted lead line along the submerged bottom edge. Nets alter in length from 900 to 1800 feet long. The net’s mesh openings are just large enough to permit an adult fish head to get through and become caught at the gills.
There are 2 kinds of gillnets; driftnets that are free floating from boats, and setnets that have one end attached to the coast. Ship size is restricted to 32 feet or less in Bristol Bay ; otherwise, the average range is 30 to 40 feet. Gillnetters essentially crop sockeye, chum and coho.
Purse Seiners employ a huge floating net, pulled and set in circle by a power skiff, to surround schooling salmon. The weighted “purse line” at bottom of the net is drawn closed to contain the fish. The net full of fish is then gathered to the boat through a highpowered hydraulic block.
Purse seiners are not authorized north of the Alaska Peninsula; boat size is restricted to 58 feet. Purse Seiners crop especially pink salmon near the shoreline and close to fresh water spawning grounds where runs are highly concentrated.
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