Important Data About Alaska Salmon Fishery

In Alaska, salmon come first. Alaska has a long and successful track record of managing and preserving its abundant salmon resources. Record salmon runs with an average yearly catch of 165 million salmon is the explanation of this successful approach.

Nearly 95% of all commercially caught salmon in the US are cropped in Alaska. Alaska is the top producer of wild, high-value salmon, producing nearly 80 percent of the planet supply of king, sockeye, and coho. Alaska’s commercial salmon fishery is essential to the Alaskan economy and the Alaskan way of life.

Each year, the salmon industry provides thousands of roles and many millions of bucks to the state’s economy. Commercial fishing is critical to communities and fishing
families across the state.

Alaska’s fishing industry leads the state in providing 47% of private sector roles, and is 2nd only to the oil industry in providing revenue to the state. In 2002, the exvessel value for combined fisheries totaled $955 million with $162 million from salmon.

Salmon fishing permits are offered to individuals, not corporations, through 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 the same gear type and area. This creates a fishery made up of many individuals and families.

Three main gear types catch Alaska salmon: trolling, gillnetting, and purse seining. All commercial salmon fishing boats are relatively tiny vessels ; averaging 30 to fifty feet.

Trollers use long trolling poles to pull or troll 2 to 4 deep weighted lines thru the water, each with 8 - 12 leaders attached. At the end of each leader there is a lure or baited hook. Ship size varies from little skiffs to vessels of 50 feet or more with lots ranging between 25 to 40 feet.

Trollers primarily 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 fine 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 suspended from a float line at the surface and a weighted lead line along the submerged bottom edge. Nets vary in length from 9 hundred to 1800 feet long. The net’s mesh openings are just large enough to allow an adult fish head to get thru and become trapped at the gills.

There are two sorts 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 thirty to forty feet. Gillnetters primarily harvest sockeye, mate 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 ship thru a highpowered hydraulic block.

Purse seiners are not authorized north of the Alaska Peninsula; boat size is limited to 58 feet. Purse Seiners crop especially pink salmon close to the coast and close to fresh water spawning grounds where runs are highly concentrated.

To get more recipes and cooking ideas, visit cooking101.org and while you are at it, you might also want to have a look at fried salmon fillets.

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