The research section provides the background analyses and studies needed by the Commission. The section, coupled with the Commission's data processing section, also produces basic economic data on Alaska's fisheries which can be used to address many policy questions and produces standard or specialized reports to serve the data needs of users outside the agency.
In 1995, the Commission's research staff was involved in many projects. These projects included efforts to monitor trends in Alaska's fisheries, to evaluate the need for access controls in particular fisheries, and to provide other agencies and users with needed data and analyses.
The staff produced analyses on issues for the Legislature, the Office of the Governor, the Alaska Department of Fish and Game (ADF&G), and the Alaska Board of Fisheries (BOF). In addition, the staff answered numerous information and data requests from the general public. The following paragraphs provide brief highlights of major 1995 events for which the research section provided analyses and data support.
In 1995, the legislature amended the Limited Entry Act to allow the Commission to restrict the fishing capacity authorized under limited entry permits in newly limited fisheries. The legislation, CSHB 107 (FSH), amended portions of AS 16.43.270 and AS 16.43.150 and became effective on September 14, 1995. The bill was supported by the Southeast Alaska Dungeness Crab Association as a means to develop a more effective permanent limited entry program in their fishery.
Each year, the Commission receives petitions to limit entry into additional fisheries, as more fisheries face the threat of increased commercial fishing pressure. In recent years, the Commission has denied a high percentage of the petitions received. In some cases petitions have been denied because the Commission felt that the existing limited entry program would not do an effective job of controlling the growth of fishing capacity and effort after limitation.
Alaska's limited entry law, AS 16.43, was written with the salmon fisheries in mind. The law essentially provided the authority to limit the number of permit holders (skippers) in a fishery. It worked well in fisheries where the gear or vessel size had been restricted by the Board of Fisheries prior to limitation and where participating operations were of a more full-time nature. In such cases, the harvesting operations in the fishery tended to be similar to each other and a program that limited the number of skippers did a reasonable job of containing the growth in fishing capacity and effort.
In fisheries where there are a wide range of vessel sizes and types of operations, and a broad mix of participants from small part-timers to more full-time operations, simply limiting the number of skippers will not do an adequate job of controlling the growth in fishing capacity. If a permit is issued to a skipper of a small part-time operation, that person can simply upgrade his/her fishing operation or sell the permit to someone who will run a bigger more full-time operation.
For this reason, the Commission had been reluctant to use the limited entry program in fisheries where such conditions exist. This new amendment to the limited entry law should provide the Commission with the flexibility to design programs that do a better job of containing post-limitation growth in fishing capacity. The law allows the Commission to adopt regulations restricting the fishing capacity associated with a limited entry permit based upon an applicant's past performance in the fishery.
In 1995, the Commission made decisions to limit several fisheries and was petitioned to limit others. National Marine Fisheries Service's individual fishing quota (IFQ) program for sablefish and halibut also began in 1995. These new programs and the efforts of the North Pacific Fishery Management Council to rationalize the fisheries under their jurisdiction may lead to "spillover effects" and increases in effort in some of Alaska's unlimited fisheries in the near future. The following is a brief synopsis of new fishery limitations in 1995.
In 1994, the Commission proposed regulations to limit the Northern Southeast herring spawn-on-kelp pound fishery which includes the area of the Hoonah Sound fishery and the Southern Southeast herring spawn-on-kelp pound fishery which includes the area of the Craig-Klawock fishery. These proposals were in response to petitions.
The public comment period on the limitation proposals ended on January 3, 1995. Based on the Commission's studies, ADF&G's support of limitation, and public testimony, the Commission adopted regulations to limit these two fisheries. Eligibility for interim entry permits was restricted to those who participated as permit holders and commercially harvested the resource prior to January 1, 1995.
The maximum number for the Northern Southeast spawn-on-kelp pound fishery was set at 109 and the maximum number for the Southern Southeast spawn-on-kelp pound fishery was set at 229 permits. The Commission hopes to propose point system regulations for these fisheries in 1996.
Following passage of the new amendment to the limited entry law, the Commission proposed limitation for the Southeast Alaska Dungeness Crab fisheries. Since January 2, 1992 these fisheries had been under a temporary moratorium on new entrants. The moratorium would have expired automatically on January 2, 1996 if the Commission had not acted.
The Commission's proposal included alternatives for a "tiered-pot level" limited entry system that would tie the number of pots a person could use to a measure of the person's past effort in the fishery during the eligibility period. The "tiered-pot level" concept was originally suggested by some Southeast Alaska Dungeness crab fishers. The regulations were proposed under the authority of the new amendment to the limited entry law cited above.
At the public hearings, most of the persons who testified suggested limited entry was needed and a return to open access would be disastrous to the fishery. The Department of Fish and Game also supported a permanent limitation.
Nevertheless, the fleet remained divided on how best to contain the potential increase in fishing capacity after limited entry. Some fishers supported different forms of the tiered-pot limitation proposals. Others felt all of the permits should contain exactly the same use-privilege. These latter fishers supported a standard limitation program with the Board of Fisheries lowering the overall pot limit to help contain the growth in fishing capacity.
At the end of the public comment period, the Commission met and considered the public testimony and available data. Based on public testimony, Commission research, and Department of Fish and Game support of limitation, Commission adopted regulations limiting the fisheries. The Commission established a maximum number of 308 for the Southeast Alaska Dungeness crab pot fishery, a maximum number of 3 for the Southeast Alaska Dungeness crab dive fishery, and a maximum number of 8 for the Southeast Alaska Dungeness crab ring net fishery.
In the pot fishery, the Commission also adopted a slightly modified version of one of their original tiered-pot level proposals. Beginning with the 1997 season, Southeast Alaska Dungeness pot permits will be issued in one of 4 tier classes: 75 pots, 150 pots, 225 pots, and 300 pots. The holder of a pot permit will be able to utilize up to the number of pots allowed under the tier class on the holder's permit.
In 1994 and 1995, the Commission received several letters from Prince William Sound sablefish fishers seeking limitation for the fishery. In the Fall of 1994, William R. Bechtol, who was then the Regional Groundfish Biologist for the Department of Fish and Game, also wrote a letter to the Commission concerning the immediate need for limited entry.
These letters all pointed to a potential dramatic increase in effort in 1995. The North Pacific Fishery Management Council's IFQ program for sablefish was scheduled to begin in 1995 and the Prince William Sound (PWS) sablefish fishery was the only remaining actively managed sablefish fishery that was still open access. The letters predicted a large increase in effort and participation in 1995.
The predictions about the 1995 season proved to be true as the sablefish harvest nearly doubled the harvest in the previous year. The number of fishing operations, vessels, and permit holders more than doubled. The upper bound of the guideline harvest range was exceeded by 31% in a short 48 hour opening.
Following the 1995 season, the Commission proposed regulations to limit the fishery. A public comment period on the proposals was held from September 1, 1995 to October 5, 1995. Public hearings were held in several communities.
At the end of the public comment period, the Commission met and considered the public testimony and available data. Based on the public testimony, Commission research, and the Department of Fish and Game's support of limitation, the Commission adopted regulations limiting the fisheries. The qualification date for the Prince William Sound sablefish fisheries is January 1, 1995.
The Prince William Sound sablefish fishery has been primarily a longline fishery, but landings have also been made on pot and trawl gear. Moreover, other gear types could potentially be used under regulations of the Alaska Board of Fisheries. The Commission decided to limit the fishery as three fisheries based on gear type.
The Prince William Sound fixed gear sablefish fishery was limited with a maximum number of 49. The fixed gear definition includes longlines and any other legal gear that uses a fishing hook. The Prince William Sound sablefish net gear fishery was limited with a maximum number of one. The net gear definition includes trawls and any other legal net gear. The Commission also limited the Prince William Sound sablefish pot gear fishery with a maximum number of one.
In addition, the Commission passed regulations limiting the fishing capacity of the permits issued for the Prince William Sound sablefish fishery. These regulations (20 AAC 05.779-780) were passed under the authority of the new amendment to the limited entry law cited above.
Beginning with the 1996 season, permits will be restricted to one of four vessel length categories. The vessel length categories are 35 feet, 50 feet, 60 feet, and 90 feet. An applicant will be restricted to a vessel that is no longer than the maximum length allowed under the vessel class shown on the applicant's permit.
The Commission was concerned about limiting entry into the fishery without these additional constraints. At the time of limitation, there were no gear constraints or vessel size constraints in the dominant longline fishery. A similar situation existed in the Northern Southeast Inside sablefish longline fishery prior to limitation. After limitation the fishery was immediately inundated with larger vessels fishing greater amounts of gear and ADF&G was unable to manage the fishery to keep the harvest below the upper bound of the guideline harvest range.
Both the Commission and ADF&G hope that the new vessel category regulations will help to prevent this deleterious growth of fishing capacity and make the Prince William Sound fishery more manageable for resource conservation. If the new regulations achieve this purpose, the Prince William Sound sablefish limited entry program should be effective at helping to control fishing effort.
Beginning in 1995, the Commission began to receive petitions from pot shrimp fishers throughout Southeast Alaska. Fishers were concerned that both resource conservation and their economic livelihoods were threatened by a dramatic increase in fishing pressure on the resource. The increase in fishing pressure had led to short seasons and emergency closures in some traditional fishing areas.
A new "heads-on" shrimp market, floating processors, and higher prices due to reduced world supply were leading to a rapid expansion of effort. ADF&G agreed that effort would probably continue to grow if the fishery was not limited. ADF&G indicated that they were receiving lots of calls from fishers outside of Alaska who wanted to come to Southeast Alaska to get into the pot shrimp fishery. A court decision had allocated a large share of the available resources in Washington to Treaty tribes and as a result many fishers had been displaced and intended to enter fisheries in Alaska. For these reasons and others, ADF&G anticipated continued increases in pressure if the fishery was not limited.
The Commission proposed regulations to limit the fishery and held public hearings throughout Southeast Alaska over the September 1, 1995 through November 3, 1995 time period. The Commission's original proposal was for a maximum number of 186 which reflected the number of participants in 1994. Based on public testimony, the Commission decided to delay entry limitation until 1996.
The Commission adopted a maximum number of 234 and a qualification date of January 1, 1996. The maximum number may be revised upward to reflect the number of legal 1995 participants after 1995 catch data have been finalized and questionable landings have been adjudicated.
Under AS 16.43, the Commission must develop a hardship ranking system or point system to determine who will receive a limited entry permit in a newly limited fishery. In 1994, the Commission worked on point system alternatives for the Cook Inlet Dungeness crab pot and ring net fisheries. A regulatory proposal was made in the December of 1994 and public hearings were held in January of 1995. On September 25, 1995, the Commission adopted a point system for the fishery. The application period for permanent permits will be held during 1996.
The Commission's research staff is currently working on point system alternatives for all of the recently limited fisheries. Point system options for most of the fisheries should be proposed for public comment sometime during 1996.
Development of a viable fisher-funded fleet reduction program will depend upon a satisfactory resolution of some of the issues raised by the Alaska Supreme Court in Johns v. State, CFEC, 758 P.2d 1256. During 1995, the Commission maintained its dialogue with individuals and gear groups interested in gear reductions. However, no new optimum number studies were undertaken.
Other ideas for consolidations into lower cost operations were discussed during the year. Some Southeast Alaska Dungeness crab pot fishers favor developing a "stacking provision" for the new tiered-pot limited entry system. Under a stacking provision, a person would be able to hold more than one permit and fish a number of pots commensurate with the sum of the pots allowed under each permit as long as the person did not exceed the maximum number of pots allowed by the Alaska Board of Fisheries.
Under such a provision, the number of use-privileges in the fishery would remain the same but the number of fishing operations could change frequently as permits are purchased and sold. Draft legislation authorizing such a regulation may be introduced in 1996.
The research staff also produced monthly permit value estimates for the Department of Commerce and Economic Development and other users and produced basic information tables on many of Alaska's commercial fisheries. The research and data processing sections also worked to produce reports on Alaska's fisheries which were used in the National Marine Fisheries Service (NMFS) publication Fisheries of The United States, 1994.
During the year the Commission's research staff produced many ad hoc reports for the Commission and other analyses requested by the Office of the Governor, the Department of Fish and Game, the Board of Fisheries and Alaska's Legislature. The following is a listing of non-confidential reports and publications that the Commission staff members authored or co-authored during 1995.