1995 Halibut Landing Report No. 1

Northwest Treaty Tribes Fishery in Area 2A

Northwest treaty Indian tribes were allocated a total allowable catch of 182,000 pounds in subarea 2A-1 (northern Washington coast) in 1995. Of this total, 11,000 pounds are reserved for ceremonial and subsistence purposes, leaving 171,000 pounds for the commercial fishery. The commercial catch as of April 17, 1995 in Area 2A-1 was 123,000 pounds leaving 48,000 pounds remaining in the catch limit. Landings are continuing on a restricted basis, and an unrestrictive fishery may be considered at a later time.

Area 2A Licenses

Licenses for the commercial fishery will not be issued for license applications postmarked after April 30. The commercial fishery includes the directed fishery and incidental commercial catch fishery concurrent with the salmon troll fishery. An announcement will be made in mid-May on fishing period limits for the directed commercial fishery scheduled for July 5 .

Area 2B Canadian Commercial Fishery Update

Canadian halibut landings from Area 2B total 1.7 million pounds through April 17, leaving 7.82 million pounds of the catch limit to be caught. The fishery will continue until all IVQs have been filled, or November 15, whichever is earlier.

Bering Sea Clearance

In the Bering Sea, the International Pacific Halibut Commission regulations are more restrictive than the IFQ regulations. A vessel may obtain a clearance for only ONE regulatory area at a time. Therefore, the vessel must unload the fish before fishing in the second regulatory area. More information on vessel clearances is attached.

Alaskan Commercial Fishery Update

It is estimated that the following catches and number of landings were made in the Alaskan IFQ fishery through April 14, 1995. No Community Development Quota (CDQ) landings have been made.

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