Browsing through articles relating to todays world I came across this:

https://www.msn.com/en-us/money/markets/...cid=hplocalnews

Perhaps this current situation will give us a look as to what life would like with Alaska catching less of our fish.

And yet we have commercial advisors in GH, WB, and CR all asking WDFW to have a contingency plan in place in case COVID-19 completely pre-empts the recreational fishery for 2020. They want the rec shares to be transferred to "essential" commercial folks fishing to maintain the national food supply.

It...never...ends

If the virus situation remains serious enough that the recreational fishermen are not fishing by say August I think it means that much of the economy will still shut down including such the restaurants. Where are the commercial fleet going to sell there catch.

My understanding is that the Dungeness crab season off the California coast shut down early primarily there was not demand for the crab and the price dropped to a point it was no longer profitable to fish.

Curt

Something else that's being revealed is that most of the world has plenty to eat without an abundance of seafood. I've heard people complain about a lot lately, but the lack of seafood in the stores is not among them. Seafood has become a luxury item, reserved for occasions and times of economic prosperity, neither of which currently exist. The argument that seafood is a staple became ridiculous when the cost per pound for seafoods started to exceed (double or more) the price of beef/pork/chicken/etc. A key characteristic of any "staple" is that it's widely available and affordable.

One thing's for sure: If there's no money to be made, they won't be fishing. Of course, if the NT commercials aren't fishing....

The Tribes will be.......

Quite the chain reaction, from "stay at home" to restaurant closures with staff layoffs, down the chain to fishing boats tied up in port, and deckhands with no jobs either.

The glimmer, I guess, is what I've always known: fishing never looked like a good idea from the point of view of the fish.

Don't worry boys, all the crabs and fish you're not able to go after will not be left to waste: THERE WILL BE FISHING GOING ON!

NOTICE THAT IT'S TAKING PLACE DURING THE REC CLOSURE!


FILING
ORGANIZATION: PUYALLUP TRIBE OF INDIANS
REGULATION #: SCr20-21-4.6
This is a 4.6 regulation notice to harvest without co-manager
agreement.
DATE ADOPTED: 3-26-2020
REGULATIONS (S) None
SUPERCEDED:
CATCH AREA (s): Shellfish Catch reporting area 26D
SPECIAL
MANAGEMENT
AREA: For commercial geoduck diver safety, Geoduck Tracts with active
harvest (to -70’ mllw) may be closed to crabbing Saturdays -
Tuesdays. Crabbing is permitted at -100’ uncorrected and deeper
along the shoreline boundaries of a tract all week long.
FISHERY TYPE: COMMERCIAL
SPECIES: Dungeness Crab (Cancer magister)
UPPER LIMIT: 46,000 pounds
ON/OFF
RESERVATION: OFF
EFFECTIVE DATES April 20, 2020 8:00 AM through official Sunset May 19, 2020 (or
until upper limit is taken)
LEGAL GEAR: 1) Pots, ring nets, and hand operated instruments that do not
Penetrate the shell are the only lawful gear for crab harvest.
DAYS/HOURS: Seven days a week, gear must be worked between official sunrise
and official sunset only.
RECORD KEEPING:1) Landings shall be sold to tribally registered fish buyers and be
recorded on fish receiving tickets.
2) In order for the Puyallup Tribal Shellfish office to maintain
catch and effort information, crab buyers will be contacted for
buying activity.
OTHER 1) Minimum size is 61/4 inches measured across the back at the
widest spot of the shell immediately in front of, but not including
the outside of the tips
2)Harvest of females is prohibited
3)All crab pots must have two escape rings not less than 4 ¼
inches inside diameter. Escape rings must be located on the top
half of the pot. A 3 inch by 5 inch biodegradable cord panel
(natural fiber, maximum thread size 120) or biodegradable loop
attached to the lid hook is also required.
4)Each pot or string of pots must be attached to a surface buoy
that is capable of floating a five pound weight. Buoys attached to
gear used for commercial fishing can be any color or color
combination except red and white. If red and white buoy colors are
used, a minimum of 30% of the surface of the buoy(s) will be
prominently marked with an additional color other than red and
white.
5) Buoys shall be conspicuously marked with the harvester’s
fishing identification number preceded by the letters PUY.
6) Harvesters are limited to fishing 50 pots maximum at any one
time.
7) It will be unlawful for a crab fisher to remove or pull a crab pot
from the water that is not registered by that fisher, without prior
permission from their enforcement program.
8) Fish buyers must withhold a 5% tax from the sale of crab and
remit to the Shellfish Department.
9) Only harvesters who have received the educational outreach
endorsement permit shall be able participate in this harvest.
JUSTIFICATION: HARVEST AVAILABLE RESOURCE. This is a 4.6 regulation
notice to harvest without co-manager agreement.
PUYALLUP TRIBE OF INDIANS
3009 East Portland Ave.
TACOMA, WA 98404

Normally, I would inquire to know just exactly what a "4.6 regulation" is...but the Tribes have been harvesting w/o co-manager agreement for some time now. Nothing new here...other than depletion of the resource, while publicly claiming to value conservation. Wait--that's not new, either!

It is a section of the Shellfish Implementation Plan that allows EITHER a Tribe or the State to open shellfish fisheries without first having reached agreement between the State and all affected Tribes.

I think this is the latest implementation order (if not it explains):

Shellfish Implementation Plan

So will WDFW sell out politically to the commercials, or look to the quick cash from deferred license sales by opening rec fishing?

Impeccable timing!

Great minds must think alike.

Quote:
"It is a section of the Shellfish Implementation Plan that allows EITHER a Tribe or the State to open shellfish fisheries without first having reached agreement between the State and all affected Tribes.

I think this is the latest implementation order (if not it explains):

[/quote]
_________
That may well be, but I wonder if the WDFW have implemented it towards sportfishers in any meaningful way.

After all, from year 2000-2017, in Shellfish Areas 2w and 4 (Pt Townsend to Vashon), the Tribal catch was 8.96 tons more than the State share PER YEAR , not cumulative.

Cumulatively? OK, that's 8.96x16=143.38 tons of Tribal harvest more than the State share over that time period.

Is that 50/50?

But I don't recall any "meaningful" special State opening (either with or w/o Tribal agreement) to equalize that difference.

(My numbers are straight from WDFW and their tribal catch reports)

Actually, this is a serious questions, especially for those who have ben involved in shellfish advisory groups. Has WDFW actually formally indicated that the achievement of a 50:50 split on crab is a high priority? I know what the Court says, but the State and Tribes can agree to whatever they want.

Is this a "usual or accustomed area" for the Puyallup tribe?

Not sure, but this seems pretty far north? Or am I way off?

CATCH AREA (s): Shellfish Catch reporting area 26D

Baywolf, I don't know, but I was referring to tribes that reported catches into 2w and 4, not necessarily the Puyallup.

It's not, because if we take more crab, they take more elk, or if we take more salmon, they won't submit is on their permit (but will go to BIA solo)....Meaning there is no simple apples to apples negotiation on one topic, everything is all smashed together in an endless spiderweb of confusion.

For example, if just balancing the scales on such a simple fishery as this could be achieved, why haven't they?

Because, as is said, "Payback is a bitch."

Sorry...I wasn't clear. I copied "CATCH AREA (s): Shellfish Catch reporting area 26D" off of the Puyallup announcement to crab.

It's the area they put in as the catch reporting area.

I was just curious if it's unusual for the Puyallup Tribe to crab in that area.

I don't know.

To try and answer your question one would need to know exactly where that reporting area is located. If 26D is a subset of MA 11 then it is within the Puyallup's U&A.

A much bigger question would be if it is within MA11 the specific notation that "This is a 4.6 regulation notice to harvest without co-manager agreement" is indicative that the tribe has decided there is enough crab to harvest while WDFW is not in agreement.

Hopefully further clarification is forthcoming from WDFW.