Bristol Skiff

In Alaska, salmon first come. Alaska has a long and successful experience of management and conservation of salmon resources in abundance. Record salmon runs with an average of recent catches of 165 million salmon is proof of this approach successful.

Nearly 95% of all salmon caught commercially in the United States are harvested in Alaska. Alaska is the largest producer of wild salmon in value, the output of nearly 80 percent of the global supply of king, sockeye and coho salmon. Alaska commercial salmon fishery is vital to the economy of Alaska and the Alaskan way of life.

Each year, the salmon industry provides thousands of jobs and hundreds of millions of dollars to the state economy. Commercial fishing is essential for communities and fishing
families across the state.

fishing industry in Alaska led the State to provide 47% of private sector jobs, and is second only to the oil industry in providing revenue to the state. In 2002, the value of the fishery exvessel combined totaled $ 955 million to 162 million dollars of salmon.

Salmon fishing permits are issued to individuals, not corporations, through the system of limited access permits. "The total number of available permits for each fishery is strictly limited. The fishermen can not possess more than a salmon permit for the same type of gear and area. This creates a fishery composed of many individuals and families.

Three main types of fishing gear for salmon in Alaska: trolling, gill netting and purse. All commercial fishing vessels salmon are relatively small vessels, on average 30-50 feet.

Trollers use long poles to pull behind or fall behind 2 to 4 lines of depth-weighted water, each with 8 to 12 officers attached. At the end of each head is a lure or baited hook. vessel size varies from small boats to vessels 50 feet or more with most ranging from 25-40 feet.

King Trollers target mainly coho and pink salmon as they enter the Alaskan waters on their way to spawning grounds. Trollers catch a relatively small amount of fish of high quality. The fish they catch are bright and strong from the ocean waters cool. They are often
sold dressed or filleted market fresh or frozen.

Gillnetters net curtain, as in the suspension of a water line to float to the surface and a weighted lead line along the lower edge submerged. Nets of different lengths from 900 to 1800 feet long. the cracks are just large enough to allow adult fish to pass through the head and is taken at the gills.

There are two types of gill nets, drift nets, which are free from floating boats and setnets that have one end attached to the shore. vessel size is limited to 32 feet or less in Bristol Bay, otherwise the average range is 30-40 feet. Gillnetters especially the harvest of sockeye, chum and coho salmon.

Purse seiners use a large floating net, shot and set in a circle on a power boat, to surround the salmon schooling. The online trading weighted "In back of the net is pulled closed to contain the fish. The net full of fish are then collected on the boat with a hydraulic block highpowered.

The seiners are not allowed north of the Alaska Peninsula, vessel size is limited to 58 feet. Purse seine fishing for salmon pink especially near the shore and near the freshwater spawning grounds where flows are highly concentrated.