Alaska pollock fishery a model of progressive management.
Marine Stewardship Council recognizes sustainability of Alaska’s Pollock fishery
Alaska Seafood Marketing Institute
[May 6, 2005]
This spring, following an extensive, four-year scientific review by an independent team of scientists, Alaska’s Pollock fishery became one of only several fisheries in the world to earn certification under the international Marine Stewardship Council (MSC) program recognizing sustainable and well-managed fisheries.
In its evaluation, the team reviewed more than 10,000 pages of information, interviewed managers and fisheries scientists, and solicited comments from policy makers, fishery managers and the conservation community. The resulting certification enables participating producers to offer Alaska Pollock products with the MSC eco-label, which is applied to seafood from responsibly managed sources.
The fishery for Alaska Salmon was certified in 2000 as meeting the MSC’s environmental standard for sustainability. The Alaska Seafood Marketing Institute currently uses the MSC eco-label on many Alaska Salmon promotional materials. Companies that have completed MSC chain of custody licensure are able to use the eco-label on their products. Other major Alaska fisheries currently undergoing the MSC assessment process include fishery for Pacific Halibut and the Sablefish (Black Cod) fishery (the US and Canadian fisheries are being assessed simultaneously), and the Bering Sea Aleutian Island (Pacific) Cod Freezer Longline Fishery.
The MSC’s Principles and Criteria for Sustainable Fishing are based on the FAO Code of Conduct for Responsible Fisheries.
Alaska Pollock fishery facts
Progressive, sustainable management
The Alaska Pollock fishery, managed by the National Marine Fisheries Service with guidance from the North Pacific Fisheries Management Council, has become a model of progressive management.
Management of the pollock fishery in Alaska involves research programs and strong science to determine sustainable harvest levels. Harvest levels are conservatively set at or below the “sustainable yield” recommended by scientific advisors. Management of the Alaska Pollock fishery includes reporting and in-season management, and extensive use of federal on-board observers to monitor and record catches and conduct scientific research.
Fishery managers take extraordinary action to protect the marine environment as a whole, and have prohibited fishing in areas around sea lion rookeries and haulout sites. Sustainable management helps protect the Alaska Pollock fishery from overfishing and damage to the ocean environment. Responsible conservation-based management helps maintain abundant stocks of Alaska Pollock, as well as providing a healthier marine environment for other wildlife and economic stability for communities linked to the fishing industry.
Alaska Pollock are harvested using mid-water trawl nets (there is no bottom trawling for pollock) which capture Alaska Pollock swimming in tight schools, so there is little incidental catch of other fish.
The creation of fishing cooperatives requires participating fishermen and processors to limit individual catches to a percentage of the annual quota. This system allows the fishery to proceed at a deliberate pace, resulting in increased safety at sea, enhanced product quality, increased utilization of fishery resources
and stability for the business sector.
Other facts about the Alaska Pollock Fishery.
The Alaska Pollock fishery is by volume the largest fishery in the U.S. and the second largest in the world.
The catch has averaged about 1.15 million tons per year since 1977.
Recent landings total 1.5 million tons (3 billion pounds) which represents 40% of total US commercial fishing landings.
Ex-vessel value of 2004 US commercial landings of Alaska Pollock was about $400 million. Value increases as the product moves through the marketplace.
Primary markets are in USA and Europe, with the Japanese constituting primary market for surimi and roe.
The species comprises 60% of the biomass in the Bering Sea and 20% of the biomass in the Gulf of Alaska.
This spring, following an extensive, four-year scientific review by an independent team of scientists, Alaska’s Pollock fishery became one of only several fisheries in the world to earn certification under the international Marine Stewardship Council (MSC) program recognizing sustainable and well-managed fisheries.