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Fishermen sometimes catch and discard animals they do not want, cannot sell, or are not allowed to keep. This is collectively known as “bycatch.” Bycatch can be fish, but also includes other animals such as dolphins, whales, sea turtles, and seabirds that become hooked or entangled in fishing gear.
Annually, off the Coastal Waters of Alaska, There is over 100 Million Pounds of wasted fish and marine life. The largest majority of this is done in the Federally Managed Trawl Fisheries. Fisherman are not allowed to keep bycatch to prevent incentivizing the targeting of these higher value fish. The Fish caught as bycatch are consequently dumped back overboard often dead from damage done by netting them.
VIDEO BY SEAWATCH
A bottom trawl is a type of fishing net that's pulled along the seafloor. Fishermen commonly use bottom trawls to catch bottom-dwelling fish like halibut and sole. However, in addition to these target fish, the nets also catch a variety of ocean life that's usually thrown back dead or dying. Dragging heavy gear across the seabed can also damage sensitive seafloor habitat.
Trawling is an indiscriminate fish harvesting method, capturing all in its path and scraping vital marine growth off the seabed.
John Warrenchuk discusses habitat loss from Trawling
At-sea Observers are required to be on a portion of fishing vessels for a limited amount of time to record bycatch. Due to the massive size and amount of time fishing observers only see a small portion of what actually is caught roughly 15%. Observer coverage should be required 100% of the time.
Electronic Monitoring is currently being used as a compliance monitoring tool in several catch share programs in Alaska. As Already discussed it is not utilized on Trawl Vessels despite the much larger vessels and longer processing and fishing periods.
Boat-by-boat bycatch limit rewards the cleanest fishermen - unlike our fleet-wide cap, which rewards the dirtiest ones. If a boat goes over its bycatch cap for the week, it is done for the year. Currently, If an individual boat goes over it's limit that boat is in no-way specifically punished.
First and Foremost, We are Alaskans. We come from all walks of life, but are driven by the desire to reduce the massive waste of Trawler bycatch in Alaskan waters. We are a grassroots group of ordinary citizens who want to see species thrive in their ocean environments and live to spawn in Alaskan Rivers. As bycatch continues to grow and the food source for Alaskan families continues to dwindle, we were compelled to step up and encourage our neighbors to join us in a unified voice to stop this madness!
We are dedicated to improving the lives of those in our community. Your contribution today helps us make a difference.
STOP BYCATCH
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