Home Forums Hunting & Shooting Alaska Things could get interesting in Bristol Bay

I should know more than I do but I don't.
What I do know is from 100 year old cannery records and there are more fish returning now than there were then.

I've just assumed that was due to management practices and the huge numbers today were not necessarily normal or ever typical of what it may have been a few hundred years back prior to commercial harvest effects.

They were pretty brutal on the BB fish back in the beginning of the commercial fishing era. It took a while before they figured out setting fish traps or nets on every river and taking all the fish wasn't such a grand idea. Learning curves are a bitch.

Just was not sure of what happens if there were an over abundance of fish on the spawning beds or a over population of fry in the lakes after the fact.

It's always said the escapement must be controlled for the good of the fisheries, never questioned it.

They will be fishing so I guess it don't matter.

I've had a young engineer type here at the house all day, we been making plans to head back down to the Glades to chase some Peacock Bass for a bit. He's been getting texts all day from a processor in Seattle who's trying to pin him down to a date he can head out, he just keeps blowing them off.

They want him yesterday, they are trying to get a crew together to open one of their plants.

Interesting read.https://craigmedred.news/2020/04/10/covid-iness/

https://craigmedred.news/2020/04/10/covid-iness/

Hot

The decisions has been left up to political entities, there is a lot of history there, makes the outcome more predictable.

Worst thing that ever happened to overescapement Chicken Littles was the Exxon Valdez. No fishing was bound to kill a season and runs all over. But five years later the first two 20+ pound silvers were caught in the Seward Silver Derby. And the next generation from that year produced two more. So much for run killing.

Press Release: April 24, 2020
CONTACT: Forrest R. Bowers, (907) 465-6139, forrest.bowersalaska.gov

Health Mandate 17: Protective Measures for Independent Commercial Fishing Vessels
(Juneau) – To slow the spread of Coronavirus Disease 2019 (COVID-19), the State of Alaska has issued Health Mandate 17 relating to the operation of independent commercial fishing vessels. This mandate went into effect April 24, 2020 at 8:00 a.m. and will be reevaluated by May 20, 2020.

The State of Alaska acknowledges the importance of the commercial fishing industry to our economy and lifestyle as Alaskans. In order to ensure a safe, productive fishing season this year, while still protecting Alaskan communities to the maximum extent possible from the spread of the virus, the state is establishing standardized protective measures to be followed by all independent commercial fishing vessels operating in Alaskan waters and ports.

The purpose of this mandate is to enact protective measures for independent commercial fishing vessels operating within Alaskan waters and ports in order to prevent, slow, and otherwise disrupt the spread of the virus that causes COVID-19. Operators and crew of independent commercial fishing vessels are required to comply with Health Mandate 17 when operating in Alaskan waters and ports.

Health Mandate 17 does not apply to skiffs operating from shore; protective measures for those vessels will be provided under separate guidance.

Health Mandate 17 is available here: https://covid19.alaska.gov/health-mandates/

Health Mandate 017: Protective Measures for Independent Commercial Fishing Vessels
Issued: April 23, 2020

By: Governor Mike Dunleavy
Commissioner Adam Crum, Alaska Department of Health and Social Services
Dr. Anne Zink, Chief Medical Officer, State of Alaska

To slow the spread of Coronavirus Disease 2019 (COVID-19), the State of Alaska is issuing its seventeenth health mandate, based on its authority under the Public Health Disaster Emergency Declaration signed by Governor Mike Dunleavy on March 11, 2020.

Given the ongoing concern for new cases of COVID-19 being transmitted via community spread within the state, Governor Dunleavy and the State of Alaska are issuing Mandate 017 to go into effect April 24, 2020 at 8:00 a.m. and will reevaluate the Mandate by May 20, 2020.

This Mandate is issued to protect the public health of Alaskans. By issuing this Mandate, the Governor is establishing consistent mandates across the State in order to mitigate the impact of COVID-19. The goal is to flatten the curve and disrupt the spread of the virus.

The purpose of this Mandate is to enact protective measures for independent commercial fishing vessels operating within Alaskan waters and ports in order to prevent, slow, and otherwise disrupt the spread of the virus that causes COVID-19.

The State of Alaska acknowledges the importance of our commercial fishing fleet to our economy and lifestyle as Alaskans. In order to ensure a safe, productive fishing season this year, while still protecting Alaskan communities to the maximum extent possible from the spread of the virus, the State is establishing standardized protective measures to be followed by all independent commercial fishing vessels operating in Alaskan waters and ports.


Health Mandate 017 – Protective Measures for Independent Commercial Fishing Vessels.

Applicability

1. Definition: For the purposes of this Mandate, “independent commercial fishing vessels” are defined as all catcher and tender vessels that have not agreed to operate under a fleet-wide plan submitted by a company, association, or entity that represents a fleet of vessels. This Mandate alleviates the requirement for independent commercial fishing vessels to submit a Community/Workforce Protective Plan in response to Health Mandates 010 or 012.

2. This Mandate does not apply to skiffs operating from shore; protective measures for those vessels will be provided under separate guidance.

Required Protective Measures/Plans

1. Independent commercial fishing vessels operating in Alaskan waters and ports must enact the protective measures and procedures described in Appendix 01, the Alaska Protective Plan for Commercial Fishing Vessels.

2. Vessel captains must enact controls on their vessel to ensure crew member compliance with this Mandate.

Travel and Access

1. Compliance with this Mandate does not constitute a right to travel or access into any areas.

2. It is incumbent upon the individual traveler to ensure that any proposed travel itinerary is still possible, and to adhere to any additional restrictions enacted by air carriers and lodging facilities or by small communities in accordance with the State of Alaska Small Community Emergency Travel Order (Health Mandate 012-Attachment B).

Compliance and Penalties

1. Vessel captains are required to maintain documentation as directed by Appendix 01, Paragraph I, and must provide a copy of the Mandate 017 Acknowledgement Form (Appendix 02) upon request by any seafood purchasing agent or Federal, State, or local authority, to include law enforcement and fisheries regulators.

2. A violation of a State COVID-19 Mandate may subject a business or organization to an order to cease operations and/or a civil fine of up to $1,000 per violation.

3. In addition to the potential civil fines noted above, a person or organization that fails to follow the State COVID-19 Mandates designed to protect the public health from this dangerous virus and its impacts may, under certain circumstances, also be criminally prosecuted for Reckless Endangerment pursuant to Alaska Statute 11.41.250. Reckless endangerment is defined as follows:

(a) A person commits the crime of reckless endangerment if the person recklessly engages in conduct, which creates a substantial risk of serious physical injury to another person.

(b) Reckless endangerment is a class A misdemeanor.

Pursuant to Alaska Statute 12.55.135, a defendant convicted of a class A misdemeanor may be sentenced to a definite term of imprisonment of not more than one year.

Additionally, under Alaska Statute 12.55.035, a person may be fined up to $25,000 for a class A misdemeanor, and a business organization may be sentenced to pay a fine not exceeding the greatest of $2,500,000 for a misdemeanor offense that results in death, or $500,000 for a class A misdemeanor offense that does not result in death.

This Mandate Supersedes And Replaces All Previously Submitted Protective Plans For Independent Commercial Fishing Vessels.

This Mandate Does Not Supersede Or Replace Any Previously Enacted Protective Plans For Corporate Vessel Fleets.

Guidelines for Commercial Fishermen

The Bristol Bay fishery will be operating under a strict set of guidelines this season, laid out in the new mandate released Thursday by Governor Mike Dunleavy. Crew members and captains who want to fish in Bristol Bay will have to wear masks while traveling there, and go immediately to the place where they’ll quarantine for two weeks. Once they arrive, they’ll have to have their temperatures checked twice a day.

The mandate targets independent fishing boats, many of which are operated by captains and crew who travel to Bristol Bay from outside Alaska. Specifically, it applies to those that have not "agreed to operate under a fleet-wide plan submitted by a company, association or entity" representing them. The new mandate also requires crewmembers to undergo verbal and physical screenings upon arrival — and they can’t have respiratory problems or fever. Crew members are allowed to quarantine onboard, though they’re still allowed to fish as long as they restrict contact with other boats and people on shore as much as possible.

To protect communities, the mandate stipulates that crew can only leave the vessel for essential purposes.

If a fisherman becomes sick, they will be required to isolate themselves. If they are not able to isolate from others on the boat, the entire vessel will be under isolation.

Boats are also required to continuously monitor crewmembers who show signs of illness. If a fisherman is suspected of having COVID-19, they must wear a mask or cloth covering and stay in a private room with a door and separate bathroom facilities, though that may not be available on every boat.

The mandate goes into effect at 8:00 a.m. Friday, and the state will re-evaluate it by May 30.

Dunleavy’s administration has been under increasing pressure to outline safeguards for Bristol Bay as the salmon season approaches. Mayors from the region sent a letter to the governor Saturday, asking for a meeting and saying that they want the highest level of protection possible for residents. Current efforts to keep the fishery open, the mayors wrote, seem intent on marginalizing local communities and removing them from the decision-making process.

The letter was signed by the municipalities of New Stuyahok, Manokotak, Togiak, and the Lake and Peninsula and Bristol Bay boroughs.

First string engineers will be timing out of quarantine tomorrow, BB processor's power houses will be fired up and running this weekend....

They have been miserable, locked in their hotel rooms for 14 days, they are more than ready to get out of there.

Personally I fail to see that 14 days in a motel room can be that bad. There are MUCH worse things in life than a bit of that motel room but I digress. I'll soon enough be about in the same boat but in my RV camper for 14 days.

I think it was more the idea that they had to and most would rather just be working, they are all getting paid for it...

You're right it wasn't so bad, the meals were catered by the Crows Nest being these guys were at the CC down town.

Some of the images they were texting me of their three squares a day looked damn good.

14 days in stir would be tough, depending on how stringent it really was.

So if I sign up to work on a Bristol Boat this summer what’s the protocol here?

Walk out of the room and you're fired, zero exceptions.
This first round is all upper management and Engineers I am in contact with.

They are being camera monitored, the tower they are in is exclusive for their use, it's been leased for the next few months for this purpose.
Twice a day a guy in a tyvec suit, mask, gloves and face shield stops by the rooms and shoots neck temperatures with a Infrared thermometer. Food is delivered, you eat what they bring but the guys have all been telling me the meals are over the top. The privileged have rooms with a water view. You can order cocktails and beer from the hotel bar on your own dime.

Their bored schitless, the hotels wifi is so over loaded they are not able to stream video.
I have been getting emails, texts and phone calls pretty much everyday since this first round of quarantines started. It'll be going on for quite a while, it's required for all employees going to any remote Alaskan location to work.
Flights out of Anchorage are private chartered, once at their work locations they will be confined to the various properties.

The quarantine is topped off with the CV-19 deep nose swab test before they are released to travel....joy....

So the guys I am talking with have ran over 100 through their 14 day quarantine and have yet to get a positive hit on anyone they have tested yet.
I hear at least one processor did get a + hit on an individual.

It dosent help that one of the biggest advocates for the region on Facebook is a filthy rapist who groomed his step daughter before raping her...

And who would that be?