Skates in Alaskan Fisheries and Marine Policy in Washington DC

Thomas Farrugia October 21st, 2014 AK Sea Grant Advisory Commiee Skates in Alaskan Fisheries • Role of skates in ﬁsheries • Highlights: Movement, Stock Outline Assessment, Nutrional value • Economic opportunity & willingness to harvest skates Marine Policy in DC • Knauss background • Possible posions • My interests & what I can bring @ﬂatsharks Skate Fishery • Global market for skate increasing mainly in Asia and Europe (DCCED, 2009) • Largely supplied by Atlanc species

• 2012: 28 000mt = $17M from US (NMFS, 2012) Gulf of Alaska Skates

• Big skate (Beringraja binoculata) • Longnose skate (Raja rhina) • Long-lived and late maturing • Currently only non-target fishery in GOA – > 2000 mt/year since 2005 – $1/kg exvessel price: demand for increased fishing opportunies • Only wings are taken (~30% biomass) Goal and Objecves Ø Can a skate fishery be sustainable and profitable? 1. How much skate biomass can be harvested each year? – Gather more data on skates – Develop age-structured stock assessment

2. How should this sustainable harvest be managed to maximize proﬁts to ﬁshing industry? – Bioeconomic model on supply/demand Movement Paerns • Satellite tagging study – How much connecvity between mgmt units? – What depth/temp do skates use?

• Tags collect light level, depth and temperature data • Accurate locaon at pop-up • Transmit summarized depth and temperature data • If recovered, full record can be downloaded

Tag 108026 - F 164 cm Vercal Movement 0

100

200

300 PWS Bathymetry Conclusion • Big skates capable of long movements and cross management boundaries

King and McFarlane, 2010 Stock Assessment Methods

• Focus on big skate at ﬁrst

• Stock Synthesis v.3 (Punt and Maunder, 2013) – Flexible, powerful ADMB-based soware – Useful for data-limited stocks • First age structured model • Collaboraon with AFSC/NWFSC • Fishery data – NMFS • Survey – AFSC boom trawl • Ageing data – AFSC • Other sources: lit. and research Results

• Current model outputs: – Increased landings since experimental directed ﬁshery 2003-2005 – Size selecvity similar in trawl and longline, more even in surveys

Issues • Survey index model is very messy! • Inial depleon • Recruitment modeled incorrectly • Need more survey data • Length composion changes Discussion

• Data available not ideal, but sufficient to develop stock assessment – crucial to mgmt • Sll need to refine the model • Model suggests that increase in total harvest is unlikely to be sustainable – How do we best manage the sustainable harvest? – Directed vs non-target fishery So…

• Proﬁtable & sustainable skate ﬁshery?

15% 15% Ulizaon How to Increase Revenue?

• Extract more meat

• Other products Connued Demand? Ø Can a skate ﬁshery be sustainable and proﬁtable? 1. What will future demand for current GOA skate products look like? – Determine the nutrional value and Nutrition Facts Serving Size 1 skate contaminant load of skate wings Amount Per Serving Calories 200 2. Can we increase revenue from % Daily Value Total Lipids 12g 12% GOA skates without increasing Fatty Acid 2g Omega-3 1g harvest rates? Moisture 60g 5% – Determine the nutrional value and Ash 1g 4% Protein 13g contaminant load of potenal skate products (liver) Methods

• Collected 10 big and 10 longnose skates during oﬄoad from Cordova and Kodiak (n = 40)

Gulf of Alaska Gulf of Alaska Methods

• 2 species from 2 locaons (Cordova / Kodiak) • 2 ssue types (muscle / liver) • Proximate analysis – Lipid, protein, moisture and ash • Fay acid proﬁle – SAFA, MUFA, PUFA • Contaminant load – Total mercury, arsenic, cadmium, selenium (DEC) • Very rich in oil • High water content • Full of omega-3 FA • Some Omega-3 FA • Mostly EPA/DHA • 10-12% protein • Lean, white ﬂesh Results – Contaminant Levels

1.6 1.4 1.2 1 0.8 0.6 EPA, 2009 0.4 0.2 0 Total Mercury (ppm wet weight) Total Beneﬁts and Risks Beneﬁts and Risks

High relave Lean FA in healthy Moderately High in protein proporons high in Hg organic As

Full of Very lipid Over the Accumulates Omega-3s rich livers limit in Cd Se Risk/Beneﬁt Index

80% 60% 40% 20% 0% -20% -40% -60% health improvement) Risk benefit ratio (percent

*Ginsberg and Toal, 2009 Future Demand

• Skate muscle should not see a drop in demand • Livers show promise as a future product

• Next step: Integrate this data into the demand funcon of a bioeconomic model – Use the risk/beneﬁt rao for consumer advice as an index of demand How to Increase Revenue?

• More processed – remove skin and package = $10/lb How to Increase Revenue?

• Local market Why a Skate Fishery?

• If it is sustainable: • Increase community resilience – Addional source of revenue – Diverse catch more resilient to changes • Increase ecological resilience – Spread fishing effort across components of ecosystem – Ecosystem-based fisheries management cannot ignore non-target species • Experience to date: – Marine biology – Fisheries management – Fishery economics

• John A. Knauss Marine Policy Fellowship – “provide an educaonal experience in the policies and processes of the Legislave and Execuve Branches of the Federal Government” Knauss Fellowship

• Class of 2015 – 49 total fellows – 39 execuve fellows – 10 legislave fellows • Placement week (Nov 16-21) – Congressional informaon session – Interviews with Host Oﬃces – Placement Legislave Posions

• 2014: – US House Commiee on Nat Resources, Subcommiee on Fisheries, Wildlife, Oceans and Insular Aﬀairs – US Senate Commerce Commiee – US Reps: Sam Farr, Lois Capps, Chellie Pingree, Carol Shea-Porter, Jared Huﬀman – US Sens: Roger Wicker, Edward Markey, Maria Cantwell Legislave Posions

• 2015: – US House Commiee on Nat Resources, Subcommiee on Fisheries, Wildlife, Oceans and Insular Aﬀairs

– US Reps: Don Young THANK YOU!

• Adviser: Andy Seitz • Commiee: Drs. Keith Criddle, Gordon Kruse, Cindy Tribuzio, Ken Goldman • Ian Taylor (NWFSC) and Olav Ormseth (AFSC) • Addional Funding: