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A History and Analysis of the Bering Sea Pollock Fishery

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A History and Analysis of the Bering Sea Pollock Fishery FISHING FOR POLLOCK IN A SEA OF CHANGE: A HISTORY AND ANALYSIS OF THE BERING SEA POLLOCK FISHERY By James Strong RECOMMENDED: __________________________________________ Dr. Milo D. Adkison __________________________________________ Dr. Gordon H. Kruse __________________________________________ Dr. Keith R. Criddle, Advisory Committee Chair __________________________________________ Dr. Trent Sutton, Interim Academic Program Head, Fisheries Division APPROVED: __________________________________________ Dr. Michael Castellini, Dean, School of Fisheries and Ocean Sciences __________________________________________ Dr. Lawrence Duffy, Interim Dean of the Graduate School __________________________________________ Date FISHING FOR POLLOCK IN A SEA OF CHANGE: A HISTORY AND ANALYSIS OF THE BERING SEA POLLOCK FISHERY A THESIS Presented to the Faculty of the University of Alaska Fairbanks in Partial Fulfillment of the Requirements for the Degree of MASTER OF SCIENCE By James Strong, B.A. Fairbanks, Alaska August 2011 iii Abstract The development and evolution of the eastern Bering Sea fishery for walleye pollock (Theragra chalcogramma) is retraced, its current economic and institutional structure is modeled, and the resiliency of that structure to substantive changes in pollock biomass and fuel costs is explored. Small variations in exvessel prices, total allowable catches, or allocation of catches between seasons and among industry sectors can lead to large changes to first wholesale revenues. Similarly, changes in fuel prices, changes in technology, changes in regulation, and changes in the spatial distribution of catches can lead to changes in harvesting or processing costs. Together, these changes affect the relative profitability of the inshore and offshore sectors, which can, in turn, affect the benefits that accrue to communities, the evolution of regulation, and create pressure to reallocate sector shares. The model indicates that first wholesale revenues are maximized when pollock harvests are maximized. However, legal barriers to the transfer of allocations between sectors can lead to under-harvests when product prices are low, fuel costs are high, or when the most productive fishing grounds are in the northwest regions of the eastern Bering Sea Exclusive Economic Zone. iv Table of Contents Page Signature Page ..................................................................................................................... i Title Page ............................................................................................................................ ii Abstract .............................................................................................................................. iii Table of Contents ............................................................................................................... iv List of Figures ................................................................................................................... vii List of Tables ..................................................................................................................... ix List of Appendices .............................................................................................................. x Acknowledgements ............................................................................................................ xi General Introduction ........................................................................................................... 1 CHAPTER 1: An Historical Analysis of the Bering Sea Pollock Fishery ......................... 4 Introduction ..................................................................................................................... 4 Initial Development of the Eastern Bering Sea Pollock Fishery .................................... 6 Post World War II Pollock Fishery ................................................................................. 7 Rising Pollock Catches ................................................................................................. 11 Global Movement towards Increased Marine Rights ................................................... 12 Fishery Management ..................................................................................................... 14 Magnuson Fishery Conservation and Magnuson Act ................................................... 15 Fish & Chips Policy ...................................................................................................... 22 Joint Venture Era .......................................................................................................... 26 A Prototypical Joint Venture ........................................................................................ 29 Initial Development in the Domestic Processing Sector of Groundfish ....................... 31 Domestic Inshore Pollock Production .......................................................................... 34 Domestic At-Sea Production ........................................................................................ 38 Anti-Reflagging Act ..................................................................................................... 47 Effects of the Anti-Reflagging Act ............................................................................... 55 Rise of the Inshore and Offshore Sectors ..................................................................... 60 v Operation Differences between Sectors ........................................................................ 62 Inshore/Offshore I ......................................................................................................... 65 Arguments Against the Inshore/Offshore Allocation ................................................ 70 Arguments for the Inshore/Offshore Allocation ........................................................ 74 Reaching out to Congress ............................................................................................. 78 Implications of Inshore/Offshore I ............................................................................... 87 Inshore/Offshore II ....................................................................................................... 93 Reauthorization of the Magnuson Stevens Act ............................................................. 96 Introduction of Inshore/Offshore III ............................................................................. 98 Cooperatives ............................................................................................................... 100 American Fisheries Act .............................................................................................. 105 Summary of the American Fisheries Act .................................................................... 112 Cooperatives and Fishery Sectors .......................................................................... 114 Catcher/Processor Sector ....................................................................................... 115 Mothership Sector ................................................................................................... 125 Inshore Sector ......................................................................................................... 130 Western Alaska Community Development Quota Program (CDQ’s) ..................... 134 American Fisheries Act’s Impact on the Pollock Fishery .......................................... 144 Slower Fishing Pace ............................................................................................... 144 Safety ....................................................................................................................... 145 Optimized Product Mix ........................................................................................... 146 Increased Product Value ......................................................................................... 148 Increased Utilization of Raw Fish .......................................................................... 148 Decreased Costs ...................................................................................................... 151 Marine Stewardship Council Certification ............................................................. 152 CDQ Partnerships .................................................................................................. 154 Fisheries Management under the American Fisheries Act ......................................... 158 Steller Sea Lion Closures ........................................................................................ 159 Salmon Bycatch ....................................................................................................... 163 vi Decline in Russian Stocks ....................................................................................... 168 The Future of the Pollock Fishery .............................................................................. 169 Literature Cited ........................................................................................................... 177 Appendices .................................................................................................................. 193 CHAPTER 2: Institutional Structure and Revenue Maximization in the Eastern Bering Sea Pollock Fishery......................................................................................................... 199 Abstract ......................................................................................................................
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