ABSTRACT 



A preliminary survey of the pressing fishery problems must rec- 

 ognize that claims to territorial waters by different nations vary in 

 width from 3 to 12 miles, but exclusive claims to fisheries have been 

 extended as far as 200 miles from shore by a few states. Consideration 

 of the consequences of applying different inethods of protecting the 

 fisheries in the northeastern Pacific leads to the conclusion that fish- 

 ery problems there can be solved best by treaties, but these, to be 

 effective, must incorporate agreement on basic objectives. 



The validity of the abstention principle as defined in the North 

 Pacific Treaty and the need for such protection of fisheries which are 

 controlled by scientifically based management programs are shown 

 by the successful management of the northeastern Pacific halibut 

 and salmon fisheries of this area. This is further supported by a 

 consideration of both the biological and economic bases of fisheries 

 management. Maximum sustained yield as defined by the North 

 Pacific Treaty is not considered a sound basis for abstention or 

 regulation, since it has been considered to be an absolute and single 

 valued population parameter that must be defined and supported 

 by biological data. The variability of this quantity makes the opti- 

 mum economic yield a more usable objective. 



Consideration of the qualifications for abstention listed in the 

 North Pacific Treaty and the data available on the Bristol Bay 

 halibut stock indicates that the latter fulfills the requirements for 



