﻿GENERAL 
  REVIEW 
  

  

  Clams 
  . 
  Record 
  landings 
  of 
  99.2 
  million 
  pounds 
  of 
  clam 
  meats 
  worth 
  a 
  record 
  $28.8 
  million 
  were 
  

   18.5 
  million 
  pounds 
  and 
  $3.6 
  million 
  more 
  than 
  in 
  1969, 
  the 
  former 
  record 
  year. 
  The 
  volume 
  in- 
  

   crease 
  was 
  caused 
  principally 
  by 
  record 
  landings 
  of 
  surf 
  clams 
  in 
  both 
  the 
  Middle 
  Atlantic 
  and 
  

   Chesapeake 
  States. 
  Suft 
  clam 
  landings 
  in 
  these 
  two 
  areas, 
  together 
  with 
  a 
  small 
  New 
  England 
  

   production, 
  accounted 
  for 
  68 
  percent 
  of 
  the 
  total 
  clam 
  harvest. 
  Landings 
  of 
  hard 
  clams 
  (16.0 
  mil- 
  

   lion 
  pounds) 
  and 
  soft 
  clams 
  (12.9 
  million 
  pounds) 
  were 
  about 
  the 
  same 
  as 
  in 
  1969, 
  and 
  together 
  

   accounted 
  for 
  29 
  percent 
  of 
  the 
  total 
  clam 
  production. 
  

  

  Sea 
  herring 
  . 
  Landings 
  of 
  88.6 
  million 
  pounds 
  were 
  3 
  percent 
  less 
  than 
  in 
  1969. 
  The 
  entire 
  de- 
  

   •cline 
  was 
  along 
  the 
  Atlantic 
  coast 
  where 
  landings 
  were 
  66.8 
  million 
  pounds 
  — 
  compared 
  with 
  69.2 
  

   million 
  in 
  1969. 
  Landings 
  in 
  Maine, 
  for 
  many 
  years 
  the 
  mainstay 
  of 
  the 
  sea 
  herring 
  fishery, 
  were 
  

   only 
  36.6 
  million 
  pounds 
  — 
  17 
  .6 
  million 
  less 
  than 
  in 
  1969, 
  and 
  the 
  third 
  smallest 
  harvest 
  since 
  the 
  

   turn 
  of 
  the 
  century. 
  Massachusetts, 
  however, 
  had 
  the 
  largest 
  landings 
  (27.4 
  million 
  pounds) 
  since 
  

   1908. 
  Pacific 
  coast 
  landings 
  of 
  21.8 
  million 
  pounds 
  improved 
  slightly 
  because 
  of 
  increased 
  pro- 
  

   duction 
  in 
  Alaska 
  where 
  the 
  fish 
  are 
  used 
  for 
  reduction 
  to 
  meal 
  or 
  for 
  bait. 
  

  

  Imports 
  of 
  fresh 
  Canadian 
  sea 
  herring, 
  which 
  are 
  used 
  principally 
  for 
  canning 
  and 
  reduc- 
  

   tion 
  in 
  Maine, 
  were 
  78.5 
  million 
  pounds 
  — 
  a 
  decrease 
  of 
  16.1 
  million 
  compared 
  with 
  1969, 
  and 
  of 
  

   87.3 
  million 
  pounds 
  compared 
  with 
  1968. 
  The 
  Maine 
  pack 
  of 
  sardines 
  canned 
  from 
  sea 
  herring 
  

   (806,500 
  standard 
  cases 
  worth 
  $11.2 
  million) 
  declined 
  23 
  percent 
  in 
  volume 
  and 
  2 
  percent 
  in 
  val- 
  

   ue 
  compared 
  with 
  1969. 
  

  

  Ale 
  wives 
  . 
  The 
  harvest 
  of 
  69.5 
  million 
  pounds 
  was 
  17.7 
  million 
  less 
  than 
  in 
  1969, 
  principally 
  be- 
  

   cause 
  of 
  sharp 
  declines 
  in 
  landings 
  along 
  the 
  Atlantic 
  coast. 
  Landings 
  in 
  the 
  Chesapeake 
  States 
  

   (21.1 
  million 
  pounds) 
  declined 
  38 
  percent 
  and 
  in 
  the 
  South 
  Atlantic 
  States 
  (11.6 
  million) 
  47 
  percent 
  

   compared 
  with 
  1969. 
  Landings 
  increased 
  slightly 
  in 
  all 
  other 
  areas, 
  but 
  chiefly 
  in 
  the 
  Great 
  Lakes 
  

   where 
  the 
  production 
  of 
  33.5 
  million 
  pounds 
  of 
  alewives 
  (taken 
  entirely 
  in 
  Lake 
  Michigan) 
  was 
  4.2 
  

   million 
  more 
  than 
  in 
  1969. 
  The 
  Great 
  Lakes 
  landings 
  accounted 
  for 
  48 
  percent 
  of 
  the 
  entire 
  U.S. 
  

   production 
  of 
  alewives 
  in 
  1970. 
  

  

  Halibut, 
  Pacific 
  . 
  Landings 
  by 
  the 
  combined 
  United 
  States 
  and 
  Canadian 
  halibut 
  fleets 
  were 
  54.9 
  

   million 
  pounds 
  (dressed 
  weight) 
  — 
  6 
  percent 
  less 
  than 
  in 
  1969. 
  For 
  the 
  third 
  consecutive 
  year, 
  Ca- 
  

   nadian 
  fishermen 
  landed 
  more 
  halibut 
  (53 
  percent 
  of 
  the 
  production) 
  than 
  United 
  States 
  fishermen. 
  

  

  Alaska 
  landings 
  were 
  82 
  percent 
  of 
  the 
  total 
  U.S. 
  harvest. 
  As 
  halibut 
  receipts 
  increased 
  

   at 
  Kodiak 
  and 
  other 
  Alaska 
  ports, 
  they 
  declined 
  to 
  an 
  alltime 
  low 
  at 
  Seattle, 
  Wash. 
  The 
  pattern 
  

   of 
  landings 
  changed 
  principally 
  because 
  Alaska 
  firms 
  began 
  paying 
  fishermen 
  prices 
  that 
  competed 
  

   with 
  the 
  higher 
  prices 
  traditionally 
  offered 
  at 
  Seattle. 
  Most 
  fishermen 
  preferred 
  to 
  deliver 
  halibut 
  

   to 
  ports 
  near 
  the 
  fishing 
  areas 
  and 
  to 
  make 
  additional 
  fishing 
  trips 
  in 
  the 
  time 
  formerly 
  lost 
  in 
  the 
  

   long 
  run 
  to 
  Seattle. 
  Halibut 
  prices 
  continued 
  firm 
  in 
  1970 
  until 
  the 
  end 
  of 
  the 
  season 
  when 
  mount- 
  

   ing 
  inventories 
  of 
  frozen 
  halibut 
  caused 
  a 
  sharp 
  decline 
  in 
  exvessel 
  prices. 
  

  

  Oysters 
  . 
  The 
  harvest 
  of 
  53.6 
  million 
  pounds 
  of 
  meats 
  worth 
  $29.5 
  million 
  was 
  3 
  percent 
  more 
  in 
  

   volume 
  and 
  7 
  percent 
  more 
  in 
  value 
  than 
  in 
  1969. 
  Sharp 
  increases 
  in 
  landings 
  in 
  the 
  Chesapeake 
  

   and 
  Pacific 
  Coast 
  States 
  and 
  slighter 
  increases 
  in 
  the 
  New 
  England 
  and 
  Middle 
  Atlantic 
  States 
  con- 
  

   tributed 
  substantially 
  to 
  the 
  greater 
  production. 
  In 
  the 
  South 
  Atlantic 
  and 
  Gulf 
  States, 
  however, 
  

   landings 
  declined 
  markedly 
  compared 
  with 
  1969. 
  Landings 
  of 
  1.6 
  million 
  pounds 
  in 
  the 
  South 
  At- 
  

   lantic 
  States 
  decreased 
  to 
  an 
  alltime 
  low. 
  In 
  the 
  Gulf 
  States, 
  landings 
  of 
  17 
  .7 
  million 
  pounds 
  were 
  

   10 
  percent 
  less 
  than 
  in 
  1969 
  and 
  the 
  smallest 
  since 
  1966. 
  The 
  oyster 
  fishery 
  in 
  the 
  Gulf 
  States 
  had 
  

   been 
  decimated 
  by 
  hurricane 
  Camille 
  in 
  1969, 
  and 
  the 
  oyster 
  reefs 
  along 
  the 
  coasts 
  of 
  Alabama, 
  

   Mississippi, 
  and 
  Louisiana 
  had 
  not 
  fully 
  recovered 
  from 
  the 
  devastating 
  effects 
  of 
  the 
  hurricane. 
  

  

  