﻿PACIFIC 
  COAST 
  FISHERIES 
  

  

  Record 
  landings 
  of 
  236.7 
  million 
  pounds 
  of 
  yellowfin 
  tuna 
  were 
  31.1 
  million 
  more 
  than 
  in 
  

   1969, 
  the 
  former 
  record 
  year. 
  The 
  value 
  {$42 
  .8 
  million) 
  increased 
  29 
  percent 
  compared 
  with 
  1969, 
  

   Fishermen' 
  received 
  an 
  average 
  price 
  of 
  18 
  cents 
  per 
  pound 
  — 
  compared 
  with 
  16 
  cents 
  in 
  1969. 
  

  

  In 
  accordance 
  with 
  the 
  recommendation 
  of 
  the 
  Inter-American 
  Tropical 
  Tuna 
  Commission, 
  

   the 
  1970 
  quota 
  of 
  yellowfin 
  tuna 
  from 
  the 
  eastern 
  tropical 
  Pacific 
  was 
  held 
  to 
  120,000 
  tons. 
  The 
  

   fishery 
  opened 
  January 
  1 
  and 
  closed 
  March 
  23, 
  1970. 
  It 
  was 
  the 
  fifth 
  consecutive 
  year 
  that 
  this 
  

   fishery 
  operated 
  under 
  a 
  quota 
  system 
  designed 
  to 
  maintain 
  the 
  yellowfin 
  population 
  at 
  the 
  maxi- 
  

   mum 
  sustainable 
  yield. 
  

  

  After 
  the 
  quota 
  was 
  taken, 
  a 
  reported 
  total 
  of 
  25 
  U.S. 
  flag 
  vessels 
  fished 
  in 
  eastern 
  Atlan- 
  

   tic 
  waters 
  off 
  West 
  Africa 
  and 
  another 
  eight 
  tuna 
  seiners 
  fished 
  on 
  an 
  exploratory 
  basis 
  in 
  the 
  

   western 
  Pacific 
  Ocean. 
  

  

  Anchovies 
  . 
  Landings 
  in 
  California 
  were 
  a 
  record 
  192.5 
  million 
  pounds 
  — 
  an 
  increase 
  of 
  57.2 
  mil- 
  

   lion 
  (42 
  percent) 
  compared 
  with 
  1969, 
  the 
  former 
  record 
  year. 
  The 
  increased 
  landings 
  resulted 
  

   from 
  greater 
  fishing 
  effort, 
  early 
  season 
  price 
  agreement, 
  and 
  favorable 
  market 
  prices 
  for 
  anchovy 
  

   meal 
  . 
  

  

  It 
  was 
  the 
  sixth 
  consecutive 
  year 
  for 
  the 
  anchovy 
  reduction 
  fishery. 
  As 
  in 
  previous 
  years, 
  

   the 
  California 
  Fish 
  and 
  Game 
  Commission 
  established 
  separate 
  catch 
  quotas 
  and 
  a 
  split 
  fishing 
  

   season 
  for 
  the 
  two 
  permit 
  areas 
  that 
  are 
  divided 
  by 
  Point 
  Conception 
  in 
  Santa 
  Barbara 
  County. 
  The 
  

   1970-71 
  season 
  in 
  the 
  Northern 
  Permit 
  Area 
  opened 
  August 
  1, 
  1970, 
  with 
  a 
  catch 
  quota 
  of 
  10,000 
  

   tons, 
  and 
  in 
  the 
  Southern 
  Permit 
  Area 
  on 
  September 
  15, 
  1970, 
  with 
  a 
  catch 
  quota 
  of 
  100, 
  000 
  tons 
  . 
  

   The 
  early 
  season 
  was 
  scheduled 
  to 
  close 
  in 
  both 
  areas 
  on 
  January 
  3, 
  1971. 
  When 
  the 
  early 
  season 
  

   ended, 
  fishermen 
  had 
  taken 
  nearly 
  50 
  percent 
  of 
  the 
  total 
  allowable 
  catch 
  quota 
  of 
  110,000 
  tons. 
  

  

  Shrimp 
  . 
  Landings 
  of 
  a 
  record 
  92.9 
  million 
  pounds 
  (heads-on) 
  worth 
  a 
  record 
  $5.5 
  million 
  were 
  

   30.3 
  million 
  pounds 
  {49 
  percent) 
  and 
  $1.7 
  million 
  {47 
  percent) 
  more 
  than 
  in 
  1969, 
  the 
  former 
  rec- 
  

   ord 
  year. 
  Record 
  landings 
  in 
  Alaska 
  {74.3 
  million 
  pounds), 
  Oregon 
  (13.6 
  million), 
  and 
  California 
  

   {4.1 
  million 
  pounds) 
  contributed 
  to 
  the 
  peak 
  production. 
  In 
  Alaska, 
  the 
  shrimp 
  fishery 
  has 
  trended 
  

   sharply 
  upward 
  since 
  1959 
  when 
  landings 
  were 
  13.1 
  million 
  pounds 
  — 
  at 
  that 
  time 
  a 
  record 
  harvest. 
  

   The 
  spectacular 
  growth 
  of 
  the 
  fishery 
  has 
  centered 
  in 
  the 
  Kodiak 
  area 
  which 
  yielded 
  about 
  85 
  per- 
  

   cent 
  of 
  the 
  State 
  total 
  in 
  1970. 
  The 
  industry 
  has 
  developed 
  rapidly 
  with 
  the 
  introduction 
  of 
  new 
  

   shrimping 
  vessels 
  and 
  the 
  invention 
  of 
  new 
  peeling 
  machines 
  for 
  processing. 
  

  

  Dunqeness 
  crabs 
  . 
  Landings 
  were 
  a 
  record 
  58.5 
  million 
  pounds 
  worth 
  a 
  record 
  $12.1 
  million 
  — 
  a 
  

   gain 
  of 
  10.5 
  million 
  pounds 
  and 
  $1.0 
  million 
  compared 
  with 
  1969. 
  Contributing 
  to 
  the 
  increase 
  

   were 
  record 
  landings 
  of 
  14.9 
  million 
  pounds 
  in 
  Oregon, 
  and 
  substantial 
  landings 
  in 
  Washington 
  

   (18.5 
  million) 
  and 
  California 
  (15 
  .4 
  million 
  pounds) 
  . 
  However, 
  the 
  Alaska 
  production 
  of 
  9.7 
  mil- 
  

   lion 
  pounds 
  declined 
  slightly 
  compared 
  with 
  1969. 
  For 
  the 
  first 
  time 
  since 
  1960, 
  Dungeness 
  crab 
  

   landings 
  were 
  greater 
  than 
  king 
  crab 
  landings. 
  

  

  Early 
  in 
  the 
  season, 
  Dungeness 
  crabs 
  in 
  Washington 
  were 
  small 
  and 
  had 
  a 
  poor 
  yield; 
  

   prices 
  dropped 
  sharply. 
  The 
  crabs 
  in 
  Oregon, 
  however, 
  were 
  large, 
  and 
  prices 
  were 
  firm. 
  The 
  

   Oregon 
  production 
  was 
  53 
  percent 
  greater 
  than 
  in 
  1969. 
  The 
  quantity 
  of 
  crab 
  gear 
  used 
  increased 
  

   markedly 
  in 
  both 
  Washington 
  and 
  Oregon. 
  In 
  Washington, 
  39,500 
  pots 
  were 
  used 
  — 
  compared 
  with 
  

   29,950 
  in 
  1969; 
  and 
  in 
  Oregon, 
  48,050 
  pots 
  were 
  used 
  — 
  compared 
  with 
  44,900 
  in 
  1969. 
  The 
  

   Dungeness 
  crab 
  fishery 
  in 
  Washington 
  had 
  148 
  vessels 
  — 
  49 
  more 
  than 
  in 
  1969. 
  The 
  Oregon 
  fleet 
  

   had 
  161 
  vessels 
  — 
  14 
  more 
  than 
  in 
  1969. 
  

  

  In 
  Alaska, 
  air 
  shipment 
  of 
  significant 
  quantities 
  of 
  live 
  Dungeness 
  crabs 
  was 
  a 
  new 
  devel- 
  

   opment 
  in 
  1970. 
  The 
  ports 
  of 
  Kodiak 
  and 
  Homer, 
  Alaska, 
  supplied 
  most 
  of 
  the 
  shipments. 
  As 
  

   much 
  as 
  3,000 
  pounds 
  of 
  live 
  crabs 
  were 
  flown 
  to 
  Hawaii 
  each 
  week, 
  and 
  smaller 
  quantities 
  were 
  

   flown 
  to 
  Oregon 
  and 
  Arizona 
  . 
  A 
  major 
  problem 
  encountered, 
  however, 
  was 
  the 
  mortality 
  of 
  the 
  

   crabs 
  while 
  enroute 
  to 
  the 
  destination. 
  In 
  an 
  effort 
  to 
  overcome 
  this 
  drawback 
  to 
  a 
  promising 
  new 
  

   market, 
  a 
  continuing 
  effort 
  was 
  underway 
  to 
  develop 
  improved 
  shipping 
  containers 
  and 
  handling 
  

   methods 
  . 
  

  

  