﻿PACIFIC 
  COAST 
  FISHERIES 
  

  

  247 
  

  

  King 
  crabs 
  . 
  Landings 
  of 
  52.1 
  million 
  pounds 
  were 
  worth 
  $13.2 
  million 
  — 
  a 
  decline 
  of 
  5.7 
  million 
  

   pounds 
  (10 
  percent) 
  and 
  $2.5 
  million 
  {16 
  percent) 
  compared 
  with 
  1969. 
  The 
  harvest 
  was 
  the 
  small- 
  

   est 
  since 
  1961. 
  In 
  an 
  effort 
  to 
  conserve 
  the 
  declining 
  resource, 
  the 
  Alaska 
  Board 
  of 
  Fish 
  and 
  Game 
  

   continued 
  regulations 
  begun 
  in 
  1968 
  providing 
  for 
  a 
  6-month 
  closure 
  of 
  certain 
  fishing 
  grounds. 
  

   In 
  addition, 
  they 
  established 
  quotas 
  in 
  most 
  fishing 
  areas 
  and 
  limited 
  the 
  number 
  of 
  crab 
  pots 
  per 
  

   vessel 
  . 
  

  

  Fishermen 
  lost 
  no 
  time 
  because 
  of 
  price 
  disputes. 
  They 
  agreed 
  with 
  plant 
  owners 
  on 
  a 
  

   price 
  of 
  25-1/4 
  cents 
  per 
  pound 
  before 
  the 
  season 
  began 
  at 
  Kodiak 
  on 
  August 
  15. 
  Competition 
  

   for 
  the 
  supply- 
  of 
  king 
  crabs 
  resulted 
  In 
  an 
  increase 
  to 
  30 
  cents 
  per 
  pound 
  by 
  the 
  end 
  of 
  October, 
  

   and 
  to 
  36 
  cents 
  per 
  pound 
  by 
  the 
  end 
  of 
  the 
  year. 
  

  

  Five 
  new 
  king 
  crab 
  vessels 
  entered 
  the 
  fishery 
  early 
  in 
  1970, 
  but 
  by 
  the 
  end 
  of 
  the 
  year 
  

   several 
  vessel 
  owners, 
  disappointed 
  by 
  the 
  declining 
  king 
  crab 
  harvest, 
  were 
  planning 
  to 
  convert 
  

   their 
  vessels 
  for 
  use 
  in 
  other 
  fisheries, 
  such 
  as 
  the 
  shrimp 
  or 
  sablefish 
  pot 
  fisheries. 
  

  

  Mackerel 
  fishery 
  . 
  In 
  California, 
  the 
  only 
  Pacific 
  Coast 
  State 
  with 
  a 
  mackerel 
  fishery, 
  the 
  com- 
  

   bined 
  landings 
  of 
  Pacific 
  and 
  jack 
  mackerel 
  were 
  48.4 
  million 
  pounds 
  — 
  a 
  decrease 
  of 
  5.9 
  million 
  

   compared 
  with 
  1969. 
  The 
  jack 
  mackerel 
  fishery 
  (47.7 
  million 
  pounds) 
  declined 
  for 
  the 
  third 
  suc- 
  

   cessive 
  year, 
  although 
  the 
  fish 
  were 
  fairly 
  plentiful 
  on 
  the 
  fishing 
  grounds. 
  Fishermen 
  lost 
  no 
  time 
  

   in 
  price 
  disputes 
  or 
  contract 
  negotiations, 
  but 
  many 
  of 
  them 
  preferred 
  to 
  fish 
  for 
  anchovies 
  instead 
  

   of 
  jack 
  mackerel. 
  

  

  Landings 
  of 
  Pacific 
  mackerel 
  (622,000 
  pounds) 
  were 
  74 
  percent 
  less 
  than 
  in 
  1969, 
  and 
  far 
  

   below 
  the 
  record 
  146.4 
  million 
  pounds 
  taken 
  in 
  1935, 
  In 
  an 
  effort 
  to 
  conserve 
  the 
  dwindling 
  Pa- 
  

   cific 
  mackerel 
  resource, 
  the 
  California 
  State 
  Legislature 
  approved 
  legislation 
  prohibiting 
  commer- 
  

   cial 
  fishing 
  for 
  Pacific 
  mackerel 
  for 
  2 
  years. 
  The 
  law 
  became 
  effective 
  in 
  August 
  1970. 
  

  

  Halibut. 
  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, 
  Canadian 
  

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

  

  U.S. 
  Pacific 
  halibut 
  landings 
  of 
  34.3 
  million 
  pounds 
  (round 
  weight) 
  worth 
  $8.7 
  million 
  in- 
  

   creased 
  1.1 
  million 
  pounds 
  but 
  declined 
  $222,000 
  compared 
  with 
  1969. 
  Alaska 
  landings 
  of 
  28.3 
  

   million 
  pounds 
  were 
  24 
  percent 
  more 
  than 
  in 
  1969. 
  As 
  halibut 
  receipts 
  increased 
  at 
  Kodiak 
  and 
  

   other 
  Alaska 
  ports, 
  they 
  declined 
  to 
  an 
  alltime 
  low 
  at 
  Seattle, 
  Washington. 
  Washington 
  landings 
  

   of 
  5.9 
  million 
  pounds 
  were 
  43 
  percent 
  less 
  than 
  in 
  1969. 
  The 
  pattern 
  of 
  landings 
  changed 
  princi- 
  

   pally 
  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 
  fish- 
  

   ing 
  areas, 
  and 
  to 
  make 
  additional 
  fishing 
  trips 
  in 
  the 
  time 
  formerly 
  lost 
  in 
  the 
  long 
  run 
  to 
  Seattle. 
  

   Halibut 
  prices 
  continued 
  firm 
  in 
  197 
  until 
  the 
  end 
  of 
  the 
  season 
  when 
  mounting 
  frozen 
  halibut 
  in- 
  

   ventories 
  caused 
  a 
  sharp 
  decline 
  in 
  exvessel 
  prices. 
  Pacific 
  Coast 
  fishermen 
  received 
  an 
  average 
  

   price 
  of 
  25.4 
  cents 
  per 
  pound 
  in 
  1970 
  — 
  1-1/2 
  cents 
  less 
  than 
  in 
  1969. 
  

  

  Snow 
  crabs 
  . 
  Landings 
  of 
  a 
  record 
  14.5 
  million 
  pounds 
  were 
  worth 
  $1.4 
  million 
  — 
  an 
  increase 
  of 
  

   29 
  percent 
  in 
  quantity 
  and 
  25 
  percent 
  in 
  value 
  compared 
  with 
  1969. 
  The 
  continuing 
  decline 
  inking 
  

   crab 
  landings 
  has 
  resulted 
  in 
  a 
  growing 
  interest 
  in 
  the 
  snow 
  crab 
  resource. 
  Snow 
  crabs 
  can 
  be 
  

   taken 
  with 
  the 
  same 
  gear 
  and 
  processed 
  in 
  the 
  same 
  facilities 
  as 
  king 
  crabs. 
  Also 
  like 
  king 
  crabs, 
  

   they 
  area 
  quality 
  seafood 
  that 
  can 
  help 
  satisfy 
  the 
  consumer 
  desire 
  for 
  crab 
  meat. 
  In 
  197 
  0, 
  Alaska 
  

   packers 
  supplemented 
  the 
  shortage 
  of 
  king 
  crab 
  meat 
  with 
  a 
  record 
  pack 
  (42,527 
  standard 
  cases) 
  

   of 
  snow 
  crab 
  meat. 
  

  

  In 
  197 
  0, 
  the 
  U.S. 
  Food 
  and 
  Drug 
  Administration 
  ruled 
  that 
  "snow" 
  has 
  been 
  the 
  usual 
  

   name 
  used 
  to 
  designate 
  crab 
  meat 
  produced 
  from 
  species 
  of 
  Chionoecetes, 
  and 
  that 
  all 
  canned 
  

   products 
  must 
  be 
  so 
  labeled. 
  

  

  