Those Greedy Commercial Guys are at it again

[squab]

http://newsminer.com/view/full_story...ce=alaska_news

Kodiak radio station KMXT reports the stand down is to allow chum salmon bound for the Arctic-Yukon-Kuskokwim areas to pass unmolested.



Read more: Fairbanks Daily News-Miner - Seine fleets in some Alaska communities stand down

Well i suppose their not ALL bad now are they?:topjob:

[fishNphysician]

For the record, that's two years in a row.

Good for them! :topjob:

[thewhop2000]

Right on, dudes and dudettes!!! I'm glad to see a little reasoning involving this fishery

[kodiakrain]

Great thread title, Irresistable

[kenaibow fan]

2 thumbs up for the comm guys!!!!!!!!

[ePatrick]

I'm not sure I understand what is going on here. They are letting more chum go? Is that good because more Chum will make it up the Yukon (for dog food?) or does this have something to do with sockeye runs as well?

[RustyMonkey]

A fish is a fish. If you live in a place that does not have a Fredy's or Carrs to supplement what you don’t catch I don’t think you would be feeding the chums to the dogs.

[bkmail]

The chum are caught as bycatch and make more work for the guys sorting the fish. Thus the commercial guys sit back and let the chums swim past so they don't fill the net with chums and have to toss them back as bycatch. All about economics if you ask me and it makes sense. Soon the chums will be upriver and they can fill their nets with a higher percentage of reds.
BK

[kenaibow fan]

well that is true, same reason the comm guys opened their nets for silvers and pinks last year on a pink year (kenai river).......pinks are going for about 3 dollars a can in the store right now. First time they did that in a long time! Kinda wondering what happens this year as Japan was the biggest importer of AK salmon from my understanding and with them in the sitation they are in, I wonder if it will make a difference this year?

[ePatrick]

A fish is a fish. If you live in a place that does not have a Fredy's or Carrs to supplement what you don’t catch I don’t think you would be feeding the chums to the dogs.

Thanks to each of you for the clarification. Please forgive my ignorance, I am new to fishing and have never eaten chum (that I know of.) I was only thinking of an article I read which stated that chum salmon are very popular along the yukon to harvest for sled dogs. That is the only thing I knew about them.

[Brian M]

The chum are caught as bycatch and make more work for the guys sorting the fish. Thus the commercial guys sit back and let the chums swim past so they don't fill the net with chums and have to toss them back as bycatch. All about economics if you ask me and it makes sense. Soon the chums will be upriver and they can fill their nets with a higher percentage of reds.
BK

That is not true that they throw them back as bycatch. The chums are sold just like the sockeye. Yes, they get less money per pound for chums, but the price for chums has been rising pretty significantly in recent years, particularly in light of the marketing of chums as "keta" in high-end restaurants and natural food markets. Yes, they have to be separated by workers at the processors, but they are sold and are valuable as a commercial catch. Sitting out of this fishery is absolutely a financial loss for these fishermen, not a financial gain. Not only are they not catching the less valuable chums, but they're also missing the reds that they would be catching otherwise.

[bkmail]

According to commentary by Rick Rydell on 650 AM in the mornings, they are tossing them back when caught. Maybe I completely misunderstood his comments though.
Soooo, if they are losing $ by NOT fishing, why aren't they fishing?
BK

[Brian M]

According to commentary by Rick Rydell on 650 AM in the mornings, they are tossing them back when caught. Maybe I completely misunderstood his comments though.
Soooo, if they are losing $ by NOT fishing, why aren't they fishing?
BK

Why would they toss them back when they can sell them? I've never fished out in the False Pass area, but every salmon fishery that I've ever been a part of or witnessed keeps all the salmon they catch - even when pinks were selling for two cents per pound.

From the way they tell it, they're not fishing because they're trying to do their part to help rebuild the depressed Yukon River chum returns. Perhaps there's not really an ulterior motive this time around.

[bkmail]

Appreciate the info Brian. Good for them helping out the returns, I stand corrected.
BK

[limon32]

I've read a few versions of this story and its my understanding they were indeed tossing them back, I wasn't there so I can't say for sure but that is what is being reported in a few outlets.

I HAVE seen with my own eyes, thousands of chums being thrown back in the river after their valuable eggs were removed, however that was in Washington. Some of the fish were "sold" to dog food manufacturers but less than half from what I saw.

In any case it is admirable that these commercial guys are standing by to allow the passage of fish that will benefit other folks in Alaska.