Directed - IPHC Regulatory Area 2C, 3 & 4

Directed - IPHC Regulatory Areas 2C, 3, 4

Alaska—Directed Commercial Fisheries

Open: 10 March 2023 at 1200h local time

Closed: 7 December 2023 at 1200h local time

IPHC Regulatory Areas 2C, 3, and 4 are located in Alaskan waters. The IPHC sets the overall total allowable catch and season (called the “fishing period” in IPHC regulations). The North Pacific Fishery Management Council and the National Marine Fisheries Service then allocate Pacific halibut among user groups, some through Catch Sharing Plans.

Alaska’s directed Pacific halibut fishery operates under an individual fishing quota (IFQ) system, where each permit holder is allocated a percentage of the specific regulatory area’s catch limit to harvest at any time over an extended fishing season, historically March to November. The landed catch in 2021, weighing in at 8,151 tonnes (17,971,000 pounds), accounted for the majority of the total directed commercial landings (76%). Regulatory Area 3A again had the highest catch limit and landed catch level in 2021, with 40% of the Alaskan commercial catch landed in the ports of Homer, Seward, and Kodiak. Homer received the largest portion of the Alaskan commercial catch, with 1,478 tonnes (3,258,000 pounds) (18%). Seward received 911 tonnes (2,008,000 pounds) (11%) of catch, and 849 tonnes (1,872,000 pounds) (10%) were landed in Kodiak. In Southeast Alaska (Regulatory Area 2C), Juneau, Sitka, and Petersburg, in that order, received the three largest commercial landed pounds. In 2021, the IFQ landings were highest in May, with 15 percent of poundage from Alaska landed in that month. The links below provide specific data and details for the IFQ fishery in Alaska.

Commercial fisheries data organized by IPHC Regulatory Area, year, and sector is available here.

Links

Pending Alaska Landing Information

IFQ landing reports - RAM site - poundage landed

Regulations, Acts, Treaties, And Agreements For Federal Fisheries In Alaska - NOAA site

Average ex-vessel prices - NOAA site

NMFS Fishery Market News – Current conditions affecting the trade in fish and fishery products

NOAA Vessel Monitoring Systems (VMS) in Alaska

Alaska Regulations on Seabird Avoidance and Listed Seabirds - NMFS site

Marine Forecasts from the National Weather Service (Alaska Region)