Section 5.09.366. Post-June Salmon Management Plan for the South Alaska Peninsula.

	(a)  The purpose of this management plan is to provide management guidelines to the department for the management of the post-June salmon fisheries along the South Alaska Peninsula, to provide for the harvest of local stocks in terminal harvest areas, and to establish fishing periods for the South Alaska Peninsula salmon fisheries outside of terminal harvest areas.  
	(b)  The commissioner shall establish, to the extent practicable, concurrent fishing periods in the Southeastern, South Central, Southwestern, and Unimak Districts.  
	(c)  Fishing periods may be established under this section only as follows:  
		(1) except as specified in (d), for July, from 7:00 a.m. to 9:00 p.m.;  
		(2) for August, from 8:00 a.m. to 9:00 p.m.;  
		(3) for September and October, from 9:00 a.m. to 8:00 p.m.;  
		(4) repealed 1/15/2003.  
	(d)  Notwithstanding (c)(1) of this section, from July 6 through July 31, the commissioner may establish, by emergency order, fishing periods as follows:  
		(1) the first fishing period will begin at 6:00 a.m. and run 33 hours until 3:00 p.m. the following day; commercial fishing will then close for 63 hours and reopen under (2) of this subsection;  
		(2) following the closure under (1) of this subsection, commercial fishing periods will begin at 6:00 a.m. and close at 6:00 p.m. the following day; commercial fishing will then close for 60 hours and reopen at 6:00 a.m. three days later.  
	(e)  Repealed 6/4/2004.  
	(f)  Notwithstanding any other provision of this section, the commissioner may open, by emergency order, the following terminal harvest areas to salmon fishing from July 6 through July 21:  
		(1) the Shumagin Islands Section of the Southeastern District, waters of Zachary Bay south of the latitude of 55_ 22.60' N. lat.; fishing periods shall be established based on the abundance of pink and chum salmon stocks;  
		(2) the East and West Pavlof Bay Sections of the South Central District, waters north of the latitude of Black Point (55_ 24.48' N. lat.); fishing periods shall be established based on the abundance of pink and chum salmon stocks;  
		(3) the Canoe Bay Section of the South Central District; fishing periods shall be established based on the abundance of pink and chum salmon stocks;  
		(4) in the Cold Bay, Thin Point, and Morzhovoi Bay Sections of the Southwestern District as follows:  
			(A) fishing periods in the Cold Bay Section shall be established based on the abundance of sockeye and chum salmon stocks;  
			(B) fishing periods in the Thin Point Cove and Morzhovoi Bay Sections shall be established based on the abundance of sockeye salmon stocks.  
	(g)  Notwithstanding any other provision of this section, the commissioner may open, by emergency order, the terminal harvest areas specified in (f) of this section and the following terminal harvest areas to salmon fishing from July 22 through July 31:  
		(1) repealed 6/1/2013;  
		(2) repealed 6/1/2013;  
		(3) the Mino Creek-Little Coal Bay Section of the South Central District; fishing periods shall be established based on the abundance of local pink and chum salmon stocks;  
		(4) the Belkofski Bay Section of the Southwestern District; fishing periods shall be established based on the abundance of local pink and chum salmon stocks;  
		(5) the Deer Island Section of the Southwestern District; fishing periods shall be established based on the abundance of local pink salmon stocks.  
	(h)  The commissioner may open, by emergency order, the commercial salmon fishery in the South Alaska Peninsula as follows:  
		(1) from August 1 through August 31, fishing periods shall be based on the abundance of local sockeye, coho, pink, and chum salmon stocks;  
		(2) from September 1 through October 31, fishing periods shall be based on abundance of coho salmon stocks, although the department may consider the abundance of late pink and chum salmon stocks.  
	(i)  The department shall conduct a seine test fishery in the Shumagin Islands Section to assess the presence of immature salmon. If 100 or more immature salmon, per set, are present, the commissioner shall close, by emergency order, the seine fishery in an area to be determined by the department. If the seine fishery is closed in an area under this subsection, the set gillnet fishery shall remain open in that area. For the purposes of this subsection, "immature salmon, per set, are present" means the number of immature king, sockeye, coho, and chum salmon observed to be gilled in the seine web.  
	(j)  Notwithstanding (c) and (d) of this section, commercial salmon fishing will close in the waters of the Volcano Bay Section of the Southwestern District south and east of a line from Arch Point at 55_ 12.30' N. lat., 161_ 54.30' W. long. to a point on Belkofski Peninsula at 55_ 09.50' N. lat., 161_ 57.80' W. long. and in the portion of the West Pavlof Bay Section south of Black Point (55_ 24.48' N. lat.), if the harvest of sockeye salmon from the South Central District, the Volcano Bay Section of the Southwestern District, and the Belkofski Bay Section, excluding those waters inside of a line between Vodapoini Point and Bold Cape, from the opening of the commercial salmon season through July 25 reaches 191,000 sockeye salmon based on fish ticket information. If the waters described in this subsection are closed, that portion of the West Pavlof Bay Section south of Black Point (55_ 24.48' N. lat.) will reopen to commercial salmon fishing on July 17 consistent with (c) and (d) of this section.  

Authorities

16.05.060;16.05.251

Notes

Authority

AS 16.05.060 AS 16.05.251

History

Eff. 5/28/92, Register 122; am 4/18/96, Register 138; am 5/31/98, Register 146; am 6/22/2001, Register 158; am 1/15/2003, Register 165; am 6/4/2004, Register 170; am 2/16/2006, Register 177; am 6/2/2010, Register 194; am 6/1/2013, Register 206; am 6/5/2016, Register 218