(a) In this
chapter, a spring salmon troll fishery means a fishery that is
(1) opened and closed by emergency
order;
(2) restricted in
area;
(3) designated by number so
that each opening in a specific body of water is uniquely identified for catch
reporting purposes.
(b)
The department shall manage the spring salmon troll fisheries to target Alaska
hatchery-produced king salmon.
(c)
The department shall conduct the spring salmon troll fisheries each year before
the opening of the general summer salmon troll season.
(d) In its management of the spring fisheries
under this section, the department shall
(1)
first consider changes in the previous years' spring fisheries; the department
shall open the fisheries if they meet the following requirements:
(A) a directed fishery may occur only if an
Alaska hatchery return is expected to exceed broodstock requirements;
(B) at least one spring fishery shall be
conducted annually, targeting the king salmon returning to each Alaska hatchery
that meets its broodstock requirements;
(C) in order to continue the fishery each
year without modification of areas previously established, the contribution
rate of Alaska hatcherv-produced salmon stocks to the directed fishery harvest
must exceed 20 percent;
(D) the
department shall manage each spring salmon troll fishery as follows:
(i) no more than 1,000 non-Alaska
hatchery-produced salmon may be taken in a fishery if the percentage of Alaska
hatchery-produced salmon taken in that fishery is less than 25 percent of the
king salmon taken in that fishery;
(ii) no more than 2,000 non-Alaska
hatchery-produced salmon may be taken in a fishery if the percentage of Alaska
hatchery-produced salmon taken in that fishery is at least 25 percent but less
than 35 percent of the king salmon taken in that fishery;
(iii) no more than 3,000 non-Alaska
hatchery-produced salmon may be taken in a fishery if the percentage of Alaska
hatchery-produced salmon taken in that fishery is at least 35 percent but less
than 50 percent of the king salmon taken in that fishery;
(iv) no more than 5,000 non-Alaska
hatchery-produced salmon may be taken in a fishery if the percentage of Alaska
hatchery-produced salmon taken in that fishery is at least 50 percent but less
than 66 percent of the king salmon taken in that fishery;
(v) there is no limit on the number of
non-Alaska hatchery-produced salmon that may be taken in a fishery if the
percentage of Alaska hatchery-produced salmon taken in that fishery is 66
percent or more of the king salmon taken in that fishery;
(E) if the requirements of (A) - (D) of this
paragraph are met, the department shall open the spring salmon troll fisheries
until no later than one day before the opening of the summer salmon troll
fishery;
(2) consider
additional fishing periods based on the best scientific data and on input from
salmon trollers;
(3) if the
preseason king salmon abundance index determined by the Chinook Technical
Committee of the Pacific Salmon Commission is at least 1.15 and the amount of
the winter troll fishery guideline harvest level remaining on May 1 is 10,000
or more king salmon, apply the following provisions:
(A) if the guideline harvest level remaining
is at least 10,000 king salmon but not more than 15,000 king salmon, 250
additional non-Alaska hatchery-produced salmon will be added to the maximum
allowable number of non-Alaska hatchery-produced salmon to be taken as provided
in (2)(D) of this subsection;
(B)
if the guideline harvest level remaining is more than 15,000 king salmon, 500
additional non-Alaska hatchery-produced salmon will be added to the maximum
allowable number of non-Alaska hatchery-produced salmon to be taken as provided
in (2)(D) of this subsection.
(e) Repealed 6/14/2000.
(f) Repealed 5/31/2009.
(g) Repealed 7/1/2015.
(h) Notwithstanding (a) - (d) of this
section, in Snow Passage the commissioner may, by emergency order, extend the
length of weekly fishing periods during the spring fishery to maximize the
harvest of hatchery coho salmon returning to the Neck Lake release
site.
(i) The commissioner may
open, by emergency order, a spring salmon troll fishery for one day per week
during May and June in the Yakutat Bay area east of a line from Point Manby to
Ocean Cape, with a maximum harvest of 1,000 king salmon.
(j) The commissioner may open, by emergency
order, a fishing season during which two or more adjacent spring salmon troll
fishery areas and those area's harvest caps, as specified in (d)(1)(D) of this
section for non-Alaska hatchery salmon, are combined if each of the areas has
Alaska hatchery compositions of 25 percent or greater for three or more
consecutive seasons.
(k) The
operator of a salmon troll vessel shall keep the fish caught in each spring
fishery separate from any other fish on board the vessel. A fish buyer shall
issue a separate fish ticket for fish caught in each spring fishery. If the
commissioner determines that a provision of this subsection is frequently
violated, the department may require that fish from only one spring fishery be
on board a vessel at any one time.
(l) A CFEC permit holder that participates in
a spring salmon troll fishery must offload all fish from the CFEC permit
holder's vessel before participating in the summer salmon troll
fishery.