Current through August 30, 2024
(a) The management
plan in this section governs the harvest of Pacific cod in the Prince William
Sound Area.
(b) Each year the
commissioner
(1) shall open and close, by
emergency order, a parallel season for mechanical jigging machine and hand
troll gear, groundfish pot gear, and longline gear in the Prince William Sound
Area to coincide with the initial federal season in the federal Central Gulf of
Alaska Area, as follows:
(A) the parallel
season for mechanical jigging machine and hand troll gear will coincide with
the initial federal season for jig gear;
(B) the parallel season for groundfish pot
gear will coincide with the initial federal season for pot gear;
(C) the parallel season for longline gear
will coincide with the initial federal season for hook and line gear operated
from vessels less than 50 feet in overall length;
(2) may open and close, by emergency order, a
parallel season for mechanical jigging machine and hand troll gear, groundfish
pot gear, and longline gear in the Prince William Sound Area to coincide with
the federal Central Gulf of Alaska Area "B" season, as follows:
(A) the parallel season for mechanical
jigging machine and hand troll gear will coincide with the federal "B" season
for jig gear;
(B) the parallel
season for groundfish pot gear will coincide with the federal "B" season for
pot gear;
(C) the parallel season
for longline gear will coincide with the federal "B" season for hook and line
gear operated from vessels less than 50 feet in overall length.
(c) The commissioner
shall open and close, by emergency order, a state-waters season for mechanical
jigging machine and hand troll gear, groundfish pot gear, and longline gear in
the Prince William Sound Area, as follows:
(1) for mechanical jigging machine and hand
troll gear, the state-waters season will open 24 hours following the closure of
the initial federal season in the Central Gulf of Alaska Area for jig gear and
will close when the mechanical jigging machine and hand troll gear and
groundfish pot gear allocation, as calculated under (e)(1) of this section, is
taken, a parallel season for mechanical jigging machine and hand troll gear is
opened under (b)(2) of this section, or December 31, whichever occurs first;
(2) for groundfish pot gear, the
state-waters season will open 24 hours following the closure of the initial
federal season in the Central Gulf of Alaska Area for groundfish pot gear and
will close when the mechanical jigging machine and hand troll gear and
groundfish pot gear allocation, as calculated under (e)(1) of this section, is
taken, a parallel season for groundfish pot gear is opened under (b)(2) of this
section, or December 31, whichever occurs first;
(3) for longline gear, the state-waters
season will open seven days following the closure of the initial federal season
in the Central Gulf of Alaska Area for hook and line gear operated from vessels
less than 50 feet in overall length or concurrent with the individual fishing
quota halibut season opening date, whichever occurs later, and will close when
the longline gear allocation, as calculated under (e)(1) of this section, is
taken, a parallel season for longline gear is opened under (b)(2) of this
section, or December 31, whichever occurs first;
(4) if there is any guideline harvest level
remaining on September 1, the commissioner may close, by emergency order, the
state-waters season and immediately reopen a state-waters season to all legal
gear on September 1 or following a parallel season closure; the state-waters
season will close on December 31 or when the guideline harvest level is
reached, whichever occurs first; if the season is closed and immediately
reopened under this paragraph, a vessel participating in the state-waters
season when it was closed will not be required to comply with the landing
requirements specified in
5
AAC 28.371 until the season is closed again.
(d) The commissioner
may open and close, by emergency order, fishing seasons at times other than
those specified in this section if the commissioner determines it is necessary
to
(1) adapt to unanticipated openings or
closures of the federal season;
(2)
maintain sustained yield management;
(3) provide for orderly fisheries;
or
(4) allow for a concurrent
state-waters season and federal season for Pacific cod based on inseason
assessment of effort, harvest rate, or remaining Pacific cod quota.
(e) During a state-waters season,
(1) the guideline harvest level for Pacific
cod in the Prince William Sound Area is 25 percent of the estimated total
allowable harvest of Pacific cod for the federal Eastern Gulf of Alaska Area;
mechanical jigging machine and hand troll gear and groundfish pot gear is
allocated 15 percent of the guideline harvest level and longline gear is
allocated 85 percent of the guideline harvest level, except that if
(A) guideline harvest level allocated to the
mechanical jigging machine and hand troll gear and groundfish pot gear
allocation is taken in any calendar year, the mechanical jigging machine and
hand troll gear and groundfish pot gear allocation will increase by five
percent beginning the following calendar year to a maximum of 30 percent of the
guideline harvest level and the longline allocation will decrease by a
corresponding five percent the following calendar year to a minimum of 70
percent of the guideline harvest level; and
(B) guideline harvest level allocated to the
mechanical jigging machine and hand troll gear and groundfish pot gear is not
taken in any calendar year, the mechanical jigging machine and hand troll gear
and groundfish pot gear allocation will decrease by five percent beginning the
following calendar year to a minimum of 15 percent of the guideline harvest
level and the longline allocation will increase by a corresponding five percent
the following calendar year to a maximum of 85 percent of the guideline harvest
level;
(2) Pacific cod
may be taken in the waters of the Prince William Sound Area described in
5
AAC 28.205, except those waters of the Eastern Section
east of 146º 15.12' W. long.;
(3) Pacific cod may be taken only with
groundfish pots, mechanical jigging machines, hand troll gear, and longline
gear, as follows:
(A) except as provided in
(g) of this section, no more than 60 groundfish pots may be operated from a
vessel registered to fish for Pacific cod;
(B) no more than five mechanical jigging
machines may be operated from a vessel registered to fish for Pacific
cod;
(C) in addition to the
requirements of
5
AAC 28.020, a vessel must be registered to fish with
mechanical jigging machines and hand troll gear (jig gear), pot gear, or
longline gear, and may not simultaneously be registered to fish with more than
one gear type; a vessel's gear registration may be changed during a
state-waters season to a different gear registration if the owner, or the
owner's agent, submits a written request for a change in registration by mail,
facsimile, or in person, to the department office in Cordova, or other
locations specified by the department, for validation, and that registration
has been validated by the department.
(f) During a state-waters season for Pacific
cod, the Prince William Sound Area is
(1) an
exclusive registration area for a vessel validly registered to take Pacific cod
with groundfish pot gear or longline gear; and
(2) a nonexclusive registration area for a
vessel validly registered to take Pacific cod with mechanical jigging machine
and hand troll gear.
(g) If at any time after October 30 the
commissioner determines that the guideline harvest level will not be reached by
December 31, the commissioner may close, by emergency order, the state-waters
season and immediately reopen a state-waters season during which the following
shall be implemented to increase the harvest to achieve the guideline harvest
level:
(1) removal of the limits on the
number of groundfish pots and mechanical jigging machines that may be operated
from a vessel;
(2) if needed,
designation of the Prince William Sound Area as a nonexclusive registration
area for Pacific cod.
(h) If the state-waters season is closed and
immediately reopened under (g) of this section, a vessel participating in the
state-waters season when it was closed will not be required to comply with the
landing requirements of
5
AAC 28.271 until the season is closed again.
(i) Notwithstanding the provisions of
5
AAC 28.070, the commissioner may, by emergency order,
open a fishing season under this subsection in which the bycatch amounts
allowed during a directed fishery are increased. During a fishing season opened
under this subsection, in addition to the allowance of bycatch of other species
specified in
5
AAC 28.070, the bycatch allowance of Pacific cod may
be up to 20 percent of the directed finfish species on board a vessel using
groundfish pot gear, mechanical jigging machine and hand troll gear, or
longline gear. The landed weight of Pacific cod taken as bycatch may not exceed
20 percent of the directed finfish species on board the vessel. The
commissioner may, by emergency order, close and immediately reopen a season in
which the bycatch limit for any species is reduced.
(j) If a state-waters season and a federal
season for Pacific cod are opened concurrently for the same gear type or for a
different gear type,
(1) a vessel may not
participate in a state-waters season and any other Pacific cod season at the
same time;
(2) a vessel's
registration for the state-waters season in the Prince William Sound Area must
be invalidated and all groundfish on board that vessel must be landed before
that vessel may participate in any other concurrent Pacific cod
season;
(3) registration for a
state-waters season may only occur in person or by facsimile from 8:00 a.m. to
5:00 p.m. on a working day at the department office in Cordova, or other
locations specified by the department; and
(4) all groundfish on board a vessel must be
landed before that vessel may be registered for a Prince William Sound Area
state-waters season for Pacific cod.
(k) An operator of a vessel participating in
a parallel Pacific cod season in the Prince William Sound Area may not operate
gear in any other registration area during the same trip.
Authority:AS
16.05.060
AS
16.05.251
