Expect a smaller salmon catch this year

The Alaska Department of Fish and Game is forecasting a commercial harvest of 125.5 million salmon this year.

If realized, a harvest of that size would be considerably less than last year's haul of 197.4 million salmon.

A much smaller catch of pink salmon is anticipated this year, which largely accounts for the lower forecast.

Three in line for seats on Board of Fisheries

Gov. Mike Dunleavy has picked three individuals for service on the Board of Fisheries. Here are letters the governor sent to each.

Josh Hayes

Blair Hickson

Mike Wood

Wood already holds a seat on the board, so this would be a reappointment in his case.

The other two are newcomers, and Deckboss doesn't know much about them. They would replace two board members who are not seeking reappointment — Greg Svendsen and Gerad Godfrey.

So far, the governor's picks haven't generated much talk, at least not publicly. They're subject to legislative confirmation, but we're not aware of any confirmation hearings thus far.

Could it be this slate of names is meeting some quiet resistance?

'Increasingly unpredictable and unstable'

Four legislators are unhappy with the Alaska Board of Fisheries and have fired off this pointed letter.

USDA Office of Seafood established

Here's a press release.

The Magnuson-Stevens Act at 50

Here's a leadership message from Eugenio Piñeiro Soler, head of the National Marine Fisheries Service.

It's showtime in Kodiak

ComFish Alaska 2026 is set for tomorrow through Saturday in Kodiak.

For more information about the big trade show, click here.

Suit targets pollock trawlers as threat to fur seals

The Center for Biological Diversity is suing the National Marine Fisheries Service for "failing to prevent northern fur seals on St. Paul Island from declining because of prey competition with the Bering Sea's massive pollock trawl fishery," says this press release.