Bering Sea snow crab quota surges by 64 percent

Yesterday brought bad news on Bristol Bay red king crab, historically the state's most valuable crab crop.

Today comes good news on another major fishery, Bering Sea snow crab.

The total allowable catch for the upcoming season is 88.9 million pounds, up 64 percent from last season's 54.3 million pounds.

The season opens at noon Oct. 15, but typically the fleet waits until after the first of the year to take most of the crab.

Here's a press release from the Alaska Department of Fish and Game.

Bristol Bay red king crab quota cut nearly in half

The total allowable catch for the upcoming Bristol Bay red king crab season will be 7.8 million pounds.

That's a 47 percent cut from last season's TAC of 14.8 million pounds.

Here's a press release from the Alaska Department of Fish and Game.

The fishery opens at noon Oct. 15.

The department says it'll announce the TAC for Bering Sea snow crab as soon as tomorrow.

Yes, Moreland will replace Fuglvog

U.S. Sen. Lisa Murkowski, R-Alaska, today confirmed the hiring of Stefanie Moreland as fisheries aide, replacing Arne Fuglvog.

Use 'pirate' for gunnery practice, Begich says

Two crewmen from the seized fishing vessel Bangun Perkasa arrive in Dutch Harbor. They were transported aboard the Alaska State Troopers enforcement vessel Stimson. Troopers gave no explanation for the crewmen's odd attire: white coveralls, hairnets and facemasks. James Mason photo

"Now that this pirate ship is in custody I have one recommendation: the Coast Guard should sink the Bangun Perkasa."

That's the word from U.S. Sen. Mark Begich, an Alaska Democrat and chair of the Subcommittee on Oceans, Atmosphere, Fisheries and Coast Guard.

Here is Begich's letter to Coast Guard Commandant Robert J. Papp.

Seized ship to be de-ratted, maybe auctioned

The Bangun Perkasa, left, and the cutter Munro. USCG photo

A U.S. Coast Guard officer today briefed the North Pacific Fishery Management Council on what's planned for the suspected illegal high-seas driftnet vessel Bangun Perkasa.

A contractor today or tomorrow will begin "rat remediation" on the vessel at sea. Presumably this means extermination.

The de-ratting process will take a week. Meantime, the 22 crewmen aboard the vessel will be taken off and repatriated to their home countries.

Once rat-free, the Bangun Perkasa will be brought into Dutch Harbor, where National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration authorities will place the vessel under arrest.

Most likely, the ship will be auctioned. Its owner, said to be "in China somewhere," might buy the vessel back, and this could serve as the owner's fine, the Coast Guard officer said.

ASMI selects representative in Japan

Here's a brief announcement from the Alaska Seafood Marketing Institute website:

After an extensive RFP process that was conducted this summer, the Alaska Seafood Marketing Institute is pleased to announce that AVIAREPS Marketing Garden (Holdings) Ltd. of Tokyo, Japan was selected and will be its new In-Country representative in Japan to market Alaska Seafood effective Oct 1, 2011.

USCG rescues crewman with severe ankle injury

From the U.S. Coast Guard:

Sept. 30, 2011

Coast Guard conducts medevac of injured crewman

KODIAK — A Coast Guard MH-60 Jayhawk helicopter on Friday medevaced a crewman from the fishing vessel Tanusha 25 miles north of Kodiak.

The master of the Tanusha contacted the Coast Guard over VHF-FM Channel 16 at 3:05 p.m. requesting a medevac for a 44-year-old crewman who had suffered severe injuries to his left ankle when it became tangled in a line on deck.

The rescue helicopter arrived on scene at 4:30 p.m. and successfully hoisted the crewman aboard.

The helicopter returned to Air Station Kodiak at 6 p.m., and the injured man was taken to Providence Kodiak Island Medical Center.

The Tanusha is a 57-foot Kodiak-based fishing vessel. The crew was fishing on the west side of Afognak Island.