5 AAC 35.507. Kodiak, Chignik, and South Peninsula Districts

(a) In the Kodiak, Chignik, and South Peninsula Districts, a commercial C. bairdi Tanner crab fishery may open only if analysis of preseason survey data indicates that the subject population

(1) meets or exceeds the threshold level of mature male abundance specified in (b) of this section for the district or sections of a district, which is one-half the long-term average of mature male abundance; and

(2) in the Chignik District or a section of the South Peninsula District, is sufficient to provide a guideline harvest level of 200,000 pounds or more as calculated under (d) of this section; or

(3) in the Kodiak District, is sufficient to provide a guideline harvest level of 400,000 pounds or more as calculated under (d) of this section; or

(4) in a section of the Kodiak District, is sufficient to provide a guideline harvest level of 100,000 pounds or more as calculated under (d) of this section.

(b) The threshold levels of mature male abundance, in numbers of crab, for the following districts and sections of a district are:

(1) Kodiak District: (A) Northeast Section 1,123,000 (B) Eastside Section 1,552,000 (C) Southeast Section 733,000 (D) Southwest Section 1,236,000 (E) Westside Section 764,000 (F) North Mainland Section 1,469,000 (2) Chignik District: 973,000 (3) South Peninsula District: (A) Eastern Section 2,015,000 (B) Western Section 1,250,000

(1) at least two sections of the Kodiak District must meet or exceed the threshold level requirements in (a) of this section before a fishery may be opened in the district;

(2) in the South Mainland Section, the fishery will open if at least two adjacent sections are open and will close when both of the adjacent sections are closed;

(3) in the Semidi Island Overlap Section,

(A) the fishery will open when either the Southwest Section of the Kodiak District or the Chignik District is opened;

(B) the owner, or the owner's agent, of a vessel must register with the department before fishing in the Semidi Island Overlap Section and may not be simultaneously registered to fish in other sections of the Kodiak District or the Chignik District;

(D) a vessel operator must either provide daily reports via radio of the vessel's catch, catch location, and effort, or maintain logbooks that include the vessel's catch, catch locations, and effort; and

(E) the commissioner may close, by emergency order, the Semidi Island Overlap Section based on fishery performance.

(d) If the commercial C. bairdi Tanner crab fishery in the Chignik District, a section of the South Peninsula District, or a section of the Kodiak District is opened under (a) or (c) of this section and the threshold level of abundance

(1) is equal to or less than the long-term average of mature male abundance, the guideline harvest level will be no more than 10 percent of the molting mature male abundance and no more than 30 percent of the legal size male abundance;

(2) exceeds the long-term average of mature male abundance, the guideline harvest level will be no more than 20 percent of the molting mature male abundance and no more than 30 percent of the legal size male abundance.

(e) If the commercial fishery in any district or section of a district is not opened because it did not meet the threshold level requirements of (a) of this section, the fishery will reopen the following season only if an analysis of preseason survey data indicates that the population is sufficient to provide a guideline harvest level that is twice or more the poundage of the guideline harvest levels listed in (a)(2) - (4) for the district or section, and only half of the season's calculated guideline harvest level may be harvested. If any district or section remains closed for an additional season only because the increased guideline harvest level requirements of this subsection are not met, the fishery may open the following season if the threshold level requirements of (a) are met.

(f) In implementing this harvest strategy, the board directs the department to consider the reliability of the estimates of abundance of C. bairdi Tanner crab, the manageability of the fishery, and other factors deemed necessary to be consistent with sustained yield principles, and to use the best scientific information available.

(g) The long-term average of mature male abundance, in numbers of crab, for each of the following districts and sections of districts are:

(1) Kodiak District: (A) Northeast Section 2,246,000 (B) Eastside Section 3,104,000 (C) Southeast Section 1,466,000 (D) Southwest Section 2,472,000 (E) Westside Section 1,528,000 (F) North Mainland Section 2,938,000 (2) Chignik District: 1,946,000 (3) South Peninsula District: (A) Eastern Section 4,030,000 (B) Western Section 2,500,000

(h) For the purposes of this section,

(1) "long-term average of mature male abundance" means the long-term average of the estimated abundance of male C. bairdi Tanner crab greater than 114 millimeters in carapace width;

(2) "molting mature male abundance" means the estimated abundance of 100 percent of newshell, and 15 percent of oldshell C. bairdi Tanner crab that are more than 114 millimeters in carapace width.

History: Eff. 8/8/99, Register 151; am 3/11/2001, Register 157; am 8/14/2005, Register 175

Authority: AS 16.05.251

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