5 AAC 35.517. Bering Sea

(a) In the Bering Sea District, the commercial C. opilio Tanner crab fishery may open only if the department's analysis of preseason survey data indicates the population of C. opilio Tanner crab

(1) contains an estimated spawning biomass of at least 25 percent of B msy ; and

(2) has a minimum total allowable catch (not including the CDQ quota) for the commercial C. opilio Tanner crab fishery of at least 15 million pounds; neither the commercial C. opilio Tanner crab fishery or the CDQ fishery under 5 AAC 39.690 will open if the minimum total allowable catch is not met.

(b) If the estimated spawning biomass of C. opilio Tanner crab is

(1) at least 25 percent of B msy , but less than B msy , the total allowable catch will be (F msy /3+(B t -0.25 x B msy ) x 0.417 x F msy /(0.75 x B msy )) x 100 percent of the estimated mature male biomass or 58 percent of exploited legal males, whichever is less;

(2) at or above B msy , the total allowable catch will be (0.75 x F msy ) x 100 percent of the estimated mature male biomass or 58 percent of the exploited legal males, whichever is less.

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

(d) For the purposes of this section,

(1) "B msy " means the population biomass of mature male and female C. opilio Tanner crab that could produce maximum sustained yield under prevailing environmental conditions;

(2) "B t " means the biomass of mature male and female C. opilio Tanner crab in a given year;

(3) "estimated mature male biomass" means the estimated biomass of all morphometrically mature male C. opilio Tanner crab;

(4) "estimated spawning biomass" means the estimated biomass of all morphometrically mature male C. opilio Tanner crab and all morphometrically mature female C. opilio Tanner crab;

(5) "exploited legal males" means 100 percent of the new-shell male C. opilio Tanner crab that are at least 102 millimeters (four inches) in width of shell, plus a percentage of old-shell male C. opilio Tanner crab that are at least 102 millimeters in width of shell estimated at the time of the survey; the percentage of old-shell male C. opilio Tanner crab will be based on the expected fishery selectivity for old-shell verses new-shell male C. opilio Tanner crab;

(6) "F msy " means the fishing mortality of the mature male C. opilio Tanner crab stock that could produce maximum sustained yield under prevailing environmental conditions.

History: Eff. 8/31/2000, Register 155; am 8/24/2002, Register 163; am 8/14/2005, Register 175

Authority: AS 16.05.251

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