Members of the Alaska Board of Fisheries have adopted several proposals establishing new sport, personal use and subsistence fishing regulations for shellfish in Prince William Sound, Cook Inlet and the North Gulf Coast.
For the Prince William Sound the state fisheries board adopted a reporting requirement on sport and subsistence shrimp permits. Individuals that fail to report harvest by Oct. 15 will be denied a permit the following season unless they return harvest information and demonstrate that the failure to report was due to unavoidable circumstances.
The fisheries board also adopted new regulations for statewide squid fisheries; hardshell clams in Kachemak Bay, Cook Inlet and the North Gulf Coast; razor clams in West Cook Inlet and the North Gulf Coast; and razor clams in East Cook Inlet.
The Alaska Department of Fish and Game will be conducting razor clam abundance surveys at Clam Gulch and Ninilchik from mid-April through mid-May and will announce later in May if adult abundances are sufficient to open the new limited fishery.
For additional information, please contact Homer Area Management Biologist Mike Booz 907-235-8191 or Prince William Sound Area Management Biologist Jay Baumer at 907-267-2265.
