After three of the workers tested positive for the coronavirus, all 150 of the workers were told they would have to quarantine without pay, the lawsuit alleges.
Snowmelt from a good snow year is keeping water temperatures lower, and the sockeye are late to arrive.
Optimists hope things will be normal once boats are on the water and the sockeyes show up.
Cordova’s first-in-the-state salmon fishery will be a test of whether health mandates, corporate protocols and government planning can prevent a coronavirus outbreak in the isolated Prince William Sound community.
These are extraordinary times for Alaska’s seafood industry, which each year delivers more than half of the U.S. harvest from coastal and offshore waters.
State guidelines say only the smallest, most isolated towns and villages can restrict travel or require mandatory quarantine for workers in critical industries.
Eleven seafood companies released a letter “to confirm our commitment that we are prioritizing health and safety” of local communities during the coronavirus crisis.
Fish Factor: Alaska led all states in the value of landings at $1.8 billion, or 32% of the total U.S. value, according to NOAA Fisheries.
Alaska and Russia harvest many of the same fish and crab species, and many Russian seafood products compete in the U.S. at much lower prices.
A new report gives a fishing snapshot by region, including employment rates and tax revenues, and breaks down the industry’s impacts to the nation and the world.
Some of the biggest fisheries get underway on Jan. 1.
A catch quota of about 5.6 million pounds, down from 10.2 million pounds, will be split among several regions, with limitations on gear and staggered openers.
Fish Factor: A deck of clever cards is teaching people about one of Alaska’s most popular yet fragile fishing favorites.
Through 2019, Alaskans have applied for more than 2,000 acres of new or expanding undersea farms, double the footprint from two years ago.
An International Pacific Halibut Commission scientist said that "we’re looking at a period of relatively low productivity for the Pacific halibut stock over the next three years.”
Alaska’s salmon season was worth $657.6 million to fishermen this year, a 10% increase from the 2018 fishery.
More than 220 Southeast fishermen signed a letter to the Trump administration opposing the abrupt push to exempt the Tongass National Forest from a roadless rule in place for over a decade.
They may be cute, but the voracious appetites of sea otters continue to cause significant damage to some of Southeast Alaska’s most lucrative fisheries.
With an increasing number of fisheries disaster requests coming from across the U.S., members of Congress and the federal government are looking for ways to improve the relief process.
The real concern is the speed at which changes are occurring, says an official with the Alaska Fisheries Science Center.
