AKFish,
When I mentioned fishermen helping to destroy Alaska I was basically referring to the sport fish guys that fly up to fishing lodges, kill all the fish they can, but them in a box and fly them home to Nebraska, Pennsylvania or wherever. Also the bear hunters don't know the difference between cubs and adult bears on POW Is. Some of the stuff the outside sportsmen are doing in AK is sickening.
Eric, its a balance I think.
We boat out of Seward, along with several other TF members.
What I see is two sided. The charters load up every morning and go out fishing. Lots of party boats with probably 10 or 15 people fishing, each in search of a limit of halibut.
Halibut fishing, and even worse Ling Cod fishing is pretty pitiful within the day trip range of these boats. They kill all they see. Salmon fishing is different. Stocked salmon return in huge numbers and represent a resource that is replenished annually.
I do not like what the charters do and have done, and I see it every day at the harbor.
The other side is the jobs produced. Seward has what appears to be a thriving tourisim based economy. Lots of people at work earning a living in Seward. From the boat mechanics, to the boat cleaners, to the folks that own or work in businesses that support tourisim.
There is no good answer. The only answer is to create a sustainable harvest limit to insure long term viability of fish stocks. I'm not sure we're there yet, but I know the question is on everyones mind that enjoys or depends on that part of Alaska's ocean resources.