Fishing council rejects Alaska emergency red king crab rule that could have limited pollock, cod fishing

The North Pacific Fishery Management Council (NPFMC) will not move forward with an emergency rule that would have prohibited pollock, Pacific cod and other fishing in 2023 in important Alaska red king crab Bering Sea habitats.

The NPFMC on Friday reviewed an analysis of the issue that looked at closing two Bering Sea crab spawning areas to some or all gear types in order to address the historically low abundance of Bristol Bay red king.

The council found that while red king crab abundance is low, "the stock is not overfished and overfishing is not occurring, and the stock is regularly assessed."