February 5, 2025 — Halibut fishermen, sport charter operators, and subsistence users will all face lesser takes of the prized fish again this year as the Pacific stock continues to flounder.
That sums up the bleak news at the 101st Session of the IPHC Annual Meeting, which wrapped up on Friday in British Columbia.
“This year’s meeting was decidedly somber and tense as stakeholders grappled with the consequences of the lowest spawning biomass in 40 years,” said Maddie Lightsey of Alaska Boats and Permits in Homer. “There was consensus on the need for substantial cuts, resulting in a coastwide cut to total removals of 15.6 percent and a18 percent cut to the commercial catch limits.
The IPHC annual meeting report says that in terms of coastwide stock distribution, after increases in 2020-2021, the proportion of the stock in Biological Region 3 decreased in 2022-24 to the lowest estimate in the time series. This trend occurred in tandem with increases in Biological Region 2.