February 11, 2015 — The following was released by the Bristol Bay Seafood Development Association:
In January, Discovery/Animal Planet debuted a new “reality TV” show that follows five of the 1,747 Bristol Bay salmon permit holders that fished during the 2014 season. The Bristol Bay Regional Seafood Development Association (BBRSDA), which represents all the Bay’s salmon driftnet fishermen, would like to set the record straight on a few things.
FACTUAL ERRORS AND MISIMPRESSIONS PRESENTED BY BATTLE ON THE BAY
– Math: Discovery/Animal Planet’s press release about Battle on the Bay (BOTB) refers to Bristol Bay’s 2014 salmon run as having numbered 44 million, which is roughly accurate and represents another great season for the largest sockeye salmon run on the planet. In the same paragraph however, they refer to this as representing “half a billion salmon.” Since half of a billion is 500 million, their press release is off by some 456 million salmon. This creates confusion among the public about the actual size of Bristol Bay’s salmon fishery. The 2015 run forecast for Bristol Bay is approximately 53 million salmon; the largest in the world by far, but still not half a billion.
– Environmental damage (not!): The BOTB news release and the program itself make repeated references to a necessity to fish for salmon in Bristol Bay because they may “poison the ecosystem” or “wreak havoc on Alaska’s waterways” if not caught. This is false. Fishermen fish in Bristol Bay because it is a great way to make a living and supply our nation – and the world – with delicious, healthful, abundant seafood. We are particularly fortunate in Bristol Bay because we harvest from such a well-managed sustainable resource. While “overescapement” (upstream migration of salmon in excess of spawning goals set by state biologists that manage the fishery) poses lost harvest opportunity for fishermen, it does not damage the ecosystem.
– Safety: In its premier episode, BOTB said of the Bristol Bay fishery, “Drowning is the number one cause of death, and ramming is the number one cause of drownings.” This is false. From 2000-2013, there were 11 deaths in the driftnet fleet, with 10 of those from drowning and one from burns: According to the National Institute for Occupational Safety & Health (NIOSH), those drowning deaths were due to one vessel sinking, eight falls overboard, and one that resulted from a fall from a dock into the water. None of those deaths involved rammings, which are illegal and unacceptable. The vast majority of Bristol Bay skippers operate at all times with safety as their number one priority.
– Fishing grounds: BOTB leaves viewers with the impression that most, if not all, Bristol Bay salmon fishing occurs on “the lines,” i.e., boundaries where fish enter terminal fishing districts around the Bay. Although they make for dramatic television, the lines comprise a tiny percentage of overall fishing area in the Bay. Excellent fishing occurs throughout the districts and most fishermen do not identify as “line fishermen.”
– Fish quality: Most Bristol Bay fishermen are more interested in the quality of their product – which competes on the global salmon market – than they are with competition on the fishing grounds. Many successful efforts and significant investments made by fishermen, managers, policy makers, and processors have advanced the quality and value of Bristol Bay’s salmon products. Forward-thinking Bay fishermen take extra care to bleed and chill their fish, choosing to focus as much on the quality of their catch as its quantity. Seafood processors have encouraged this progress in quality-improvement by offering bonuses and incentives for fishermen to treat their catch with the utmost care and attention.