
Trawl allies fire back as Alaska candidates' anti-industry rhetoric heats up
Gubernatorial hopefuls are blasting Alaska's trawlers for catching salmon. Now industry allies have launched a radio ad campaign.
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Gubernatorial hopefuls are blasting Alaska's trawlers for catching salmon. Now industry allies have launched a radio ad campaign.

Conservation and tribal advocates have lobbied for a crackdown for years on the unintentional harvests of salmon and other species by Bering Sea pollock trawlers. Now, they’re turning their attention to a smaller pollock trawl fishery in Prince William Sound.

The incident is sure to draw more scrutiny on the issue of bycatch — the industry term for the unintended harvest, typically of salmon or halibut, by boats targeting other species.

Washington’s Democratic governor had advanced an ally of tribes and conservation groups for appointment to the federal commission that manages lucrative fisheries off the Alaska coast. But the U.S. commerce secretary instead reappointed an official from a Seattle-based trawl company.