Alaska Salmon Fishery - Alternative Explanations

Alternative Explanations

It is relatively clear that the reason for increased populations of salmon fisheries was the conversion to state management in 1959 and then the limited entry permit system in 1973. However, viable alternative explanations always exist.

One such explanation is the enhancement of salmon due to the start of the hatchery program in 1971. Modern salmon hatcheries in Alaska were developed in response to record low wild-stock runs in the 1970s. Initially conceived as state-run systems, most Alaskan hatcheries are now run by private non-profit organizations. Alaska now has 33 production hatcheries in a balanced program designed to enhance fisheries while maintaining healthy wild stocks. Some hatcheries release over 100 million juvenile salmon annually. Statewide totals are 1.2 to 1.4 billion annually over the last decade. During the past decade, hatcheries have produced 27-63 million adults annually, accounting for 14-37% of statewide commercial salmon harvest (Figure 2). These high percentages help show that the massive increase in salmon populations was not only due to the policies implemented during statehood and the entry of the limited permit system, but it may have occurred due to the introduction of hatcheries. If the hatchery enhanced salmon populations in figure 2 (red) is removed from the data, the graph would show a population level similar to the yields from before 1970. Therefore, it can be demonstrated that the formation of these hatcheries is an alternative explanation to the salmon population surge.