Stock Assessment and Fishery Evaluation Report for the Groundfish Fisheries of the Gulf of Alaska and Bering Sea/Aleutian Island Area: Economic Status of the Groundfish Fisheries off Alaska, 2018

This report presents the economic status of groundfish fisheries off Alaska in terms of economic activity and outputs using estimates of catch, discards, prohibited-species catch (PSC), ex-vessel prices and value (i.e., revenue), effort (as measured by the size and level of activity of the groundfish fleet), and the first wholesale production volume and gross value of (i.e., F.O.B. Alaska revenue from) processed products. The catch, ex-vessel value, fleet size and activity data reported here reflect the fishing industry activities that are accounted for in the groundfish landings and production reports, North Pacific groundfish and halibut observer data, and the State of Alaska Commercial Operator’s Annual Reports. Catch data in this report are sourced from the NMFS Alaska Regional Office (AKRO) catch-accounting system (CAS), which is used for in-season monitoring groundfish and PSC quotas. The data descriptions, qualifications, and limitations noted in this overview of the fisheries and the footnotes to the tables are critical to understanding the information in this report. This report updates last year’s report (Fissel et al. 2018) and is intended to serve as a reference document for those involved in making decisions with respect to conservation, management, and use of Gulf of Alaska (GOA) and Bering Sea and Aleutian Islands (BSAI) groundfish fishery resources.