Outlook for APO season in the Sea of Okhotsk in 2007

In 2007 the Alaska pollock allocation available for the Russian fishermen in the Sea of Okhotsk has been approved at 511,000 metric tons, roughly in keeping with the current year figure.

The above amount includes more than 35% to be contributed by the North Okhotsk subarea, 33% - West Kamchatka and 28% by Kamchatka Kurile subarea, while the remaining share should be harvested in the waters of East Sakhalin. Some of the volumes should be harvested as bycatch in other fisheries.

The most favorable fishery situation is forecasted from mid-February to late March at the shores of Kamchatka and from the second ten days of March till the end of the season in the North Okhotsk subarea.

Starting from 2001 in the eastern part of the Sea of Okhotsk the APO spawning stock has been gradually growing which can be attributed to better conditions for the stock’s reproduction and strengthening of fishery policing measures. Nevertheless, the fishing stock of the valuable species in the North Okhotsk subarea has remained at a relatively low level.