Community Participation in North Pacific Crab Fisheries
Alaska Commercial Crab Fisheries
Ten species of crabs are caught in Alaskan crab fisheries, and seven of these have commercial importance: red king crab, Paralithodes camtschaticus; blue king crab, P. platypus; golden king crab, Lithodes aequispinus; Tanner crab, Chionoecetes bairdi; snow crab, C. opilio; hair crab, Erimacrus isenbeckii; and Dungeness crab, Cancer magister. The three minor species, scarlet king crab, L. couesi; grooved Tanner crab, C. tanneri; and Triangle Tanner crab, C. angulatus, are landed mostly as incidental catch in other crab fisheries. In addition to commercial fisheries, subsistence and personal use fisheries support local food security and cultural cohesion.
The Bering Sea/Aleutian Islands (BSAI) king and Tanner crab fisheries are co-managed by the State of Alaska, NMFS, and NPFMC. In 2023, the FMP BSAI crab fisheries (including the non-rationalized Norton Sound red king crab fishery) had an active fleet of 78 harvesting vessels and landed and processed at 14 processing facilities throughout the region.1 Commercial crab fisheries blossomed in the 1950s with the market of king crab fisheries in the Bering Sea, but today many of the stocks are in a depressed state. The declines in Bering Sea crab fisheries and the subsequent closures drastically affected fishermen as well as the social, cultural, and economic well being of fishing communities, including economic dependence, social networks, food security, and identity.2
In 2021 and 2022, several crab stocks experienced unprecedented declines, resulting in closures and drops in total allowable catch (TAC) for a suite of crab fisheries. In 2020, ADFG announced a closure of the summer commercial Norton Sound Red King Crab (NSRKC) fishery due to historical record declines. To support rebuilding efforts, The Norton Sound Economic Development Corporation ceased buying NSRKC through 2023.
In January 2023, The Department of Commerce announced federal fishery disasters for the following harvests:
- 2020/2021 Alaska Norton Sound Red King Crab Fisheries
- 2021/2022 Alaska Bristol Bay Red King Crab and Bering Sea Snow Crab Fisheries
- 2022/2023 Alaska Bristol Bay Red King Crab and Bering Sea Snow Crab Fisheries
Cancellations of the 2022/2023 Bering Sea snow crab, the 2022/2023 Bristol Bay red king crab, and the 2021/2022 Bristol Bay red king crab harvests have caused an estimated $287.7 million in economic losses for fisheries.
Evidence indicates that snow crab and red king crab declines are related to climate change. The crash of the Bering Sea snow crab stock was affected by the 2019 heat wave in the North Pacific. Marine heat waves have been attributed to climate change.3 Ongoing research into the social and economic effects of declining fisheries can inform adaptation strategies for future climate risks and decision-making and climate-ready fisheries.4
Commercial Crab Harvesting Engagement
Performance metrics of community participation in BSAI King and Tanner crab FMP fisheries for calendar years 2000-2023 were created with data collected from 40 communities or community groupings throughout the U.S. that had either some commercial FMP crab fisheries landings or residents who owned vessels used in commercial FMP crab fishing during this time period. Of these 40 communities, only 15 had any FMP crab landings in their community while 36 had a resident who owned a vessel that participated in FMP crab fisheries. All 40 communities were included in both the crab harvesting and processing engagement indices.
Figure 5.1 shows the aggregate annual values of the four variables that make up the harvesting engagement index for each year to better understand the absolute changes in North Pacific crab harvesting activities that are underlying the relative harvesting engagement index. Aggregate revenues in calendar year 2023(during which the Bering Sea Snow crab fishery was closed) were down 47% compared with the 2018-2022 baseline period average but were up 7.66% compared with 2022. In 2023, landings were also down 68.3% from the 2018-2022 baseline period average and 1.71% compared with 2022. The number of vessels harvesting FMP crab also decreased in 2023 by 15.8% compared with the 2018-2022 baseline period average and decreased by -13.7% compared with 2022. Crab vessel owners show a similar pattern to active vessels with 17.67554% fewer vessel owners compared with the average of the 2018-2022 baseline period and -15% fewer owners compared with 2022.
The results of the commercial harvesting engagement PCFA analyses are shown in Table 5.1 which presents the eigenvalues, factor loadings, total variance explained, and Armor’s theta reliability coefficient for all variables. The results suggest very strong relationships among variables, and that a single index based on the first extracted factor explains over 93% of the variation in each of the variables in each year. In addition to the goodness of fit statistics of the analyses provided in Table 5.1 , each PCFA provides an index score for each of 40 communities included in the analysis. Table 5.2 presents these index scores for the 4 communities identified as highly engaged in BSAI FMP crab harvesting for at least one year between 2000 and 2023.
The harvesting engagement index is a relative indicator of community participation compared to the participation of all other communities that harvest FMP crab in Alaska. It is a measure of the presence of commercial crab fishing through residents who own commercial fishing vessels: this includes pounds landed by vessel, revenue, the number of vessel owners, and the total number of owners in a community.
| Year |
Eigenvalues
|
Factor Loadings
|
Percent variance explained | Armor's Theta | ||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Ex-vessel value from vessel owners | Pounds landed by vessel owners | Total # fishing vessels | Total # of unique vessels owners | |||
| 2000 | 3.99 | 0.01 | 0.00 | 0.00 | 1.00 | 1.00 | 1.00 | 1.00 | 100% | 1.00 |
| 2001 | 3.99 | 0.01 | 0.00 | 0.00 | 1.00 | 1.00 | 1.00 | 1.00 | 100% | 1.00 |
| 2002 | 3.99 | 0.01 | 0.00 | 0.00 | 1.00 | 1.00 | 1.00 | 1.00 | 100% | 1.00 |
| 2003 | 3.99 | 0.01 | 0.00 | 0.00 | 1.00 | 1.00 | 1.00 | 1.00 | 100% | 1.00 |
| 2004 | 3.99 | 0.01 | 0.00 | 0.00 | 1.00 | 1.00 | 1.00 | 1.00 | 100% | 1.00 |
| 2005 | 3.98 | 0.02 | 0.00 | 0.00 | 1.00 | 1.00 | 1.00 | 1.00 | 100% | 1.00 |
| 2006 | 3.93 | 0.07 | 0.00 | 0.00 | 0.99 | 0.99 | 0.99 | 0.99 | 98% | 0.99 |
| 2007 | 3.90 | 0.10 | 0.00 | 0.00 | 0.99 | 0.99 | 0.99 | 0.99 | 98% | 0.99 |
| 2008 | 3.94 | 0.06 | 0.00 | 0.00 | 0.99 | 0.99 | 0.99 | 0.99 | 99% | 1.00 |
| 2009 | 3.93 | 0.07 | 0.00 | 0.00 | 0.99 | 0.99 | 0.99 | 0.99 | 98% | 0.99 |
| 2010 | 3.91 | 0.09 | 0.00 | 0.00 | 0.99 | 0.99 | 0.99 | 0.99 | 98% | 0.99 |
| 2011 | 3.90 | 0.10 | 0.00 | 0.00 | 0.99 | 0.99 | 0.99 | 0.98 | 97% | 0.99 |
| 2012 | 3.88 | 0.12 | 0.00 | 0.00 | 0.98 | 0.99 | 0.99 | 0.98 | 97% | 0.99 |
| 2013 | 3.85 | 0.14 | 0.00 | 0.00 | 0.98 | 0.98 | 0.98 | 0.98 | 96% | 0.99 |
| 2014 | 3.83 | 0.17 | 0.00 | 0.00 | 0.98 | 0.98 | 0.98 | 0.98 | 96% | 0.99 |
| 2015 | 3.85 | 0.15 | 0.00 | 0.00 | 0.98 | 0.98 | 0.98 | 0.98 | 96% | 0.99 |
| 2016 | 3.83 | 0.17 | 0.00 | 0.00 | 0.98 | 0.98 | 0.98 | 0.98 | 96% | 0.99 |
| 2017 | 3.81 | 0.19 | 0.00 | 0.00 | 0.98 | 0.98 | 0.98 | 0.97 | 95% | 0.98 |
| 2018 | 3.84 | 0.15 | 0.00 | 0.00 | 0.98 | 0.98 | 0.98 | 0.98 | 96% | 0.99 |
| 2019 | 3.86 | 0.14 | 0.00 | 0.00 | 0.98 | 0.98 | 0.98 | 0.98 | 96% | 0.99 |
| 2020 | 3.97 | 0.02 | 0.00 | 0.00 | 1.00 | 1.00 | 1.00 | 1.00 | 99% | 1.00 |
| 2021 | 3.98 | 0.02 | 0.00 | 0.00 | 1.00 | 1.00 | 1.00 | 1.00 | 99% | 1.00 |
| 2022 | 3.78 | 0.22 | 0.00 | 0.00 | 0.97 | 0.97 | 0.97 | 0.98 | 94% | 0.98 |
| 2023 | 3.71 | 0.29 | 0.00 | 0.00 | 0.96 | 0.96 | 0.96 | 0.96 | 93% | 0.97 |
Table 5.2 presents the index scores for the communities that emerged as Highly Engaged in harvesting FMP crab (index score above one, which is one standard deviation above the mean of zero) for at least one year (2000-2023). Of the groupings listed in Table 5.2, Seattle MSA is the only community grouping emerging as Highly Engaged in commercial crab harvesting for all years (see Figure 5.2).
Seattle MSA, which consists of Seattle and surrounding satellites and suburbs, has the highest degree of engagement over time, with consistent index scores well above 5.0 in all years from 2000-2023. Historically, Kodiak had high engagement scores, but since 2010 has had engagement scores below the threshold of 1.0. The relative decrease in engagement indices suggests fluctuations in U.S. crab fisheries participation. Anchorage’s index scores rose from 2000 onward, peaking in 2015 above 1.0. Since 2016, however, Anchorage’s engagement score has remained below the threshold of 1.0. Nome for the first time was a highly engaged crab FMP harvesting community in 2022, with an index score of 1.03 which increased in 2023to 1.33. Between 2022 and 2023, the Seattle MSA’s index scores remained roughly flat while Anchorage’s decreased by 33.2%, a larger decline in Kodiak of 47.6%, while Nome’s index score increased by 28.8%.
| 2000 | 2001 | 2002 | 2003 | 2004 | 2005 | 2006 | 2007 | 2008 | 2009 | 2010 | 2011 | 2012 | 2013 | 2014 | 2015 | 2016 | 2017 | 2018 | 2019 | 2020 | 2021 | 2022 | 2023 | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Anchorage | -0.03 | 0.03 | 0.04 | 0.03 | 0.04 | 0.13 | 0.17 | 0.78 | 0.86 | 0.64 | 0.97 | 0.85 | 0.96 | 1.17 | 1.21 | 1.24 | 0.69 | 0.62 | 0.68 | 0.63 | 0.63 | 0.92 | 0.92 | 0.61 |
| Kodiak | 1.40 | 1.30 | 1.15 | 0.94 | 1.01 | 0.86 | 0.94 | 0.94 | 1.12 | 1.09 | 0.81 | 0.81 | 0.87 | 0.80 | 0.77 | 0.72 | 0.66 | 0.65 | 0.54 | 0.57 | 0.69 | 0.66 | 0.27 | 0.14 |
| Nome | -0.17 | -0.10 | -0.06 | -0.11 | -0.09 | 0.09 | 0.41 | 0.45 | 0.28 | 0.38 | 0.61 | 0.63 | 0.69 | 0.73 | 0.79 | 0.67 | 0.84 | 0.94 | 0.83 | 0.74 | -0.26 | -0.27 | 1.03 | 1.33 |
| Seattle MSA | 5.89 | 5.92 | 5.95 | 5.98 | 5.96 | 6.01 | 5.97 | 5.88 | 5.86 | 5.90 | 5.86 | 5.87 | 5.83 | 5.76 | 5.74 | 5.76 | 5.87 | 5.86 | 5.91 | 5.93 | 6.00 | 5.95 | 5.81 | 5.81 |
| *Shaded cells are index scores above one (one standard deviation above the mean of zero) for at least one year (2000-2023) | ||||||||||||||||||||||||
Harvesting Regional Quotient
The Regional Quotient (RQ) of commercial crab harvesting was calculated using vessel owner residency for those vessels participating in BSAI FMP crab fisheries to better understand where revenues from crab harvesting enters local economies. This metric is based on residency of vessel owners with vessels that are active in the fisheries. It is assumed that some portion of revenue gained from participation in the FMP crab fisheries is spent and circulated in the local economy through direct and indirect purchases of goods and services. The harvesting RQ is an indicator of the percentage of revenue from FMP crab from resident vessel owners in a community relative the total (shore-based and at-sea) revenue across all BSAI crab FMP fisheries.
Figure 5.3 shows the harvesting RQ for BSAI FMP crab revenue from 2000-2023. The Seattle MSA has had the largest share of crab harvesting vessel owners, which had a value-weighted mean of 58.7% over the 2000-2023 period, followed by Anchorage, Kodiak, and Nome at 10.8%, 9.07%, and 0.484%, respectively. However, Kodiak’s share has fallen over time from a high of 15.6% in 2000 to a new low of 2.26% in 2023. Anchorage’s share of crab revenue attributable to vessels owned by residents has increased from 2.52% in 2000 to a peak of 16.2% in 2015 and was 8.87% in 2023. While low on average for the entire time period, Nome’s share of crab revenue reached a peak of % in 2022 and was % in 2023.
Crew on crab fishing vessels also constitute an important component of crab fishery participants. The distribution of the primary residence of crew participating in Crab Rationalization Program fisheries across highly engaged communities is shown in Figure 5.4 .The share of crew from highly engaged communities averaged 50% over the entire post-Crab Rationalization Period, 2006-2023, but their share has fallen from a high of 56% in 2007 to 45% in 2023, with a notable low of 30% in 2020. It is likely the travel restrictions implemented during the Covid-19 pandemic accounted for most of the difference. Crew from Alaska communities reached a peak in 2020 at 41% while Oregon and Washington had their lowest crew participation rates at 4.3% and 30%, respectively. Participation rates in 2023 were similar at 34% for Alaska, 12% for Oregon, and 30% for Washington.
Commercial Crab Processing Engagement
The results of the commercial processing engagement PCFA analyses are shown in Table 5.3, which presents the eigenvalues, factor loadings, total variance explained, and Armor’s theta reliability coefficient (Armor, 1974) for all of the variables included in each PCFA. The results suggest very strong relationships among variables and that a single index based on the first extracted factor explains over 82% of the variation in each of the variables in each year. In addition to the goodness of fit statistics of the analyses provided in Table 5.3, each PCFA provides an index score for each of the communities included in the analyses.
These index scores are presented in Table 5.4 for the 6 communities or groupings that were highly engaged (index score above one, which is one standard deviation above the mean of zero) for at least one year from 2000-2023. Cells indicating high engagement are shaded in Table 5.4. The index is a relative indicator of community participation compared to the participation of all other communities that process BSAI FMP crab.
To better understand the absolute changes in BSAI FMP crab processing over time, Figure 5.5 displays the aggregate annual values of the four variables that make up the processing engagement index for each year. Aggregate revenues and pounds landed were both down 47% and 68.3%, respectively, in 2023 compared with their 2018-2022 average. Similarly, the number of active crab vessels and crab vessel owners were both down 46.4% and 18.2%, respectively, in 2023 compared with their 2018-2022 average.
| Year |
Eigenvalues
|
Factor Loadings
|
Percent variance explained | Armor's Theta | ||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Ex-vessel value | Pounds landed in community | Number vessels delivering | Number of processors | |||
| 2000 | 3.47 | 0.50 | 0.02 | 0.01 | 0.98 | 0.97 | 0.99 | 0.76 | 87% | 0.95 |
| 2001 | 3.28 | 0.66 | 0.04 | 0.02 | 0.97 | 0.96 | 0.99 | 0.66 | 82% | 0.93 |
| 2002 | 3.39 | 0.55 | 0.03 | 0.02 | 0.97 | 0.95 | 0.99 | 0.76 | 85% | 0.94 |
| 2003 | 3.51 | 0.46 | 0.02 | 0.01 | 0.98 | 0.97 | 0.99 | 0.80 | 88% | 0.95 |
| 2004 | 3.58 | 0.39 | 0.03 | 0.01 | 0.98 | 0.97 | 0.99 | 0.84 | 90% | 0.96 |
| 2005 | 3.53 | 0.42 | 0.05 | 0.01 | 0.98 | 0.96 | 0.98 | 0.82 | 88% | 0.96 |
| 2006 | 3.67 | 0.20 | 0.11 | 0.02 | 0.98 | 0.97 | 0.96 | 0.92 | 92% | 0.97 |
| 2007 | 3.55 | 0.41 | 0.03 | 0.01 | 0.97 | 0.94 | 0.98 | 0.87 | 89% | 0.96 |
| 2008 | 3.56 | 0.36 | 0.07 | 0.01 | 0.98 | 0.95 | 0.98 | 0.86 | 89% | 0.96 |
| 2009 | 3.72 | 0.21 | 0.06 | 0.02 | 0.98 | 0.97 | 0.98 | 0.93 | 93% | 0.97 |
| 2010 | 3.58 | 0.35 | 0.06 | 0.02 | 0.97 | 0.94 | 0.98 | 0.89 | 89% | 0.96 |
| 2011 | 3.74 | 0.17 | 0.08 | 0.01 | 0.98 | 0.97 | 0.97 | 0.95 | 94% | 0.98 |
| 2012 | 3.74 | 0.22 | 0.03 | 0.01 | 0.98 | 0.97 | 0.99 | 0.93 | 93% | 0.98 |
| 2013 | 3.61 | 0.34 | 0.04 | 0.01 | 0.96 | 0.97 | 0.98 | 0.89 | 90% | 0.96 |
| 2014 | 3.55 | 0.39 | 0.05 | 0.01 | 0.96 | 0.95 | 0.97 | 0.88 | 89% | 0.96 |
| 2015 | 3.67 | 0.31 | 0.02 | 0.01 | 0.97 | 0.95 | 0.98 | 0.93 | 92% | 0.97 |
| 2016 | 3.77 | 0.18 | 0.04 | 0.01 | 0.98 | 0.97 | 0.96 | 0.97 | 94% | 0.98 |
| 2017 | 3.60 | 0.29 | 0.09 | 0.02 | 0.97 | 0.94 | 0.94 | 0.94 | 90% | 0.96 |
| 2018 | 3.56 | 0.36 | 0.07 | 0.01 | 0.96 | 0.94 | 0.95 | 0.92 | 89% | 0.96 |
| 2019 | 3.75 | 0.17 | 0.07 | 0.01 | 0.98 | 0.97 | 0.96 | 0.96 | 94% | 0.98 |
| 2020 | 3.77 | 0.16 | 0.06 | 0.01 | 0.99 | 0.99 | 0.96 | 0.94 | 94% | 0.98 |
| 2021 | 3.84 | 0.12 | 0.04 | 0.01 | 0.98 | 0.99 | 0.98 | 0.96 | 96% | 0.99 |
| 2022 | 3.52 | 0.44 | 0.04 | 0.00 | 0.95 | 0.94 | 0.93 | 0.94 | 88% | 0.95 |
| 2023 | 3.58 | 0.39 | 0.03 | 0.00 | 0.95 | 0.95 | 0.94 | 0.95 | 89% | 0.96 |
| 2000 | 2001 | 2002 | 2003 | 2004 | 2005 | 2006 | 2007 | 2008 | 2009 | 2010 | 2011 | 2012 | 2013 | 2014 | 2015 | 2016 | 2017 | 2018 | 2019 | 2020 | 2021 | 2022 | 2023 | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Akutan | 0.79 | 0.53 | 0.54 | 0.57 | 0.71 | 0.62 | 1.08 | 1.11 | 1.36 | 0.86 | 1.11 | 1.66 | 1.96 | 1.71 | 1.90 | 2.51 | 2.13 | 2.06 | 2.06 | 1.93 | 1.89 | 0.83 | 1.35 | 0.57 |
| At-Sea Processor | 3.70 | 3.26 | 3.24 | 3.15 | 3.51 | 2.77 | 2.55 | 3.11 | 0.98 | 2.41 | 2.59 | 2.16 | 1.81 | 1.24 | 1.10 | 1.12 | 0.13 | 0.08 | 0.06 | 0.14 | 0.42 | 0.18 | 0.09 | 0.39 |
| Unalaska-Dutch Harbor | 4.28 | 4.56 | 4.52 | 4.72 | 4.51 | 4.92 | 4.77 | 4.75 | 4.54 | 4.21 | 4.17 | 4.01 | 3.88 | 4.02 | 4.13 | 4.13 | 4.38 | 4.51 | 4.40 | 4.25 | 4.47 | 4.40 | 5.09 | 5.72 |
| King Cove | 0.60 | 0.45 | 0.59 | 0.74 | 0.67 | 1.03 | 1.11 | 0.60 | 0.82 | 0.79 | 0.91 | 0.65 | 0.62 | 0.69 | 0.72 | 0.85 | 1.07 | 0.79 | 0.73 | 0.70 | 0.65 | 0.97 | 0.53 | 0.45 |
| Nome | 0.61 | 0.89 | 0.86 | 0.81 | 0.44 | 0.57 | 0.53 | 0.95 | 0.64 | 0.66 | 0.90 | 0.78 | 0.85 | 1.17 | 1.35 | 1.10 | 0.79 | 1.16 | 1.45 | 0.64 | -0.21 | 0.08 | 1.86 | 1.81 |
| Saint Paul | 0.82 | 1.27 | 1.39 | 0.98 | 0.93 | 1.15 | 1.53 | 0.04 | 3.14 | 3.01 | 2.60 | 3.09 | 3.29 | 3.40 | 3.17 | 2.78 | 3.04 | 2.81 | 2.90 | 3.47 | 3.33 | 3.85 | 2.00 | -0.26 |
| *Shaded cells are index scores above one (one standard deviation above the mean of zero) for at least one year (2008-2023). | ||||||||||||||||||||||||
Of the 6 communities found in Table 5.4, only Unalaska/Dutch Harbor was highly engaged in commercial crab processing for all years from 2000-2023. St. Paul was highly engaged for all years post-rationalization (2005) through 2022 (excluding 2007, the year it was frozen in and deliveries were made to floating processors) but with the ongoing closure of the Bering Sea snow crab, St. Paul’s high engagement score in fell from a record high in 2021 of 3.9 to a new low of -0.26 in 2023. As the sole processing plant in St. Paul primarily focuses on snow crab, the declines in that fishery are having large impacts on municipal and local fisher revenues. Other communities that were highly engaged for some portion of the time period include Akutan (highly engaged in 2022 but not in 2021 or 2023), Nome (highly engaged in 2022 and 2023), At-Sea Processors (not highly engaged since 2015), and King Cove which was only highly engaged in 3 total years: 2005, 2006, and 2016. The At-Sea processing sector scored as highly engaged fairly consistently until 2015 when it declined to just above zero for the past 8 years. Consistently Unalaska/Dutch Harbor has held the highest engagement scores over time, followed by Saint Paul. Processing engagement indices in Akutan increased, reaching a peak in 2015. Although below the threshold of 1.0 from 2000 - 2012, Nome’s relative engagement indices have steadily increased over time with a dips in 2016, and 2019-2021 but is back in the highly engaged processing category again for 2022 and 2023. Index scores of communities highly engaged for at least one year from 2000-2023 are shown in Figure 5.6.
Processing Regional Quotient
The crab processing regional quotient (RQ) is defined as the share of commercial revenues within a community out of the total BSAI FMP crab revenues. The RQ is an indicator of the percentage contribution in that community relative to the total revenues (including shore-based and at-sea) from all communities. Figure 5.7 shows the BSAI FMP crab processing RQ for revenue from 2000-2023. The most prominent community for processing FMP crab in terms of landing weight and revenue in 2023was Unalaska/Dutch Harbor, which accounted for 44.9% of FMP crab ex-vessel revenue, but that reached a new high in 2023 at 83.5.
Participation Summary for FMP Crab Fisheries
Based on the community engagement index scores for both commercial processing and harvesting engagement in the North Pacific crab FMP fisheries, communities were categorized into low (index scores below the mean of 0), medium (index scores between 0 and 0.5), medium-high (index scores between 0.50001 and 1), and high engagement (index scores above 1) for each year. The number of years a community is in each category for the processing and harvesting engagement indices is presented in Table 5.5. There are 20 communities or community groupings in Table 5.5 that had medium, medium-high, or high engagement in either harvesting or processing engagement and 9 communities were highly engaged in one aspect of FMP crab fisheries in any year from 2008-2023. There were 6 communities that were highly engaged in processing engagement and 4 that were highly engaged in harvesting engagement for at least one year from 2008-2023. For 2023, the Seattle MSA continues to dominate the crab harvesting engagement index while Dutch Harbor has increased it’s already large crab processing engagement index as a result of the closure of the Bering Sea snow crab fishery and associated landings in St. Paul.
| Community |
Harvesting Engagement
|
Processing Engagement
|
||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Low | Medium | Medium-High | High | Low | Medium | Medium-High | High | |
| Adak | 24 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 14 | 10 | 0 | 0 |
| Akutan | 24 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 9 | 15 |
| All Other States | 22 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 24 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Anchorage | 1 | 6 | 14 | 3 | 24 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| At-Sea Processor | 24 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 8 | 1 | 15 |
| Dutch Harbor | 24 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 24 |
| Golovin | 22 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 24 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Homer | 6 | 18 | 0 | 0 | 24 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Hood River | 15 | 9 | 0 | 0 | 24 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| King Cove | 24 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 19 | 3 |
| Kodiak | 0 | 2 | 16 | 6 | 5 | 16 | 3 | 0 |
| Lincoln | 0 | 24 | 0 | 0 | 24 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Nome | 7 | 5 | 10 | 2 | 1 | 2 | 14 | 7 |
| Other Oregon | 2 | 22 | 0 | 0 | 24 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Other Washington | 3 | 21 | 0 | 0 | 24 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Saint Paul | 24 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 3 | 19 |
| Seattle Msa | 0 | 0 | 0 | 24 | 24 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Shaktoolik | 17 | 7 | 0 | 0 | 24 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Unalakleet | 12 | 11 | 1 | 0 | 22 | 2 | 0 | 0 |
| Wasilla | 21 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 24 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
Crab Fishery Taxes
Taxes generated by fisheries, are important revenue sources for communities, boroughs, and the State. There are two main sources of fishery taxes in Alaska: shared taxes administered through the State of Alaska, and municipal fisheries taxes independently established and collected at select municipalities.
State Taxes
The fisheries business tax, implemented in 1990, is levied on businesses that process or export fisheries resources from Alaska. Tax rates vary between 1%- 35 under the fisheries business tax, depending on a variety of factors, including: level of establishment, and whether processing occurs shoreside or offshore. Although the fisheries business tax is typically administered and collected by individual boroughs, revenue from the tax is deposited in Alaska’s General Fund; then the State legislature appropriates 25%-50% of the tax revenue back to the municipality or borough. This tax is levied on processed fishery This tax is levied on processed fishery resources— primarily from catcher-processors and at-sea processors that bring their products into Alaska for trans-shipment— whether they are destined for local national consumption or shipment abroad.
Municipal Taxes
Some communities also collect local taxes related to the fishing industry. These include taxes on raw fish transfers across public docks, fuel transfers, extraterritorial fish, and marine fuel sales, and fees for bulk fuel transfer, boat haulouts, harbor usage, port and dock usage, and storing gear on public land. There is no one source for data on these revenue streams; however, most communities self-report in annual municipal budgets collected by the Alaska Division of Community and Regional Affairs. Notably, some communities report fish tax revenue as sales tax, which affects the accuracy of municipal tax data reported throughout this document. Tax data can contribute to the understanding of fisheries benefits to communities, but should be considered carefully given the inconsistencies variations in reporting. Because the fisheries taxes are managed by various municipal bodies (e.g., the community, state, borough, harbor, or municipality) , there are variations in the timing and of recording of tax data, as well as which communities collect raw fish tax. These nuances render the data inadequate for time series or direct comparisons of communities or regions. Despite these challenges, these data can provide a general overview of some quantifiable fisheries benefit to communities. Figure descriptions include specific nuances within the dataset, but it should be noted that this analysis is a preliminary approach and work continues with communities to improve accuracy.
For the Alaska communities identified as highly engaged in commercial harvest or processing of crab from 2000-2023, Figure 5.8 shows fishery-related tax revenue from municipal and shared taxes from 2012-2023. Unalaska consistently brings in the most fishery related tax revenue through the Fishery Business and Fishery Landing taxes and municipal raw fish tax. Unalaska experienced over a $4 million loss of fishery tax revenue from 2016 to 2017, but increased between 2018 and 2020 and between 2021 and 2022, recovering approximately $2 million of that loss. Akutan was entirely dependent on fishery tax revenue until 2017, when the community implemented a 1.5% sales tax, and ceased the municipal raw fish tax. Saint Paul did not report a raw fish tax in 2013 or 2015.
School Enrollment in Crab Communities
School enrollment trends can provide information on community wellbeing. Public schools offer a space for people to gather and participate in community events and shared wellbeing, particularly in rural areas with limited infrastructure. Schools provide public resources such as libraries, internet access, and other facilities that benefit the greater community. Schools with declining enrollment may indicate population outmigration, a declining tax base, or shifts in employment opportunities.
Figure 5.9 presents annual K-12 school enrollment from 2008-2003 for the seven Alaska communities highly engaged in FMP crab fisheries in the North Pacific (including those in harvesting and/or processing).
Over these seven communities combined, there has been a 12% decrease in total enrollment, representing a decline of 6465 students, between 2008-2023. Communities with declining student enrollment between 2008 and 2023 include: Saint Paul (-58%), Anchorage (-12%), Kodiak (-19%), King Cove (-26%), Unalaska (-14%). Saint George Island school closed in 2018, leaving Saint Paul’s school the only remaining in the Pribilof Islands.
Akutan’s student enrollment went up by 243%, from 7 in 2008 to 24 in 2023, and Nome’s enrollment went up by about 3%. It should be noted that Akutan has very low student enrollment numbers, with a maximum of 24 students in any year from from 2008 to 2023.
In general, there have been important declines in school enrollment for most of the communities rated as highly engaged in Alaska FEP crab fisheries. Additional research is needed to better understanding the causes of these declines, as well as the enduring effects of the COVID pandemic on school enrollment.
Garber-Yonts, B., A. Abelman, R. Dame, S. Kasperski, and J. Lee. 2024. Stock assessment and fishery evaluation report for the king and Tanner crab fisheries of the Bering Sea/Aleutian Islands area: Economic status of the BSAI king and tanner crab fisheries off Alaska, 2023. Anchorage, AK: North Pacific Fishery Management Council. Retrieved from https://www.npfmc.org/wp content/PDFdocuments/resources/SAFE/CrabSAFE/CrabEconSAFE.pdf↩︎
Ritzman, J., Brodbeck, A., Brostrom, S., McGrew, S., Dreyer, S., Klinger, T., & Moore, S. K. (2018). Economic and sociocultural impacts of fisheries closures in two fishing-dependent communities following the massive 2015 U.S. West Coast harmful algal bloom. Harmful Algae, 80, 35-45. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.hal.2018.09.002↩︎
Reiley, L. (2022, August 21). Alaska’s snow crabs have disappeared. Where they went is a mystery. The Washington Post. https://www.washingtonpost.com/business/2022/08/21/alaska-crab-climate/↩︎
White, C. (22, November 18). Difficult future ahead for Alaska’s crab industry. SeafoodSource. https://www.seafoodsource.com/news/supply-trade/difficult-future-ahead-for-alaska-s-crab-industry↩︎