Unalaska, AK – Increased fuel costs and reduced federal funding are limiting the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration's fisheries research in the Bering Sea and may in the long run impact harvest limits. This year, the Aleutian Trawl Survey was cut completely and the Bering-Aleutian Salmon International Survey (BASIS) was reduced from 40 days to 20 days. Phillip Rigby is the program manager for the stock assessment and Ocean Carrying Capacity programs at NOAA. He says maintaining the surveys is important for predicting changes in ecosystem resources.

"We're beginning to get a handle on how the ecosystem in the Bering Sea functions and we're also seeing some dramatic changes," he says. "I think being able to look forward and make some projections on what's happening to our resources, in order to do that we have to have a number of monitoring surveys and when you cut back on these surveys, you end up having gaps."

The surveys look at early life histories of species like salmon and pollock, how the species interact, and how they are affected by weather and water temperature changes. They also collect oceanographic data and fish distribution information. Rigby says decreasing the amount of data collected increases the amount of uncertainty when evaluating fish populations.

"The appropriate way to manage under those conditions of increased uncertainty is to reduce your harvest. So, in the longer run, that's what will probably happen. We'll have to reduce our recommendations on allowable biological catch to the North Pacific [Fisheries Management] Council," he says.

Rigby says they normally rely on chartered vessels to run research trips in Alaska but because of high fuel prices, NOAA can no longer afford to charter vessels for long periods. NOAA is seeking alternative funding for the research projects. Rigby says the shortened BASIS survey will take place on the Oscar Dyson in September.