Unalaska, AK – It's another slow start to pollock A' season this year. Just like last year, when the quota was just about the same, the some of fleet was slow to leave port. Though the season opened on January 20, Unisea's boats have chosen to stay here. Some crews have even gone home for a little while instead of waiting in Unalaska. Starlight crew member Scott Bingen, who fishes for Unisea, said they are waiting for the spawning fish with large amounts of roe to school up.

"It's a small quota year so I know everyone wants to maximize their value. I would say that these guys would be willing to wait for a while," he said.

Bingen said that when talking to other fishermen who have gone out, it doesn't sound like the fish are available in big volumes yet. So many boats are waiting to see if fishing will follow a similar pattern to last year, when it started getting good in mid- to late February instead of late January.

The Aleyeska plant, however, is taking a very different approach.

"Our fleet's out fishing," said fleet manager Sylvia Ettefagh. "Those that are waiting are going on the assumption, based on last few year's trend, that fish will school up at the end of February and into March then they will be able to go in and increase their catch per unit effort and come back with minimal effort to go fishing. And my concern is that given the lower quota as a result of a lower biomass, how long will a school last? How many boats can fish on a school of fish when they gather? And I'm a little more risk averse and would rather go early in the game and scratch out a little bit. Then also that keeps processors at the plant a little busy and not wandering the streets and wondering why they came up to Dutch Harbor to work."

Ettefagh said her fleet is catching fish with a wide range of sizes, from smaller, 300 gram fish up to massive three kilogram pollock. She admits that her boats are scratching and burning up lots of fuel without brining back full loads. Nevertheless, she said she's happy with the decision to try now. And, unlike early last season, she said they are not getting too much halibut or salmon bycatch.

Unisea manager Don Graves said they have a smaller processing crew on hand this year because they don't need as many people at this point in the season.

Fisherman Bingen said he's not sure if there are fewer fish out there for good or if this is just a short-term issue. He's seen drops in fish numbers before, but they've come back up. The fish need to be managed for long-term sustainability.

"If they think that the quotas need to remain low then we just have to accept that decision and hope for the best. Most of us are in this for the long haul so we'll take the good years with the bad. Just because it's a small quota year doesn't necessarily mean it will be a bad fishing year. If the price is good it can all wash out the same."

This year's pollock quota is 813,000 metric tons, 2,000 metric tons less than last year and the lowest quota in more than 20 years.