Pacific Halibut

The United States and Canada coordinate management through a bilateral commission known as the International Pacific Halibut Commission disclaimer; NOAA Fisheries and the North Pacific and Pacific Fishery Management Councils are responsible for allocating allowable catch among users in the U.S. fisheries.

The North Pacific Fishery Management Council is responsible for allocating the total allowable catch among users and user groups fishing off Alaska and developing regulations for the fishery, in line with Commission recommendations. NOAA Fisheries is responsible for implementing and enforcing these regulations. Examples of these programs include:

• Individual fishing quota program, which allocates the total allowable catch among fishing vessels and individual fishermen. With their catch set, fishermen have the flexibility to harvest their quota anytime, creating a safer, more efficient, more valuable, and environmentally responsible fishery.
• Community Development Quota (CDQ) Halibut Program, which allocates a percentage of the total allowable catch to eligible western Alaskan villages to allow them to participate and invest in fisheries in the Bering Sea and Aleutian Islands and to support sustainable economic and community development in western Alaska.

The Pacific Fishery Management Council and NOAA Fisheries Service Northwest Regional Office establish regulations for halibut fisheries in U.S. waters off Washington, Oregon, and California (Area 2A). The Commission sets the total allowable catch for halibut in this regulatory area, and the Pacific Council allocates the catch among the following user groups: non-tribal commercial (incidental salmon troll fishery, directed longline halibut fishery, and incidental longline sablefish fishery), sport, and treaty Indian commercial and ceremonial-and-subsistence.