The Draft EIS provides decision-makers and the public with an evaluation of the environmental, social, and economic effects of alternative harvest strategies for the federally managed groundfish fisheries in the Gulf of Alaska (GOA) and the Bering Sea and Aleutian Islands (BSAI). The EIS examines alternative harvest strategies that comply with Federal regulations, the Fishery Management Plans for the GOA and BSAI groundfish fisheries, and the Magnuson-Stevens Act. The harvest strategies are applied to the best available scientific information to derive the total allowable catch for the groundfish fisheries.
The Bering Sea, which lies between the United States and Russia, is one of the most productive ecosystems in the world and has prolific fishing grounds. Yet there have been significant unexplained population fluctuations in marine mammals and birds in the region. The book examines the Bering Sea ecosystem's dynamics and the relationship between man and the ecosystem, in order to identify potential reasons for the population fluctuations as well as identify ways the Sea's living resources can be better managed by government.