A second Southeast area hits its lingcod limit in two weeks

Longline boats fishing the Icy Bay Subdistrict will have to start releasing any lingcod they catch after Monday night, when the state closes lingcod retention across the subdistrict. The reason is straightforward: the fishery is expected to have caught its allotted lingcod for the season by then. After the cutoff, any lingcod that comes up on the gear goes back over the rail.

It is the second such closure in Southeast in under two weeks. Retention shut in the Northern Southeast Inside Subdistrict on Aug. 13 for the same reason, its seasonal lingcod limit projected to be reached.

These are boats targeting other species that catch lingcod incidentally, and the closures cap how much of that incidental catch they can keep. Retention stays open for now in several other Southeast areas, including the East Yakutat and Northern Southeast Outside sections, the Central Southeast Outside Section, and the Southern Southeast Outer Coast Sector.

The department frames these rolling, area-by-area closures as routine management tied to preset harvest limits, not a sign of an overfishing emergency, and says more could come on short notice as other areas hit their limits. For the longline fishers and processors affected, the timing shifts trip plans and the value they can bring back to the dock.