Gillnetters – many of you will be happy to know that the charter lawsuit challenging the one-fish bag limit and the challenge to the charter allocation has been won by the Halibut Coalition. The Halibut Coalition is the umbrella group fighting the charter industry on many of these issues with regards to allocation and over-fishing by the charter industry. USAG, ALPHA, SEAFA, PSVOA, and many other groups and individuals have been putting a great deal of time and money into the Halibut Coalition’s efforts. There are a number of folks to thank and there are still collections being made to pay off the debts incurred for the legal and political battles.
Please see attached documents for greater detail on the judge’s decision. What this means specifically, the issue legally is dead. At this juncture, the only avenue available to the charter industry would be to get the council to change their minds and adopt a new plan. Which at this time is unlikely to happen. Hopefully, those folks in the charter industry will come to terms with the decision and work on rationalizing the charter fishery so like other fisheries finds its own sustainability without encroaching into the commercial side of things.
Attached Documents: