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Island Culture Today The communities of St. Paul and St. George Islands participate in the Bering Sea/Aleutian Island commercial fisheries. They are among sixty-five communities in western Alaska eligible to participate in Community Development Quota (CDQ) groups. The Central Bering Sea Fishermen’s Association (CBSFA), one of six CDQ groups, represents St. Paul Island. The Aleutian Pribilof Island Community Development Association (APICDA), another of the six CDQ groups, represents St. George Island together with five other communities around the Bering Sea/Aleutian Island region. Among other things, CDQ groups develop and implement plans for how communities will harvest and use their allocations of total allowable catch set by the North Pacific Fishery Management Council. CBSFA and APICDA receive allocations for pollock, Pacific cod, sablefish, Atka mackerel, yellowfin sole, Greenland turbot, Alaska plaice, Pacific Ocean perch, rockfish, halibut, and crab. Halibut is an important fishery for both associations, receiving allocations of nearly one million pounds each in 2003. The associations do not always harvest 100% of their allocations. According to a CBSFA report, in 2004 the St. Paul local fleet experienced low halibut catch rates in area 4C, the area surrounding the Pribilof Islands, for the third season in a row (CBSFA 2004). APICDA also reported a poor halibut catch for the St. George local fleet in 2004, stating that weather and lack of fish in traditional areas contributed to a small harvest (APICDA 2004).
Crab is harvested near the Pribilof Islands. CBSFA and APICDA both harvested about 100% of their Bristol Bay red king crab (Paralithodes camtschaticus) and snow crab (Chionoecetes opilio) allocations during the 2004 and 2005 seasons, respectively (APICDA 2005a and 2005b; CBSFA 2005a and 2005b). Since 1999, only these two stocks have been harvested by the associations. Prior to 1999, other crab stocks, such as Pribilof red king crab (P. camtschaticus) and Pribilof and St. Matthew blue king crab (P. platypus), were also harvested. As of 2005, these fisheries remained closed (APICDA 2005b; CBSFA 2005b). While St. George Island processed crab during a short period, only St. Paul Island continues to process crab at two separate facilities, one a land-based processor and the other a floating processor. APICDA, in conjunction with the Alaska Department of Fish and Game and Ocean Ventures, conducted a green sea urchin (Strongylocentrotus sp.) resource assessment in the nearshore waters of St. George Island. According to the association, the assessment revealed a healthy population of urchins able to sustain a fishery in excess of 100,000 pounds (APICDA 2002). The association harvested approximately 4,000 pounds in 2002 to test the market and the feasibility of shipment to Japan. Reportedly, the Japanese liked the product, but the harvesting and shipping were weather-dependent. As of 2008, this fishery made no significant strides at the Pribilof Islands.
As for freshwater fish, only a single species, a stickleback, is known to inhabit some lakes on St. Paul Island.
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