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New Permit System Projected to Eliminate 38% of Alaska’s Halibut Charter Businesses beginning in 2011Under the new permit system announced in January 2010 by the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), all Alaska halibut fishing charter boats will be required to carry a new limited entry permit in order to legally fish for halibut beginning in the 2011 season.

In order to qualify for a permit, businesses will have to prove that they made at least five halibut fishing trips in three random years – 2004, 2005 and 2008. Those that cannot show this usage in those years will be out of luck.The NOAA has stated that the new regulations are necessary to restrict the amount of charter halibut fishing boats and prevent overfishing. However, based on IPHC 2009 Report, the Alaska sport halibut fishing industry’s harvest of 8.7 million pounds represents less than 13% of the total halibut harvested; by comparison, the commercial halibut fishing industry harvested 51.2 million pounds and represented 76% of the 2009 total halibut catch.

NOAA’s new regulations will significantly impact the charter boat industry. Opponents of the rules decry that the regulations are un-American and anti-free enterprise. Bob Howard, owner-operator of Sea Nymph Charter complains that the regulations are “in conflict with the American free enterprise system. It’s like saying if you weren’t running a restaurant in 2004 or 2005 and 2008, you’re out of business.”Howard did not fish in 2004 or 2005 because he was investing $100k in upgrading his 32-foot Sea Nymph so he will not qualify for a permit.

If Howard wants to continue in the business, he will be forced to buy a transferable permit. Several permits are for sale on both Craigslist and SE Alaska Guides Organization for $100k or more.Several experts on Alaska fishing have commented that by making the permits transferable, they have created a windfall for those that were in the “right place at the right time” and qualify based upon the randomly chosen years of operation.

A halibut captain getting ready to retire has likely just received a substantial retirement bonus through the market design of this program.In any case, what is clear is that the new regulations will significantly change the halibut charter industry by reducing competition and, according to the 259-page Environmental Assessment & Impact Report, it will put almost 4 Alaska charter businesses out of 10 out of business. 327 businesses in regions 3A and 2C are not projected to qualify for permits, while 527 businesses will receive permits.Further information on the new charter Alaska halibut fishing permit program can be found on the NOAA website.

There are a lot of different transducers that you can pick from in the market today. However, it is important to know the best one that you can take with you, especially when it comes to things like fishing. After all, a bad transducer here can really end up messing things for you. This, to the best extent possible, should be avoided. One of the better options that you can go in for currently is the Lowrance transducer. People around the world trust this particular one and rightfully so, considering all the advantages that it has to offer.

High Sensitive Systems

One of the reasons that a Lowrance transducer stands out would probably have to be because of its relatively high sensitivity. Thanks to this, it can easily track fish and identify obstacles below the surface of water with minimal effort. The system works flawlessly and can detect even the minutest particles with near perfection if you tune it in the right manner. Subsequently, this is something that you would probably want to consider and go in for, especially if you are an avid scuba diver and want to go in for something that can help you chart the ocean layers with ease.

Choice of Frequencies

Although most of these units operate in 50 KHz spectrum, this transducer has systems that operate in the 192 – 200 KHz range. Hence, this makes it a truly unique system that has a very broad spectrum which cannot be detected by fish and other creatures of the ocean. The speed of the system is quite impressive as well, with the ability of being mapped several times within a short duration. With continuous transmissions taking place, it almost seems like a seamless device to make use of. This is perhaps one of the prime reasons for this transducer to be famous and highly sought after.