Gulf Of Alaska Cod At Lowest Levels On Record; Populations Down 80% Since 2013
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For years, Alaska fishermen like Kasprzak have worried that climate change would threaten their livelihoods. Now, it has. The cod population in the Gulf of Alaska is at its lowest level on record. The culprit is a warm water mass called “the blob“ that churned in the Pacific Ocean between 2013 and 2017.
At its peak, it stretched from Alaska to South America. In the Gulf of Alaska, the cod population declined by more than 80 percent. Climate change didn’t cause the blob all on its own. But scientists say global warming made it worse, pushing warm ocean temperatures to the extreme.
Kasprzak says he used to think the rich ocean ecosystem he fishes was unshakable. But he’s mostly given up on finding more cod here. “We’ve just seen now that even the mighty Gulf of Alaska, how fragile it actually is, when all you’ve got to do is warm it up,” Kasprzak said. “You don’t even have to warm it up that much, a couple of degrees. It doesn’t take that much.”
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Litzow says fishing communities have to get used to the prospect of more frequent shocks to the ocean ecosystem. And Kodiak certainly isn’t the only place that’s seen them. Those changes aren’t all bad, he says. When one species declines, others do well. Right now, sablefish are booming in the Gulf of Alaska. But the cod decline could be a disaster for fishermen, and for Kodiak. Already, cod boats are traveling more than a thousand miles away to find fish. That means crews aren’t stocking up at stores in town and boats aren’t paying the local fish tax.
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https://www.alaskapublic.org/2018/07/24/the-big-thaw-fishermen-in-kodiak-cope-with-record-low-cod-numbers/
