Commercial Fisheries
Blue Sheet, Inseason Summary, and Harvest Timing Charts Overview

Preliminary Alaska Commercial Salmon Catch Report or "Blue Sheet"

The Blue Sheet reports cumulative salmon harvest during the commercial fishing season. Historically, the Blue Sheet was updated each Friday with the current week's catch added to the cumulative catch for the season. Beginning with the 2013 season, cumulative harvest estimates will be updated daily. Inseason harvest estimates will be available from mid-May through September.

The salmon harvest in the Blue Sheet is commercial harvest reported in thousands of fish. It includes fish caught in common property fisheries (harvests taken by the traditional, competitive commercial fisheries; gillnet, purse seine, and troll) and fish taken by hatcheries for cost recovery (specially designated areas to fund the operation of hatcheries and other enhancement activities). Sport, subsistence, and personal use harvests are not included in the Blue Sheet.

Blue Sheet harvests are preliminary estimates of cumulative catch. The source of catch data varies among areas. Some harvest totals are compiled from verbal catch reports. Other harvests are compiled from fish tickets. Because it can take longer to submit and process fish tickets, catch estimates from areas reporting from fish tickets may lag behind catch estimates from other areas. As additional harvest data become available, the cumulative harvest attributed to earlier weeks may change.

Area or Region specific inseason harvest estimates are available on other ADF&G web pages:

In October, an end-of-season summary will be posted with preliminary estimates of exvessel value and average fish weights on the ADF&G website. The following summer, a final season summary will be posted which contains exvessel value estimates reflecting bonus payments and post-season adjustments.

State laws protect data for individual fishermen and processors as confidential. When the cumulative catch represents the harvests of only a few fishermen or processors, it is not reported on the Blue Sheet.

Inseason Salmon Summary

The Inseason Alaska Salmon Summary is a weekly narrative that accompanies the Blue Sheet. Each summary briefly describes relevant management, harvest, and escapement information for salmon fisheries by area or fishery. This information provides a context for understanding the inseason harvest estimates. The summary webpage is updated every Friday from mid-May through September.

Inseason Harvest Timing

Weekly catches are graphed to show the progression of commercial harvests throughout the season. Last year's harvest and a 5-year average harvest are also plotted for comparison purposes. Unless noted otherwise, the harvest is reported in thousands of fish. Harvests are depicted on the charts by ADF&G statistical week. When weekly catch represents the harvest of only a few fishermen or processors, the catch is not displayed on the timing charts in order to maintain confidentiality.

A statistical week is a unit of time that facilitates harvest comparisons between years. The first statistical week of the year begins on January 1 and ends on the first Saturday of the year. All subsequent statistical weeks begin on a Sunday and end on a Saturday. The Inseason Harvest Timing charts display harvest for Statistical Weeks 20 through 40. The dates associated with the 2024 statistical weeks can be found below.

2024 Statistical Weeks

Statistical Week Beginning Date Ending Date
1 01/1 01/6
2 01/7 01/13
3 01/14 01/20
4 01/21 01/27
5 01/28 02/3
6 02/4 02/10
7 02/11 02/17
8 02/18 02/24
9 02/25 03/2
10 03/3 03/9
11 03/10 03/16
12 03/17 03/23
13 03/24 03/30
14 03/31 04/6
15 04/7 04/13
16 04/14 04/20
17 04/21 04/27
18 04/28 05/4
19 05/5 05/11
20 05/12 05/18
21 05/19 05/25
22 05/26 06/1
23 06/2 06/8
24 06/9 06/15
25 06/16 06/22
26 06/23 06/29
Statistical Week Beginning Date Ending Date
27 06/30 07/6
28 07/7 07/13
29 07/14 07/20
30 07/21 07/27
31 07/28 08/3
32 08/4 08/10
33 08/11 08/17
34 08/18 08/24
35 08/25 08/31
36 09/1 09/7
37 09/8 09/14
38 09/15 09/21
39 09/22 09/28
40 09/29 10/5
41 10/6 10/12
42 10/13 10/19
43 10/20 10/26
44 10/27 11/2
45 11/3 11/9
46 11/10 11/16
47 11/17 11/23
48 11/24 11/30
49 12/1 12/7
50 12/8 12/14
51 12/15 12/21
52 12/22 12/28
53 12/29 12/31

The timing charts default to statewide harvest for all five species of salmon, but they can be customized by region, area, district or fishery, and salmon species using the pull-down menus and check boxes. Press "Apply" for your selections to be reflected in the graph. Press "Reset" and "Apply" to return to the default setting.

To ask a question about these inseason salmon resources, please send a message to dfg.dcf.info@alaska.gov.