Economics of Sport Fishing In Alaska

Abstract

Sport anglers reeling in salmon, halibut, and other fish generated—both directly and indirectly—an estimated three percent of jobs and payroll in Alaska in 1993. This is one of the findings of a study of the economics of sport fishing that ISER did for the Alaska Department of Fish and Game. Sport fishing is enormously popular with residents and visitors. The Department of Fish and Game estimates that nearly half a million anglers fished in Alaska in 1997, with numbers of visiting anglers slightly edging Alaskan anglers. Seven out of ten Alaska households have at least one sport angler. Nearly half of Alaska’s households rate hunting and fishing opportunities as important reasons why they live where they do. The department contracted with ISER to do this study because the economics of sport fishing in Alaska is an important consideration for resource managers allocating fish stocks, evaluating fishery projects, and making decisions about land and water management. The analysis is based largely on information we collected in surveys of sport anglers and guide and charter businesses in 1993 and 1994.