Alaska"s Significance Arises From Its Seafood Industry
Alaska is the largest state in the U.
S.
in terms of area, so it comes as no surprise that it has a lot to offer.
Although its biggest exports are oil and natural gas, the state could actually be most well-known for its thriving seafood industry.
In fact, 50% of U.
S.
seafood production comes from Alaska, which makes it the majority.
Ultimately, it can even be said that the state's significance arises from its seafood industry and the policies associated with it.
Although other states are nearly as big as Alaska, none of them can match its seafood production.
One reason for this has to do with the fact that Alaska's coastline is so massive.
No state comes close to the amount of coastline that Alaska has, not even fairly long states like California or Florida.
Location is also important too.
It just so happens that a number of highly prized seafood species make their way to Alaska at some point during their lives, including salmon, cod, crab, and lobster, among many others.
When you take those two facts into consideration, it's no wonder that Alaska is responsible for 50% of U.
S.
seafood production.
Alaska is also significant for a couple of other reasons.
Although having an amazing seafood bounty is one thing, managing it with respect for nature is another thing entirely.
Because seafood is wild-caught there, measures need to enforced to help the state adhere to the concept of sustainable yield.
In essence, sustainable yield is simply making sure that overfishing doesn't occur.
This is done by getting a tally on seafood populations before the start of a season and setting catch quotas accordingly.
Alaska will continue being responsible for 50% of U.
S.
seafood production for years to come thanks to these kinds of policies.
Of course, it isn't enough to set those quotas; they need to be enforced too.
There are a number of ways the state of Alaska goes about doing that.
For example, boats can't be bigger than a certain size, which makes overfishing impractical.
Additionally, boats have to be equipped with GPS systems so that they can constantly be monitored.
By only giving boats access to certain areas for a certain amount of time, overfishing becomes much more difficult to do.
In addition to those kinds of measures, stiff penalties are imposed on fisheries that break the rules.
Not only does the world enjoy seafood that comes from Alaska, but it admires its sustainability efforts too.
Thanks to its thriving seafood industry and highly lauded sustainability efforts, Alaska is praised the world over.
The next time you're eating seafood, you might want to thank Alaska for all it has done.
After all, since it's responsible for 50% of U.
S.
seafood production, chances are whatever you're enjoying came from there.
S.
in terms of area, so it comes as no surprise that it has a lot to offer.
Although its biggest exports are oil and natural gas, the state could actually be most well-known for its thriving seafood industry.
In fact, 50% of U.
S.
seafood production comes from Alaska, which makes it the majority.
Ultimately, it can even be said that the state's significance arises from its seafood industry and the policies associated with it.
Although other states are nearly as big as Alaska, none of them can match its seafood production.
One reason for this has to do with the fact that Alaska's coastline is so massive.
No state comes close to the amount of coastline that Alaska has, not even fairly long states like California or Florida.
Location is also important too.
It just so happens that a number of highly prized seafood species make their way to Alaska at some point during their lives, including salmon, cod, crab, and lobster, among many others.
When you take those two facts into consideration, it's no wonder that Alaska is responsible for 50% of U.
S.
seafood production.
Alaska is also significant for a couple of other reasons.
Although having an amazing seafood bounty is one thing, managing it with respect for nature is another thing entirely.
Because seafood is wild-caught there, measures need to enforced to help the state adhere to the concept of sustainable yield.
In essence, sustainable yield is simply making sure that overfishing doesn't occur.
This is done by getting a tally on seafood populations before the start of a season and setting catch quotas accordingly.
Alaska will continue being responsible for 50% of U.
S.
seafood production for years to come thanks to these kinds of policies.
Of course, it isn't enough to set those quotas; they need to be enforced too.
There are a number of ways the state of Alaska goes about doing that.
For example, boats can't be bigger than a certain size, which makes overfishing impractical.
Additionally, boats have to be equipped with GPS systems so that they can constantly be monitored.
By only giving boats access to certain areas for a certain amount of time, overfishing becomes much more difficult to do.
In addition to those kinds of measures, stiff penalties are imposed on fisheries that break the rules.
Not only does the world enjoy seafood that comes from Alaska, but it admires its sustainability efforts too.
Thanks to its thriving seafood industry and highly lauded sustainability efforts, Alaska is praised the world over.
The next time you're eating seafood, you might want to thank Alaska for all it has done.
After all, since it's responsible for 50% of U.
S.
seafood production, chances are whatever you're enjoying came from there.