Looking to calm a public-relations storm and stave off a costly regulatory crackdown, Alaska crabbers in August vowed to stem the unusually high discard rate seen in last season's Bristol Bay red king crab fishery. Crab leaders said 13 harvesting cooperatives representing more than 80 percent of all quota shares in the fishery have signed onto a "coordinated effort" to reduce discards and handling mortality in this fall's fishery opening Oct. 15.
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