KAMAISHI, Iwate Prefecture--Production of “aramaki zake” (lightly salted salmon), a popular year-end gift, has started in Iwate Prefecture but on a still-reduced scale due to the destruction caused by the 2011 tsunami.
KAMAISHI, Iwate Prefecture--Production of “aramaki zake” (lightly salted salmon), a popular year-end gift, has started in Iwate Prefecture but on a still-reduced scale due to the destruction caused by the 2011 tsunami.
Rows of fish seen hanging from racks to dry here on Dec. 1 were among the 1.96 million salmon caught in the ocean by fishermen in the prefecture by the end of November, according to the Iwate prefectural government.
Although the northeastern prefecture still boasts the largest salmon catch on Honshu, the total this year is only about 60 percent of the level in 2010, a year before the earthquake and tsunami devastated the Tohoku region.
The tsunami in March 2011 destroyed salmon hatcheries in the prefecture, reducing the number of salmon fry released into the wild.
In the two years after the disaster, the number of fry released was about 70 percent of pre-disaster levels.
Another reason for this year’s low catch number is the rise in ocean temperatures, which has delayed the southward migration of salmon.
Kamaishi and other parts of Iwate Prefecture, where aramaki zake production began, are continuing their reconstruction efforts, such as building coastal levees and reviving the salmon industry.
“I believe the salmon will come back here if the ocean temperatures drop and the north wind blows,” said Nobuyuki Sasaki, a 40-year-old fisherman in Miyako. “We should hold on to hope.”