Fisheries management officials are considering changes that could have profound effects on the catch and sale of popular island fish — from yellowfin ahi to deep-water species such as opakapaka and onaga.

"Everybody has their own opinion," said Basil Oshiro, president of the nonprofit Maui Cooperative Fishing Association. "But if we don’t work together, we’re going to get nowhere. Us versus them hasn’t worked for years. It’s a matter of coming up with solutions so that both sides can win and preserve our industry."

State and federal officials last weekend held the last of seven community meetings around the islands to discuss fish-related proposals that will be taken up separately next year by the state Board of Land and Natural Resources and the Western Pacific Fishery Management Council.

They include:

» increasing the minimum size of yellowfin and big-eye tuna that can be sold;

» opening six of 12 deep-water fishing sites around the islands;

» allowing retailers and wholesalers to sell deep-water fish after the season closes each year;

» and changing or eliminating bag limits on noncommercial, deep-water fishermen.

Each matter affects fishermen and consumers differently. But collectively they could influence the size and health of species such as yellowfin and big-eye tuna, or ahi — and the price that wholesalers, retailers and ultimately customers pay for some of Hawaii’s most popular fish.

"Any time you talk about tuna, it’s a big deal that affects a lot of people," said Mark Mitsuyasu, fisheries program officer for the Western Pacific Regional Fishery Management Council who attended most of the meetings held across the state this month. "Certain markets would be impacted." 

If approved, changes could be seen in late 2015 or sometime in 2016, said Mitsuyasu and state Land Board Chairman William Aila Jr.

While the Land Board and the Western Pacific Regional Fishery Management Council will consider individual issues at various times next year, their representatives held this month’s community meetings jointly "so we’re all on the same page," Mitsuyasu said.

One of the more contentious issues centers around whether to increase the pound limit of ahi that’s sold.

Ahi under 3 pounds can be caught for personal consumption. But commercial fishermen complain that they see roadside vendors selling undersize ahi — especially in rural communities on the neighbor islands where there is no centralized fish market like on Oahu, Mitsuyasu said.

But at a Dec. 4 meeting at Waimalu Elementary School in Aiea, a group of fishermen delivered a petition signed by Leeward Oahu fishermen to leave the 3-pound limit alone, Mitsuyasu said.

Ahi can grow to 10 to 15 pounds within a year and reach sexual maturity at about 30 pounds, he said.

"Rule changes could allow more fish in this critical young stage to get to an age where … they can reach sexual maturity," Mitsuyasu said. "In that case you could have benefits in the form of larger-class fish."

At each of the meetings, there seemed to be support to increase the size of ahi for sale — but no consensus on what that size limit should be, Mitsuyasu said.

But as Aila said, "If you let the fish get to a bigger size, more of them will survive and grow faster and the return in a year or two will be more fish at larger sizes. Geneticists indicate there’s a stock around Hawaii and we should be more responsible for our own stock."

At the same time, increasing the size of ahi caught for sale could hurt customers with limited buying power who rely on roadside vendors for fish.

"If you’re a senior citizen on fixed income, you’re more likely to prefer the smaller fish because they’re less expensive," Aila said. "If you’re on minimum wage, smaller fish would be more at your level of purchasing power."

Separately, the Land Board will consider a proposal to open six deep-water fishing zones that are currently off limits: Kaula Rock on Niihau; Poipu on Kauai; Kaena Point on Oahu; Hana on Maui; and Hilo Bay and South Point on Hawaii island.

Studies show that the so-called "Deep Seven" species — lehi, kalekale, gindai, hapuupuu, opakapaka, onaga and ehu — "within the closed areas are getting larger and there’s more of them," Aila said.

Deep-water fishermen across the islands also had a range of opinions on two other proposals: whether to revise or eliminate the current limit of five deep-water fish per day per person for noncommercial fishermen; and whether to allow wholesalers and retailers to sell deep-water fish after the fleet catches its annual quota of 346,000 pounds.

While the Western Pacific Fishery Management Council would take up the issue of whether to grant a so-called "grace period" to sell deep-water fish after the annual quota is reached, Aila, chairman of the state Land Board, said current rules prohibit sales of legally caught fish.

"Right now," Aila said, "the fish would have to be eaten — or given away."