"As the human population has grown, the recreational and commercial use in our estuaries has increased as well. Many people have more leisure time while others facing economic pressures have turned to natural resources to supplement their food needs and/or income. The increased demand has resulted in conflicts of philosophy and purpose among participants and legal redress to favor one activity over another. Large estuaries tend to have more issues, but small estuaries have problems as well. One example is the Dungeness crab fishery in Alsea Bay. In 1988 a study was done in Alsea Bay to obtain data to help resolve the port/commercial interaction. In 1989 a companion study obtained additional data to estimate the dollar value of the sport fishery." (from the Introduction)