I want some answers

Last week I mentioned a public meeting scheduled at the Legislative Information Office (LIO) at 6:30 p.m., Nov. 1. There seems to be some question as to the exact starting time. I’ve heard everything from 5 to 7 p.m., so if you’re interested in attending, I would recommend calling the LIO and asking what the scheduled time really is.

Regardless of that detail, the meeting will be hosted by Rep. Mark Neuman with the two fisheries management divisions, Sport Fish and Commercial Fisheries, from the Alaska Department of Fish and Game (ADF&G). The purpose is so ADF&G can explain to residents of the Northern District of Cook Inlet how this past season’s salmon runs developed and how they were managed.

You’ve read in this column about major changes the Alaska Board of Fisheries (BOF) made to commercial fisheries management plans this past spring in an effort to get more salmon that originated in the Northern District through the Central District commercial fisheries and back into their natal streams in our neck of the woods. The Northern District currently has its major sockeye stock (the Susitna/Yentna Rivers run) and six separate king salmon stocks listed as stocks of concern for failure to meet even minimum escapement goals during the past four to five years or longer.

After this past year’s unexpectedly poor return of coho salmon across the district, the Little Susitna River, with one of the largest coho sport fisheries in Cook Inlet, logged its third consecutive year of failing to make minimum coho escapement, even with no bait allowed and a total closure of the sports fishery in late August. With one more poor showing in the Little Susitna in 2012, that stock of cohos will qualify for a stock of concern designation and would make three out of five salmon species as stocks of concern in the Northern District of Cook Inlet. Is that beginning to sound like a crisis in salmon management to you? It should!

Why is this happening? Global warming, overfishing by commercial interests, too much subsistence harvest, greedy sportfishing guides or too many dipnetters? The answers are not simple and, in most cases, not completely known or understood. The actual causes depend not only on the species of salmon being discussed, but also where that particular salmon run occurs.

The Sustainable Salmon Fisheries Policy (SSFP) regulation, which both the BOF and ADF&G are required to follow in developing regulations and managing the various salmon runs, mandates that in times of weak salmon runs, the burden of conservation (restrictions) in any harvesting of fish from these runs be shared as equitably as possible between all user groups involved with that salmon run. Is this regulation being followed? Maybe you should attend the meeting and ask that question yourself and see what answer you are given.

The Mat-Su Mayor’s Blue Ribbon Sportsmen’s Committee (MSMBRSC) met with local division managers on Oct. 20 and discussed some of these Northern District management concerns. A few members of the public attended and asked questions. Several other questions/comments during the meeting were directed more toward the Commercial Fisheries Division and the sportfish guys declined to try speaking for another division’s concerns — a wise move.

The major item that stuck with me from this meeting was that the sportfish guys are anticipating issuing several restrictions on methods and means over and above the current regulations for the 2012 king salmon sportfishing season. They said they would have this information out to the public prior to the start of the 2012 king salmon season so folks could plan private trips and guides would have more specific information to aid them in operating their businesses. It’s too early to know exactly what the restrictions will be since all the data from this past season has not yet been fully analyzed.

The question that begged an answer was, if the sportfish guys were planning to restrict the in-river king salmon users, are the commercial fisheries managers planning to restrict the commercial king salmon fisheries beyond the basic fisheries management plan, as required by the SSFP regulation about sharing the burden of conservation? Nobody was present to answer that question at the Oct. 20 meeting, but will be for the meeting next Tuesday. I want to hear the answer to that question.

If you are in the least concerned with the status of the salmon stocks in the Northern District of Cook Inlet, I would recommend you make every effort to attend this meeting. I expect to see several other state legislators, borough assembly members and other borough officials, members of several local Fish and Game advisory committees, and others involved in influencing the management of Cook Inlet salmon stocks in attendance. Hopefully, this will include a member or two from the BOF as well.

If you have specific questions, bring them in written form. I’m not sure everyone will be offered a chance to ask questions, but you could probably get your question asked by handing it off to one of the folks who will be asking questions, like legislators, advisory committees members, and Blue Ribbon Committee members.

This whole salmon management situation is a hot-button issue for many here in the Valley. Remember to be respectful and polite with questions and comments. Anger and name calling has never solved a single problem!

Howard Delo is a retired fisheries biologist with the Alaska Department of Fish and Game. Leave him a message by emailing sports@frontiersman.com.