Mat-Su Fisheries Meeting: Cook Inlet EEZ Salmon Management

On Thursday December 7, 2023 Alaska Department of Fish and Game (ADF&G) staff meet with the Mat-Su Borough Fish and Wildlife Commission for an annual public meeting on Mat-Su Fisheries. Discussions and public comment during the meeting was primarily concerned with salmon fisheries. There was a large public turnout for the meeting, particularly from guide or charter fishing businesses owners — who all talked about wanting to reverse the trend of lower salmon numbers returning to Mat-Su streams. My friend and owner of Miller’s Riverboat Service, Ben Allen, talked about how he and his wife originally moved to the Mat-Su and started their charter fishing business based on the king salmon fishery available in the valley. With the downturn in king salmon returns to the Mat-Su, and a similar downturn throughout the state, Ben said although he always tries to maintain a positive outlook, he has been quite discouraged. He was pleased, however, with the meeting, and the number of public participants who attended and provided input about Mat-Su fisheries.

3 Rivers Fly and Tackle partner, A. J. Hoffman explained that good salmon management does not just provide good fishing or harvest opportunities for one or two user groups, but that it should provide reasonable harvest opportunities for all user groups. A. J. also mentioned a new South-central Alaska Sportfishing Association group that he and others had set up in part to lobby for more reasonable salmon harvest opportunities for Mat-Su Valley fisheries, and mentioned raising money to support and help Mat-Su Valley sport fisheries.

Sport anglers and guides talked extensively about the down turn in king salmon and a more recent down turn in coho salmon sport fisheries within the Mat-Su Valley. Many of them related how much better fishing had been previously within their lifetimes. These two ocean-run species, in the recent past, have made up most of the fish harvested in Mat-Su sport fisheries — with coho salmon sport harvest far outnumbering the sport harvest of any other fish species within Mat-Su fisheries..

Long-time Mat-Su Borough Fish and Wildlife Commissioner, Larry Engle commented to me this week that the public attendance and participation at the meeting was one of the largest turnouts and most active public participation efforts that he can remember during his many years of service on the commission. Although it is easier for the public to turnout for a local meeting, Larry also stressed it is even more important for the public to attend the Upper Cook Inlet Board of Fisheries meeting February 23 - March 6 in Anchorage and relay their concerns to Alaska Board of Fisheries members. The board adopts the fishing regulations that provide opportunities for various user groups. It was stressed at the December meeting that management plans and fishing regulations are established by the Board of Fisheries through a public process — and not by ADF&G.

Federal Management of Cook Inlet Exclusive Economic Zone (EEZ) Fishing

ADF&G Director of Sport Fisheries, Israel Payton, briefly discussed the proposed Federal Management of Cook Inlet salmon fisheries within EEZ waters. The Mat-Su Fish and Wildlife Commission has worked for a decade to limit the amount of commercial drift fishing in middle of Cook Inlet area called the “Conservation Corridor,” while allowing more commercial drift fishing in harvest zones closer to the Kenai and Kasilof River. The Conservation Corridor concept allows more discrete harvest of productive sockeye salmon stocks migrating up the Kenai and Kasilof Rivers, while allowing less productive Susitna River sockeye salmon and Northern-bound coho salmon better opportunity to migrate through the middle of Cook Inlet and reach Northern District waters. Federal Management, as proposed, would allow twice as many 12 hour drift fishing periods per week during the period from July 16 - August 15 in the middle of Cook Inlet between Anchor Point and Kalgin Island (a large portion of the Conservation Corridor) than has recently been allowed by state management under 5 AAC 21.353 Central District Drift Gillnet Fishery Management Plan. In addition the proposed fishery would allow each drift gillnet permit holder to use 200 fathoms of gillnet compared to the 150 fathoms allowed by state management.

Alternative 3 is Federal Management of EEZ waters — it is required since fishing federal EEZ waters have conservation issues associated with the nonselective harvest of mixed salmon stocks, and therefore must be managed to avoid those issues — as repeated pointed out in the federal registry. The problem is, ignoring the long history of repeatedly failing to achieve Northern Cook Inlet salmon spawning escapement goals that occurred under even less than the proposed 2 periods per week and expanded length of 200 fathoms of gill net per permit, that would be allowed under Amendment 16 (the proposed federal plan). Amendment 16 appears far from conservative.

Help Mat-Su Salmon Stocks!!! — Comment on Federal EEZ Management

Without public input from people concerned about the health and sustainability of Mat-Su salmon stocks — far worse management, that could further retard salmon returns into Northern Cook Inlet waters, would likely occur as proposed in Amendment 16.

For those concerned enough to comment, the Mat-Su Borough Fish and Wildlife Commission intends to finalize comments on Federal EEZ Management at our December 14, 2023 meeting starting at 4 p.m. Currently the draft we will be considering is located here. Scroll down to red page 39. This letter may provide talking points the public may want to include in their comment(s) — it would also be helpful for members of the public to explain how the proposed fishery management may affect them and the fisheries they participate in.

How to Submit Your Comment — Deadline December 18, 2023

You may submit comments, identified by NOAA–NMFS–2023–0065, by any of the following methods:

• Electronic Submission: Submit all electronic public comments via the Federal e-Rulemaking Portal. Go to https://www.regulations.gov and enter NOAA–NMFS–2023–0065 in the Search box. Click on the “Comment” icon, complete the required fields, and enter or attach your comments.

Mail: Submit written comments to Gretchen Harrington, Assistant Regional Administrator, Sustainable Fisheries Division, Alaska Region NMFS. Mail comments to P.O. Box 21668, Juneau, AK 99802–1668.

Note: the online submission appeared to be down on Tuesday afternoon, but will hopefully be available by the time this column is published.

Good luck and Fish On!

Andy Couch is currently serving as Chair of the Mat-Su Borough Fish and Wildlife Commission. Thoughts and opinions expressed in this column are his own.