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Federal Subsistence Fishery for Chinook Salmon Re-Opened in the Situk River
YAKUTAT, Alaska – Yakutat District Ranger Lee Benson, as in-season manager, is acting immediately to re-open the Federal subsistence Chinook salmon fishery in the Situk River near Yakutat effective 12:01 a.m., Friday, July 12, 2013. This action is concurrent with State of Alaska actions allowing the retention of Chinook salmon in the Situk-Ahrnklin Inlet subsistence fishery. The State commercial set gillnet fishery in the Situk-Ahrnklin Inlet remains closed to the retention of Chinook salmon and the State sport fishery in the Situk River drainage remains closed to the retention of Chinook salmon 20 inches or greater in length.
The return of Chinook salmon to the Situk River has been poor in recent years. In 2010, Alaska Department of Fish and Game personnel counted only 167 large (three ocean-age and older) Chinook salmon through their weir on the Situk River. In 2011, the weir count was 240 large Chinook salmon. In 2012, the weir count was 322 large Chinook salmon. In 2013, as of July 9, there have been 654 large Chinook salmon counted through the weir. On average, approximately 70 percent of the Chinook salmon have passed through the weir by this date. The Alaska Board of Fish has set the biological escapement goal range between 450 and 1,050 large Chinook. The closure, and now re-opening, of the Federal subsistence Chinook salmon fishery in the Situk River has addressed our conservation and subsistence priority obligations under Title VIII of ANILCA.
For more information on this Situk Chinook closure, contact Lee Benson by phone (907-784- 3359) or e-mail labenson@xxxxxxxxx.
Information on the Federal Subsistence Management Program can be found at http://alaska.fws.gov/asm/home.html.
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