Stikine River Federal subsistence Sockeye Salmon fishery closed

Wrangell District Ranger Clint Kolarich, under authority delegated by the Federal Subsistence Board, is closing the June 21 – July 31, 2019 Federal subsistence Sockeye Salmon fishery in the Stikine River. The closure will be effective Sunday, July 21, 2019 at 11:59 p.m. and will remain in effect through the rest of the 2019 season which ends July 31.

The 2019 preseason forecast for the Stikine River is 90,000 Sockeye Salmon which is below the average 153,000 fish. The forecast includes 66,000 Tahltan Lake and 24,000 Mainstem Sockeye Salmon. The escapement objective for Tahltan bound Sockeye Salmon is 18,000 and 30,000 for the Mainstem component. Both Canadian and US fisheries are seeing harvests below expectations, indicating a total run size lower than the preseason forecast. This action is necessary for Sockeye Salmon conservation in the Stikine River and to meet obligations of the Pacific Salmon Treaty. The Alaska Department of Fish and Game (ADF&G) has also taken actions in the State managed fisheries to reduce the harvest of Stikine River Sockeye Salmon. The closure of the Sockeye Salmon fishery does not affect the Stikine River Federal subsistence Coho Salmon fishery beginning August 1, 2019.

For additional information, please contact Clint Kolarich at (907) 874-2323, or Robert Cross at (907) 772-5944. Information on the Federal Subsistence Management Program can be found on the web at www.doi.gov/subsistence.