Today in Bethel, our community-based harvest monitors and fish technicians from ONC got together for training before the 2021 king salmon season begins.
Weekly River-Wide Fishing Teleconference
2021 Federal Management Action: Closures & Subsistence Harvest Opportunities (Emergency Special Action No.: 3-KS-01-21 )
The Yukon Delta National Wildlife Refuge Manager determined that Federal management is necessary for the conservation and the continuation of subsistence uses for Chinook salmon within the Kuskokwim River drainage. Read more for information about Federal closures, subsistence harvest opportunities, and alternative fishing means and methods during times of Chinook salmon conservation.
KRSMWG Preseason Meeting Summary
Public Hearing Regarding Federal Management Action on the Kuskokwim
Preparing for the 2021 King Salmon Season
It is likely that the king (Chinook) salmon runs will be weak in 2021, as they have been for at least the past decade. Because of this, KRITFC is seeking to federalize management of the Kuskokwim with our U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service collaborative management partners at the Yukon Delta National Wildlife Refuge.
2021 Annual Meeting
The Kuskokwim River Inter-Tribal Fish Commission will meet virtually on Zoom / teleconference on April 7-8 for its 2021 Annual Meeting. During this meeting, new Commissioners, Executive Council members, and In-Season Managers will be appointed for the 2021 season. The Commission chairmanship will also rotate to the middle river to be elected by the present Commissioners.
Zoom / teleconference information and RSVP details will be provided to KRITFC member tribes in February and March 2021. Please contact Casey Rangel at 907-227-9378 or caseyrangel@kritfc.org with questions.
Commissioners and staff from the 2019 Annual Meeting. The 2020 Annual Meeting was postponed until April 2021 due to the global COVID-19 pandemic.
Updates to Dingell Act: Allotment Selection by Eligible Alaska Native Vietnam Era Veterans
USFWS and the National Wildlife Refuge System have updated the Dingell Act to identify Refuge lands that can be made available for allotment selection by Alaska Native Vietnam War era veterans. A total of 1,330,410 acres within Yukon Delta NWR should be made available for allotment selection by eligible individuals, according to the Secretary of the Department of the Interior.
Read the full report here: Identification of National Wildlife Refuge System Lands in Alaska That Should Be Made Available for Allotment Selection by Eligible Alaska Native Vietnam Era Veterans
KRITFC Mobilizes Community Members To Participate In Clean Up Event
Winter is coming, and before snow covers the trash scattered around Bethel, volunteers are mobilizing over the weekend of Oct. 10 to collect trash in subdivisions and parks across the city. The event, “Clean Up Before Freeze Up,” is a play on the annual “Clean Up Green Up” event where community members clean up litter after breakup. The event will take place from Oct. 9 to 11.
2020 Kuskokwim River Salmon Fishery Season Summary
In this summary, we highlight how we co-managed the 2020 Chinook salmon run with a precautionary approach, as detailed in our 2020 Chinook Salmon Management Strategy. Our pre-season and in-season management saved the Chinook salmon run – whereas strategies from ADFG and USFWS, based on overly optimistic pre-season forecasts, would have severely depleted the run – while still allowing for four 12-hour harvest opportunities for Kuskokwim River subsistence fishers.