FISHERIES UPDATE FOR THE WEEK OF AUGUST 1-7, 2022. Report #11

SOUTHEAST ALASKA 

Sitka and Hoonah Area – Forest Service, Tongass National Forest

Position vacant – No reports expected for remainder of season.

Petersburg and Wrangell Area –Andrew Sanders, Forest Service, Tongass National Forest
Andrew Sanders, (907)772-3871 andrew.sanders@usda.gov
No report submitted this week. 

Juneau and Yakutat – Forest Service, Tongass National Forest
Jake Musslewhite, 907-789-6256  jacob.g.musslewhite@usda.gov

No report submitted this week. 

Prince of Wales and Ketchikan District area – TBA, Forest Service, Tongass National Forest. (907) 826-1649

USFS Weekly Summary Author position vacant - TBA. No reports expected this season or until alternate staffing arrangements are made.

Southeast Alaska Web Links

Tongass National Forest News Room http://www.fs.usda.gov/news/tongass/news-events

Federal Subsistence Fisheries Regulations for Southeastern Alaska Area http://www.doi.gov/subsistence/regulation/fish_shell/upload/Southeast.pdf

ADF&G Sport and Personal Use Fishing News Release and Emergency Order Link http://www.adfg.alaska.gov/sf/EONR/index.cfm?ADFG=region.R1

ADF&G Commercial Fisheries News Release and Emergency Order Link http://www.adfg.alaska.gov/index.cfm?adfg=cfnews.main

Weekly ADF&G Sport Fishing Reports for Southeast Alaska http://www.adfg.alaska.gov/sf/FishingReports/index.cfm?ADFG=R1.home

Statewide ADF&G Fish counts
http://www.adfg.alaska.gov/sf/FishCounts/

SOUTHCENTRAL ALASKA 

PRINCE WILLIAM SOUND – COPPER RIVER
Copper River, 7/31/2022 Update – Dave Sarafin, Wrangell-St. Elias National Park and Preserve (WRST), (907) 822-7281, dave_sarafin@nps.gov
No report submitted this week.

Links:
ADFG Miles Lake daily sonar estimates
http://www.adfg.alaska.gov/index.cfm?adfg=commercialbyareacopperriver.salmon_escapement

NVE’s Chinook Escapement Monitoring project in the Copper River    http://eyak.fishscan.com/Summary/DailySummary.aspx 

ADFG Copper River Inseason Commercial Harvest Estimates
http://www.adfg.alaska.gov/index.cfm?adfg=commercialbyareacopperriver.harvestsummary

ADFG Sport Fish Emergency Orders and News Releases
https://www.adfg.alaska.gov/sf/EONR/index.cfm?ADFG=main.home 

PWS and Copper River Delta – Stormy Haught, Chugach National Forest, Cordova.
8 August 2022
Forty Federal Subsistence fishing permits have been issued for freshwaters within the Chugach National Forest portion of the Prince William Sound area (FFPW01) to-date in 2022. Harvest statistics of this year’s permit holders will not be known until reports are returned this winter. Most harvest under these permits takes place during the coho fishery in fresh waters of the Copper River Delta in August and September. Seventy-four permits were issued in 2021 and 28 were fished. Reported harvest was 459 Coho Salmon, 19 Sockeye Salmon and 4 Cutthroat Trout.
The new dip net fishery in the Lower Copper River Area (FFPW05) began on June 1, 2022. Sixty-nine permits have been issued so far. Most effort and harvest has taken place at 36-Mile of the Copper River Highway. Harvest must be reported with 48 hours, there has been no reported harvest since June 28th. Season total harvest to-date is 104 Sockeye and 3 King Salmon.

COOK INLET AREA – Kenneth Gates, Senior Fish Biologist, Kenai Fish and Wildlife Conservation Office

No report submitted this week.  

Fish counts at some Alaska Department of Fish and Game-operated assessment projects are available on-line at http://www.adfg.alaska.gov/sf/FishCounts/index.cfm?ADFG=main.home

Kodiak Island Area – Michael Brady, Refuge Manager, - Kodiak NWR
(907) 487-2600/0230 michael_brady@fws.gov or 
Kevin Van Hatten (907) 487-0230 Kevin_VanHatten@fws.gov  

No report for this week. 

FISHERIES UPDATE FOR THE WEEK OF JULY 25, 2022.    

BRISTOL BAY, CHIGNIK, ALASKA PENINSULA, and ALEUTIAN ISLANDS – Jonathon Gerken Fisheries Branch Chief Anchorage Fish and Wildlife Field Office

No report submitted this week. 

Yukon River –USFWS Fairbanks Office.  August 2-August 8, 2022 
Federal Manager, Holly Carroll (907) 351-3029, holly_carroll@fws.gov

Assessment Information
As of August 7, at Pilot station sonar, approximately 45,000 Chinook Salmon have passed the sonar compared to a historical average for this time of about 152,600 fish and the run is considered nearly complete in the lower river.  Eagle Sonar passage is exceptionally low at 10,918 fish compared to a historical average of approximately 51,000 fish for this date. So far this is the lowest Chinook run on record for the Yukon River. As of July 18, the final day of assessing summer chum at Pilot Station sonar, approximately 437,000 summer Chum Salmon passed the sonar. This run is well below the bottom end of the drainage-wide escapement goal of 500,000-1.2 million.
 As of August 7, the cumulative fall Chum salmon passage at Pilot Station sonar is approximately 101,600 which is below the median for this date of approximately 270,000. As of August 7, genetic estimates of fall Chum salmon at Pilot Station sonar indicate the current cumulative passage of fall Chum salmon is approximately 26,000 which is much lower than the median of approximately 179,000 fall chum salmon for this date. Therefore, the projected fall Chum run is unlikely to be large enough to meet the minimum escapement goal of 300,000 fish needed to allow harvest.  So far at the Pilot Station sonar, 1,652 Coho salmon have been counted, compared to a cumulative median passage of approximately 5,500 for this date.  Coho typically enter the Yukon during the second half of the fall season and managers expect Coho passage to increase in the coming week.  
Assessment and management updates will be given on the YRDFA weekly teleconferences each Tuesday at 1:00 pm at the following number: 1-800-315-6338, Passcode: 98566#. To hear the fishing schedule and fish counts please call the toll-free Fishing Schedule and Fish Counts hotline: 866-479-7387.
Management Actions
Under the Delegated letter of Authority, and in consultation with Regional Advisory Council chairs and Office of Subsistence management staff, the Federal In-season Manager began issuing emergency special actions to close salmon fishing in each district, starting on June 2, and moving the closures upriver based on salmon migration timing. 
As we transition to management for fall season (fall chum and coho salmon), emergency special actions are being announced to keep fishing closed for fall chum, and to allow harvest of coho salmon for federally qualified subsistence users in Federal public waters.  Chinook and summer chum continue to pass through the river, so closures to summer chum and Chinook salmon fishing continue to be in place throughout the drainage.  
Fishing for non-salmon species with 4-inch or smaller mesh gillnets is allowed under State and Federal regulations during salmon fishing closures; however, net length is restricted to a maximum of 60 feet. If a Chinook or Chum salmon is caught in 4-inch mesh gillnets, it should be released alive if possible, or if dead, may be kept. If fishermen are encountering salmon in a particular area, they should move their net and avoid areas where salmon are running. Other non-salmon gear types, including manned fish wheels, dip net, hook and line, longline, jigging gear, hand line, beach seine, fyke net, spear, or lead may be used but all Chinook and summer and fall Chum salmon caught must be released alive from these gears. Coho salmon, Pink Salmon or Sockeye Salmon may be retained in these gears if caught. 
Subsistence salmon fishing has been closed in Federal public waters by Emergency Special Action in the following Districts and Subdistricts:
Summer Season:
•    Coastal District and District 1, June 2 (2-KS-01-22)
•    District 2, June 4 (2-KS-01-22)
•    District 3, June 7 (2-KS-02-22)
•    Subdistrict 4-A Lower, June 12 (2-KS-03-22)
•    Subdistrict 4-A Upper, June 15 (2-KS-03-22)
•    Subdistricts 4-B/C, June 17 (2-KS-04-22)
•    Innoko River, June 17 (2-KS-05-22)
•    Subdistricts 5-A/B/C, June 21 (2-KS-06-22) 
•    Koyukuk River, June 25 (2-KS-07-22)
•    Subdistrict 5-D Lower, June 25 (2-KS-08-22
•    Subdistrict 5-D Middle, June 28 (2-KS-08-22)
•    Subdistrict 5-D Upper, June 30 (2-KS-08-22)
•    Subdistrict 6A, June 23 (2-KS-09-22)
•    Upper Tanana River June 28 (2-KS-09-22)
Fall Season:
•    Coastal District and District 1, July 16 (2-FC-01-22)
•    District 2, July 19 ((2-FC-01-22)
•    District 3, July 21 ((2-FC-01-22)
•    District 4 and the Koyukuk River, July 28 (2-FC-02-22)
•    Subdistricts 5-A, 5-B and 5-C, August 5 (2-FC-03-22)
•    Subdistrict 5-D Lower, August 9, Subdistrict 5-D Middle, August 17, and Subdistrict 5-D Upper, August 26 (2-FC-04-22)

These management actions were taken in consultation with Alaska Department of Fish and Game (ADF&G). State-managed waters in these areas have been closed concurrently by ADF&G.
For detailed information on management actions and weekly assessment updates, subscribe to ADF&G advisory announcements at http://www.adfg.alaska.gov/index.cfm?adfg=cfnews.search For daily counts and State Advisory announcements like the ADF&G Yukon River Facebook page at:  www.facebook.com/YukonRiverFishingADFG/
Recent Fishery special actions are posted here:
Fisheries Special Actions | U.S. Department of the Interior (doi.gov)
If you’d like to receive emails and notifications on the Federal Subsistence Management Program you may subscribe for regular updates by emailing fws-fsb-subsistence-request@lists.fws.gov
For Federal News Releases and Emergency Special actions, like: www.facebook.com/subsistencealaska.   

Fisheries Updates No 11 August 1-7 2022 (1) [pdf]