Mark your calendars! Our first Yukon River In-season Teleconference call will be on Tuesday, June 7, 2022 at 1:00 p.m.
The Yukon River is the longest river in Alaska. From the western coast of the Bering Sea, traveling north through interior Alaska and into the Canadian headwaters. There are approximately 45 Tribal Councils and 10 First Nations in Canada that harvest salmon along the Yukon River. This project brings together these remote and rural villages that share the salmon resource. They share information with each other and also share first hand knowledge about what is happening on the fishing grounds with the Alaska Department of Fish and Game and the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service that manage the fisheries. This project is a cost-effective method of bringing people together on a regular and consistent basis to speak together weekly via teleconference. The project is long-standing for 20 years now and has become a fixture of in-season salmon management along the Yukon River. Changes are taking place along the Yukon River due to environmental conditions and management actions. This project is needed to continue to gather information related to these changes. To specifically address the multi-regional priority needs, this project will focus on learning about changes taking place in the subsistence fishery resources and uses during the summer and fall fishing seasons. Fishermen will be asked all along the river to discuss the species they are targeting, their fishing locations, the fish quality, their harvest methods and means and methods of preservation.