Alaska Administrative Code
Title 5 - Fish and Game
Part 1 - Commercial and Subsistence Fishing and Private Nonprofit Salmon Hatcheries
Chapter 05 - Yukon Area
Article 3 - Salmon Fishery
5 AAC 05.360 - Yukon River King Salmon Management Plan

Universal Citation: 5 AK Admin Code 05.360

Current through August 30, 2024

(a) The objective of this management plan is to provide the department with guidelines to manage for the sustained yield of Yukon River king salmon. The department shall use the best available data, including preseason run projections, test fishing indices, age and sex composition, subsistence and commercial harvest reports, and passage estimates from escapement monitoring projects to assess the run size for the purpose of implementing this plan.

(b) The department shall manage commercial fishing as follows:

(1) the department may open a directed commercial king salmon fishery when increases in subsistence or test fishery net catches of king salmon have occurred over a seven to ten day period;

(2) the department shall manage the Yukon River commercial king salmon fishery for a guideline harvest range of 67,350 - 129,150 king salmon, distributed as follows:
(A) Districts 1 and 2: 60,000 - 120,000 king salmon;

(B) District 3: 1,800 - 2,200 king salmon;

(C) District 4: 2,250 - 2,850 king salmon;

(D) District 5:
(i) Subdistrict 5-B and 5-C: 2,400 - 2,800 king salmon;

(ii) Subdistrict 5-D: 300 - 500 king salmon; and

(E) District 6: 600 - 800 king salmon;

(3) when the projected king salmon harvest range for Districts 1 - 6 combined is below the low end harvest level from zero to 67,350 fish, the department shall allocate the commercial harvest available by percentage for each district as follows:
(A) Districts 1 and 2: 89.1 percent;

(B) District 3: 2.7 percent;

(C) District 4: 3.3 percent;

(D) Subdistricts 5-B and 5-C: 3.6 percent;

(E) Subdistrict 5-D: 0.4 percent; and

(F) District 6: 0.9 percent.

(c) A person may not sell king salmon roe taken in Subdistrict 4-A.

(d) The subsistence fishery in the Yukon River drainage will be based on a schedule to be implemented chronologically, consistent with migratory timing as the king salmon run progresses upstream. The commissioner may alter fishing periods by emergency order, if the commissioner determines that preseason or inseason run indicators indicate it is necessary for conservation purposes. The fishing periods for subsistence fishing in the Yukon River drainage will be established by emergency order as follows:

(1) Coastal District, Koyukuk River, Innoko River, and Subdistrict 5-D: seven days per week;

(2) Districts 1 - 3: two 36-hour fishing periods per week;

(3) District 4, and Subdistricts 5-B and 5-C: two 48-hour fishing periods per week;

(4) Subdistrict 5-A, and District 6: two 42-hour fishing periods per week; and

(5) Old Minto Area: five days per week.

(e) If inseason run strength indicates a sufficient abundance of king salmon to allow a commercial fishery, subsistence fishing shall revert to the fishing periods as specified in 5 AAC 01.210(c) - (h).

(f) The sport fishery in the Yukon River drainage will be managed to coordinate with the commercial and subsistence fisheries. Sport fishing restrictions necessary for conservation purposes will corresponded to the level of abundance of king salmon.

(g) In Subdistrict 4-A, during times when the commissioner determines that it is necessary for the conservation of chum salmon, the commissioner may, by emergency order, close the commercial fish wheel fishing season and immediately reopen the season during which set gillnet gear may be used instead of a fish wheel.

(h) If preseason or inseason run assessment information indicates insufficient abundance of king salmon to meet escapement objectives on specific components of the run, the commissioner may, by emergency order, close all salmon fishing in a district or portion of a district.

(i) if the department projects that the Yukon River king salmon abundance will be insufficient to achieve the escapement goals or king salmon subsistence fishing is restricted in more than one district or portion of a district, the commissioner shall, by emergency order, close a fishery and immediately reopen a fishery during which king salmon may be retained, but not sold. If the department thereafter projects king salmon escapement goals will be met and king salmon subsistence fishing is not restricted in the district or portion of the district where commercial salmon fishing is open, and reasonable opportunity for subsistence uses of king salmon has been or will be provided within the season, the commissioner may, by emergency order, open a commercial fishery during which king salmon incidentally taken may be sold.

(j) Notwithstanding the provisions of this section, the department shall manage the king salmon subsistence fishery in Districts 1 - 6 during the first pulse of the historical three distinctive pulses of king salmon that enter the Yukon River drainage, as follows:

(1) in Districts 1 and 2, to account for the uncertainty in the preseason king salmon run projection, if the preseason king salmon forecast indicates insufficient abundance to meet escapement goal objectives and subsistence harvest needs, the department shall manage the king salmon subsistence fishery conservatively and not open any salmon subsistence fishing periods during the first pulse of king salmon entering the districts;

(2) in Districts 3 - 6,
(A) if inseason run assessment information indicates insufficient abundance of king salmon to meet escapement objectives on specific components of the run and subsistence harvest needs, the department will not open any subsistence fishing periods during the first pulse implemented chronologically in the applicable district, consistent with migratory timing as the king salmon run progresses upstream;

(B) if inseason run assessment information indicates sufficient abundance of king salmon to meet escapement objectives on specific components of the run and subsistence harvests needs, subsistence fishing will revert to the fishing periods as specified in (d) of this section.

Authority:AS 16.05.060

AS 16.05.251

AS 16.05.258

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