NPFMC Takes Limited Step on Chum Salmon Bycatch, Ignores Tribal Knowledge and Urgent Calls for Meaningful Limits

 NPFMC Takes Limited Step on Chum Salmon Bycatch, Ignores Tribal Knowledge and Urgent Calls for Meaningful Limits

The North Pacific Fishery Management Council (NPFMC) voted this week to adopt new management measures for Western Alaska chum salmon bycatch in the Bering Sea pollock fishery. While the action represents a step beyond the status quo, it falls far short of what Tribes across the Yukon‑Kuskokwim Delta and Western Alaska have consistently called for: meaningful limits that reflect Traditional Knowledge and the ongoing collapse of salmon runs.