The Fisheries Manager at the at Yukon Delta National Wildlife Refuge (YDNWR), in coordination with the Kuskokwim River Inter-Tribal Fish Commission (KRITFC), proposes to close Federal public waters of the Kuskokwim River drainage to the harvest of Chinook, Chum, and Coho Salmon by all users starting June 1, 2024. A public hearing to receive testimony on the proposed special action is scheduled for May 15, 2024.
On April 2, 3, and 4, Commissioners from 18 of our Member Tribes gathered in Anchorage for our 2024 Annual Meeting and elections. It was powerful and good to meet after the long winter, as it is every year, and to discuss how we can work together in the upcoming year to restore our salmon and our traditional ways of life.
We are launching a drone educational program to provide training for local Kuskokwim community members to obtain a commercial drone license for fisheries research purposes.
On Friday, March 29, 2024, the Federal District Court for the District Court of Alaska took an important step forward in protecting Alaska Native and rural Alaskan subsistence rights by ruling in favor of the United States, KRITFC, and other Alaska Native subsistence rights advocates by rejecting the State of Alaska’s attack on federally-protected subsistence rights. The federal court permanently enjoined the State of Alaska from repeating its recent unlawful actions on the Kuskokwim River.
On Tuesday, November 16, KRITFC Executive Director Mary Sattler Peltola testified before the U.S. House Subcommittee on Waters, Oceans, and Wildlife about proposed reauthorizations to the Magnuson Stevens Act (MSA). In her witness statement, Mary emphasized the need to address climate change, add Tribal seats to the North Pacific Fishery Management Council, and further minimize bycatch in the reauthorized MSA.
