Jun
14

YUKON AREA SALMON CLOSURE: Upper 4-A District

Including: Kaltag, Nulato, and Koyukuk

Effective 8:00pm, Saturday, June 14, 2025

  • Gillnets larger than 4-inch mesh and longer than 60 feet are not allowed.

  • 4-inch or smaller mesh gillnets may be used to fish for nonsalmon but must be operated as setnets near shore.

  • The use of fish wheels is not permitted.

  • Chinook and summer chum salmon must be released alive if caught. They may only be kept if found dead.

More info: https://shorturl.at/wHDV1

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Jun
16

YUKON AREA SALMON CLOSURE: Districts 4-B, 4-C

Including: Galena and Ruby

Effective 8:00 PM, Monday, June 16, 2025

  • Gillnets larger than 4-inch mesh and longer than 60 feet are not allowed.

  • 4-inch or smaller mesh gillnets may be used to fish for nonsalmon but must be operated as setnets near shore.

  • The use of fish wheels is not permitted.

  • Chinook and summer chum salmon must be released alive if caught. They may only be kept if found dead.

More info here: https://shorturl.at/IYrEW

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Jun
16

YUKON AREA GILLNET CLOSURE: Coastal District & District 1

Including: Chevak, Hooper Bay, Scammon Bay, Emmonak, Nunam Iqua, Alakanuk, and Kotlik

Effective 8:00 PM, Monday, June 16th until Thursday, July 3rd

Management Actions: ALL gillnets must be removed from the water.

Fishing for nonsalmon is still allowed during this period, but it is limited to non-lethal or selective gear types including hook and line with a rod or pole, dip net, beach seine, hand line, longline, and fyke net. Pink and sockeye salmon may be retained. Chinook and chum salmon must be released alive.

More info here: https://www.adfg.alaska.gov/static/applications/dcfnewsrelease/1676448660.pdf

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Jun
18

YUKON AREA GILLNET CLOSURE: District 2

Including: Mountain Village, Pitkas Point, St. Mary’s, Pilot Station, and Marshall

Effective 8:00 PM, Wednesday June 18th until Saturday, July 5th

Management Actions: ALL gillnets must be removed from the water.

Fishing for nonsalmon is still allowed during this period, but it is limited to non-lethal or selective gear types including hook and line with a rod or pole, dip net, beach seine, hand line, longline, and fyke net. Pink and sockeye salmon may be retained. Chinook and chum salmon must be released alive.

More info here: https://www.adfg.alaska.gov/static/applications/dcfnewsrelease/1676448660.pdf

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Jun
20

YUKON AREA SALMON CLOSURE: Koyukuk River

Including: Huslia, Hughes, Allakaket, Alatna, Bettles, Wiseman, and Coldfoot

Effective 8:00 PM, Friday, June 20, 2025

  • Gillnets larger than 4-inch mesh and longer than 60 feet are not allowed.

  • 4-inch or smaller mesh gillnets may be used to fish for nonsalmon but must be operated as setnets near shore.

  • The use of fish wheels is not permitted.

  • Chinook and summer chum salmon must be released alive if caught. They may only be kept if found dead.

A subsistence fishing permit is required for all species in the Koyukuk River above Bettles, including Wiseman. In this permit area, gillnets must be 3½ inches or smaller mesh and cannot be used from June 30 to August 20. Get a permit here: https://shorturl.at/tGxz3

More info here: https://shorturl.at/IYrEW

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Jun
11

YUKON AREA SALMON CLOSURE: Lower 4-A District

Including: Grayling and Anvik

Effective 8:00 PM, Wednesday, June 11

  • Gillnets larger than 4-inch mesh and longer than 60 feet are not allowed.

  • 4-inch or smaller mesh gillnets may be used to fish for nonsalmon but must be operated as setnets near shore.

  • The use of fish wheels is not permitted.

  • Chinook and summer chum salmon must be released alive if caught. They may only be kept if found dead.

More info: https://shorturl.at/wHDV1

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Jun
3

YUKON AREA SALMON CLOSURE: District 2

Salmon Fishing Closure Notice for District 2
Includes the communities of: Mountain Village, Pitkas Point, St. Mary’s, Pilot Station, and Marshall

Effective 8 p.m. Tuesday, June 3:

  • Chinook and chum salmon fishing is CLOSED

  • Gillnets larger than 4-inch mesh are not allowed

  • Gillnets 4-inch or smaller mesh may be used to target nonsalmon

  • Must be 60 feet or less in length

  • Must be operated as a set net near shore

Closures will continue moving upriver based on run timing.

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Jun
1

YUKON AREA SALMON CLOSURE: Coastal District and District 1

Closure Notice for Coastal District and District 1
From the Naskonat Peninsula north to Point Romanof, including the Black River and the communities of: Chevak, Hooper Bay, Scammon Bay, Emmonak, Nunam Iqua, Alakanuk, and Kotlik

Effective 8 p.m. Sunday, June 1:

  • Chinook and chum salmon fishing is CLOSED

  • Gillnets larger than 4-inch mesh are not allowed

  • Gillnets 4-inch or smaller mesh may be used to target nonsalmon

  • Must be 60 feet or less in length

  • Must be operated as a set net near shore

Closures will continue moving upriver based on run timing.

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Katie John Day
May
31

Katie John Day

We honor Katie John Day, a powerful Ahtna Elder whose courage and determination protected the subsistence rights of Alaska Native people.

Katie John filed a lawsuit in 1985 against the State of Alaska and later the federal government. Her argument was simple but powerful: Alaska Natives have the right to continue their traditional subsistence fishing on federal waters.

The case centered on the interpretation of Title VIII of the Alaska National Interest Lands Conservation Act (ANILCA), which promises rural Alaska residents—many of whom are Alaska Native—the priority for subsistence uses on federal public lands.

In a key ruling in 1994, the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals ruled in favor of Katie John, stating that navigable waters within federal conservation units in Alaska are subject to federal subsistence priority under ANILCA. This meant that the federal government, not the state, had management authority over those waters when it came to subsistence.

We remember her today and every day as we carry forward the work to protect and defend our subsistence rights.

More information: https://narf.org/cases/katie-john-v-norton/

Photo Credit: Native American Rights Fund

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May
29

Fisheries Managers set first Yukon salmon closures of 2025

Fisheries managers have announced restricting harvests of chinook and summer chum salmon due to continued low run forecasts and conservation concerns.

Closure Notice for Coastal District and District 1
From the Naskonat Peninsula north to Point Romanof, including the Black River and the communities of: Chevak, Hooper Bay, Scammon Bay, Emmonak, Nunam Iqua, Alakanuk, and Kotlik

Effective 8 p.m. Sunday, June 1:

  • Chinook and chum salmon fishing is CLOSED

  • Gillnets larger than 4-inch mesh are not allowed

  • Gillnets 4-inch or smaller mesh may be used to target nonsalmon

  • Must be 60 feet or less in length

  • Must be operated as a set net near shore

Closure Notice for District 2
Includes the communities of: Mountain Village, Pitkas Point, St. Mary’s, Pilot Station, and Marshall

Effective 8 p.m. Tuesday, June 3:

  • Chinook and chum salmon fishing is CLOSED

  • Gillnets larger than 4-inch mesh are not allowed

  • Gillnets 4-inch or smaller mesh may be used to target nonsalmon

  • Must be 60 feet or less in length

  • Must be operated as a set net near shore

More info: https://www.kyuk.org/hunting-fishing/2025-05-29/fisheries-managers-set-first-yukon-salmon-closures-of-2025

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Yukon River Salmon Summer Fishery Announcement #1: Yukon River Salmon Fisheries Outlook
May
23

Yukon River Salmon Summer Fishery Announcement #1: Yukon River Salmon Fisheries Outlook

  • Issued by: Alaska Department of Fish and Game (ADF&G)

  • Key Points:

    • The drainage-wide Chinook salmon run size is projected at 72,000 fish, with a range of 58,000 to 88,000.

    • The Canada-origin Chinook salmon run size outlook is for a run of 24,000 to 37,000 fish.

    • Management strategies have been developed in collaboration with the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (USFWS), incorporating feedback from stakeholders and discussions held at the Yukon River Drainage Fisheries Association (YRDFA) preseason fishermen’s meeting, the Yukon River Panel spring meeting, and the Federal Special Action Hearing

  • Details: https://www.adfg.alaska.gov/static/applications/dcfnewsrelease/1670608318.pdf

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NPFMC Advisory Panel - Virtual Webconference
Mar
31
to Apr 4

NPFMC Advisory Panel - Virtual Webconference

The AP and Council will take in-person and remote oral testimony during the meetings. During the meeting, you will be able to click on the applicable 'Sign-up' link next to each agenda item below, and indicate whether or not you'll be testifying remotely or in person. 

Public comment:

Please submit written comment for the Council and Advisory Panel by clicking on the 'Comment Now' links next to the relevant agenda item, below. The comment period will open on March 8, 2024, and the deadline for written comments is Friday, March 29th at 12pm AKT. Submitted comments will be reviewed then visible online after the deadline closes, as per the Council's comment policy. 

 

Council, April 4-9, 2024; Hilton Hotel, Anchorage, Alaska; 8am-5pm

Zoom Link: https://us06web.zoom.us/j/81451130091

Advisory Panel, April 2-6, 2024; Hilton Hotel, Anchorage, Alaska; 8am-5pm

Zoom link: https://us06web.zoom.us/j/88671612019

Watch past testimonies here: https://www.youtube.com/@NPFMC/playlists

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