Alaska Gov. Sean Parnell proposes king salmon research
Updated: Jan. 10, 2019, 10:21 a.m. | Published: Nov. 27, 2012, 8:40 p.m.
Alaska Department of Fish and Game biologist Tyler Polum loads a king salmon into a container held by Kate Kimmel at a fish trap on Monashka Creek in Kodiak, Alaska. King salmon caught in the trap are used for breeding purposes in a hatchery. The hatchery project is part of an effort to combat a decline in king salmon in the Kodiak archipelago. James Brooks / Kodiak Daily Mirror
Alaska Gov. Sean Parnell
says he will propose $30 million over five years to study king salmon abundance.
Parnell says the first installment will be $10 million in the fiscal year 2014 budget.
Low chinook salmon returns this year resulted in fishing closures or limits. State commerce officials estimate commercial fishermen lost $16.8 million in direct revenue. Subsistence fishermen and the sport fishing industry also saw losses.
At Parnell's request, the U.S. Department of Commerce declared king salmon fisheries a disaster in the Yukon and Kuskokwim river watersheds and in the Cook Inlet region.
The declaration made commercial fishermen eligible for federal disaster relief.
Parnell says the Alaska Department of Fish and Game now spends $14.6 million annually for research related to king salmon management.
--The Associated Press