July 19, 2012 – Alaskans again this summer are wondering: Where are the king salmon?
Some of Alaska’s largest and best rivers are closed to king fishing because state and federal fisheries managers have determined that the largest of the salmon species, also called Chinook, aren’t showing up in enough numbers to ensure sustainable future runs.
In western Alaska, people living in dozens of villages along the Yukon and Kuskokwim rivers are turning to less desirable salmon species — fish with lower oil and fat content — to fill their freezers for winter in what one official described as a summer of ‘‘food insecurity.’’
‘‘It is pretty scary,’’ said Timothy Andrew, director of natural resources with the Association of Village Council Presidents in Bethel. ‘‘Chinook salmon is probably the biggest species that people depend on for drying, salting and putting away in the freezer to feed the family throughout the winter.’’
Fishery managers predict that this year’s Yukon River king salmon run will be worse than last year, and that was the worst showing for Chinook in 30 years.
Commercial fishermen on the Yukon and Kuskokwim are turning to less desirable but more plentiful species of salmon that sell for under $1 a pound. King salmon sells for more than $5 a pound. With gas costing $6.70 a gallon in Bethel, many fishing boats are sitting idle, he said.
People living in the region’s 56 villages are devastated, Andrew said.
‘‘It is an incredibly stressful time,’’ he said.
Read the full story from the AP at the Boston Globe.