December 3, 2021 — After years without representation on one of the most influential decision-making bodies in America’s seafood industry, agencies and lawmakers are pushing for tribal representation on the powerful North Pacific Fishery Management Council (NPFMC).
The council plays a key role in managing US fisheries such as Alaska pollock under the authority of the Magnuson-Stevens Act, the primary law governing marine fisheries management in federal waters.
There are currently 15 members on the council, largely made up of US seafood industry representatives, representatives from National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) and state agencies in Alaska, Washington state and Oregon.
In his Magnuson-Stevens Act reauthorization bill, Representative Jared Huffman, a California Democrat, asked specifically that the NPFMC have two individuals “appointed from Indian tribes in Alaska” to strengthen the transparency of the act.
Mary Sattler Peltola, executive director of the Kuskokwim River Inter-Tribal Fish Commission, said in testimony before Congress that without a NPFMC seat or bodies advising the council, Alaska Natives have only had concerns heard “through a Governor’s office that has historically and presently prioritized those with private financial interests in the fisheries over the long-term subsistence interests of Alaska Natives.”
Read the full story at Intrafish