May 28, 2024 — In Washington D.C. on Thursday, NOAA Fisheries announced a petition to list Gulf of Alaska Chinook Salmon as “threatened or endangered” under the Endangered Species Act. Senator Lisa Murkowski expressed her concern in the following statement:
“Alaska’s king salmon need help, but an ESA listing based on a flawed petition from a Seattle-based environmental activist group is the wrong way to go. Should NMFS determine that Alaska’s Chinook be listed after conducting their 12-month review, it would be nearly impossible for king salmon from the Gulf of Alaska to be caught for commercial and recreational purposes, and perhaps even subsistence. Even this action on the 90-day finding will have a dangerous chilling effect on investment in our fishing industry at a time when they can least afford it.”