January 28, 2014 — Today, U.S. Secretary of Commerce Penny Pritzker determined a commercial fishery failure for the Fraser River sockeye salmon fishery in Washington State.
The fishery resource disaster was caused by the low return of sockeye salmon to the Fraser River which resulted in subsequent closure of the fishery for the 2013 fishing season. The closure resulted in significant revenue losses for tribal and non-tribal fishermen.
“The sockeye salmon fishery isn’t just economically significant for the state of Washington – it’s inextricably linked to its history and culture,” said Secretary Pritzker. “Because returns of sockeye salmon were so low and caused significant losses of revenues, the fishery qualified as a resource disaster under the nation’s fishing law.”