Canadian Conservation Groups Pen Letter to Alaskan Governor Asking to Cease Harvesting of BC Salmon

A coalition of four Canadian marine wildlife conservation groups have penned a letter asking Alaska to stop its harvesting of BC-bound salmon.

That coalition is made up of the Watershed Watch Salmon Society, SkeenaWild Conservation Trust, Raincoast Conservation Foundation, and Coastal Rivers Conservancy.

Two of those groups, SkeenaWild and Watershed Watch, released a report in January revealing the over-harvesting of BC-bound fish by Alaskan fisheries.

According to that report, Alaskan commercial fisheries harvested over 650,000 Canadian sockeye, while BC fisheries only harvested 110,000 commercially.

Now, the groups have sent a letter to Alaskan Governor Mike Dunleavy, calling for this to cease, while also providing other concret actions.

They say that Alaskan commercial fisheries need not stop fishing, just move their efforts inside waters where they can target Alaskan salmon.

Other identified actions include: closing their District 104 net fishery, reducing harvest rates in other southeast fisheries, implementing catch reporting as used by Canadian fisheries, and requiring fishers to release by-catch species immediately.

You can view the full letter at this link.