May 22, 2014 — The National Marine Fisheries Service has selected 11 groups to help determine how it will spend $20.8 million in federal funds for the king salmon disaster declarations made in 2012.
Congress appropriated the funds earlier this year in response to the disaster declaration made for poor king runs on the Yukon River in 2010, 2011 and 2012, the Kuskokwim River in 2011 and 2012 and for Cook Inlet’s 2012 salmon fisheries.
Now the agency, or NMFS, has been working to determine how to spend that money.
In late March, NMFS announced that it was proposing to have 10 organizations act as representative groups to provide input on how the money would be spent, and solicited public comment on whether or not affected fishermen felt the groups represented them.
For Cook Inlet, the Kenai Peninsula and Matanuska-Susitna boroughs, Northern District Setnetters Association, Kenai Peninsula Fishermen’s Association, Kenai River Sportfishing Association and Kenai River Professional Guide Association were proposed as representatives of the affected communities.
For the Yukon-Kuskokwim area, the Association of Village Council Presidents, Tanana Chiefs Conference, Yukon Delta Fisheries Development Association and Bering Sea Fishermen’s Association were the proposed representatives.