March 20, 2025 — A proposal that would have allowed commercial setnet fishers on the east side of Cook Inlet to fish with set beach seines was transformed into a motion to strip setnets entirely from the Kenai River king salmon action plan before being defeated on a 3-3 vote by the State Board of Fisheries on Saturday.

When the State Board of Fisheries in 2024 established its action plan for the recovery of Kenai River late-run king salmon, a “stock of management concern,” it called on the east side setnet fishery — which has been barred entirely from operating since 2023 — to exercise “creativity” and find a new way to fish for the abundant sockeye salmon they target without killing king salmon.

That’s why Brian and Lisa Gabriel last summer operated a test fishery for set beach seines. They told the Clarion in July that they’d seen their nets work successfully — that they hadn’t killed a king salmon, that they could adapt the nets to different sites, and that they’d caught enough sockeye to be economically viable.

They brought the idea to the board last week, via an accepted request to hear the proposal out of cycle. Local fishing issues aren’t set to return before the board until 2027. They told the board on Tuesday, March 11, that they tested the nets on multiple sites, solicited input from other setnetters and hired a professional monitor in retired biologist Robert Begich.

A total of more than 20,000 sockeye were harvested across two permits and four fish sites, according to data included in meeting notes. While harvesting that target stock, the report says that they successfully released 31 silver salmon and 16 king salmon — only one king salmon seen and released during the test was a large king greater than 34 inches of length that would be counted by the State Department of Fish and Game.

Using the set beach seines, Brian Gabriel said to the board, they successfully harvested sockeye salmon while releasing king salmon alive.

The Gabriels in recent months also brought their presentation to a variety of local fish and game advisory committees, the Kenai River Sportfishing Association and others to collect feedback.

KRSA in a written statement by Executive Director Shannon Martin said they opposed the Gabriels’ proposal because the study “was not nearly comprehensive enough to allow for scaling up to potentially over 50 participants spread across the ESSN fishery.”

The Gabriels brought forward a proposed amendment to their proposal at the meeting, based on feedback received from the groups they engaged with. The amendment would have shortened the days available for fishing — including removing days in August to avoid interactions with silver salmon — reduced the allowable length and depth of the seines, required release of all silvers in addition to kings and required gear to be tended at all times, among other considerations.

Read the full article at the Peninsula Clarion 

March 18, 2025 — A half-century ago, Angoon’s harbor was packed with small, family-operated fishing vessels. Salmon and halibut fed mouths and bank accounts.

Peter Duncan, Mayor of Angoon, remembers those days. But it’s not the same anymore. Fisheries limitation regulations have caused “devastating changes,” he said. “You just don’t find a troller in our harbors anymore.” That’s caused his village to depend more on government assistance programs, including food stamps, he said.

Duncan grew up fishing on his father’s seiner in the small Lingít village on Admiralty Island. He graduated to his own troll boat and commercially fished until the early 1990s, when he said he couldn’t make a living that way anymore.

He said the opening date for the king salmon fishery was pushed later in the season, when most fish had already gone further into the inside waters and up rivers to spawn. Folks weren’t catching enough salmon to make money, so permits became more valuable to sell.

“A lot of boats, you know, they just sold out, and they, they couldn’t do it anymore, and they’ve tried,” he said.

Many of those fishing permits left the island, and with them went the means for the village to sustain itself.

“It’s sad to know that at one time, we used to be a strong fishing fleet that took pride in going out and going fishing and making something for ourselves,” Duncan said.

Read the full article at KTOO