March 13, 2023 — Alaska’s Congressional Delegation has filed an amicus brief, in a federal lawsuit that threatens to shut down salmon trolling in Southeast Alaska this summer.
The brief is meant to be friendly guidance for the court, but at least one of Alaska’s senators is not feeling especially friendly about the possible threat to an Alaskan way of life.
The amicus brief from Alaska’s Congressional Delegation comes just as some major players have stepped up in support of trollers, including the two largest hatcheries in Southeast Alaska, and the full House of Representatives.
Lawyers for Senators Dan Sullivan and Lisa Murkowski, and Representative Mary Peltola, filed the brief on March 6 in the US District Court of Western Washington. The lawsuit was brought three years ago by the Seattle-based Wild Fish Conservancy against the National Marine Fisheries Service. The Conservancy argues that Southeast salmon trollers in Alaska intercept king salmon crucial to the survival of an endangered population of killer whales in Puget Sound, in violation of the Endangered Species Act. The court is now considering whether or not to vacate the permit that allows the summer and winter troll fisheries in Alaska to operate, until the violation has been remedied.
An amicus brief doesn’t argue either side of the case, but is more like friendly advice to the court. During a recent visit to Wrangell, however, Sen. Dan Sullivan was not feeling very amicable toward the Wild Fish Conservancy.
“This lawsuit is ridiculous,” he said. “Think about what they’re trying to do: shut down this fishery. Estimates are that could impact Southeast by $100 million for orca problems in Puget Sound. They’re not asking for the fishery in Puget Sound to be shut down. They’re not asking about the pollution in Puget Sound. They’re looking at shutting down our fishery here. Idiotic — and an abuse of the Endangered Species Act.”