Commercial fishing vessels wait at anchor in the mouth of the Kenai River before a Saturday fishing period Friday, July 28, 2017 in Kenai, Alaska. (Photo by Elizabeth Earl/Peninsula Clarion, file) Commercial fishing vessels wait at anchor in the mouth of the Kenai River before a Saturday fishing period July 28 in Kenai. (Photo by Elizabeth Earl/Peninsula Clarion, file)

Commercial fishing vessels wait at anchor in the mouth of the Kenai River before a Saturday fishing period Friday, July 28, 2017 in Kenai, Alaska. (Photo by Elizabeth Earl/Peninsula Clarion, file) Commercial fishing vessels wait at anchor in the mouth of the Kenai River before a Saturday fishing period July 28 in Kenai. (Photo by Elizabeth Earl/Peninsula Clarion, file)

As council looks to public for Cook Inlet salmon plan, UCIDA stays wary

The North Pacific Fishery Management Council is looking for input from Cook Inlet fishermen on how it should develop a management plan for the area’s salmon fisheries.

The federal council, which regulates fisheries in the federal waters between 3 and 200 nautical miles offshore, is currently working on an amendment to the fishery management plan for Cook Inlet’s salmon fisheries. The process is likely to take multiple years of meetings and the council members decided to form a Salmon Committee that includes stakeholders in the fishery to keep the public in the loop on it.

Specifically, the council members are looking for ideas from the public on how the committee will work, according an announcement sent out Tuesday. That can include any fishermen on the salmon stocks of Cook Inlet.

“To develop a scope of work for the Salmon Committee, the council is soliciting written proposals from the public to help the council identify specific, required, conservation and management measures for the Salmon Committee to evaluate relevant to the development of options for a fishery management plan amendment,” the announcement states.

The council only reluctantly took up the Cook Inlet salmon fishery management plan issue at all. The revision is the result of a multi-year lawsuit between the United Cook Inlet Drift Association and the National Marine Fisheries Service. A decision handed down from a panel of three federal judges in September 2016 found that the council was out of order when it removed Cook Inlet from federal oversights through Amendment 12, passed in 2012, which delegated all management authority to the Alaska Department of Fish and Game.

The fishermen argued that the state isn’t complying with the sustainability standards of the Magnuson-Stevens Act and that the council needs to provide oversight for state management. After the decision when the council first discussed revising the fishery management plan in April, the first steps to do so were unclear and the council put it off to gain more public input and staff analysis, last discussing it in October.

At the October 7 meeting, the council approved a motion establishing a preliminary purpose and need, pulling out Cook Inlet and eliminating two other fisheries in Prince William Sound near the Alaska Peninsula that were originally pulled into the debate through the amendment.

It also identified the stakeholder committee and said once public input is complete, council and National Marine Fishery Service staff will provide an update on the issues and develop a timeline for the committee.

Stakeholder participation was a key point for the plaintiffs in UCIDA’s lawsuit, and so far, they aren’t impressed with the council’s action to amend the management plan, according to a letter submitted as a followup to a status report from the National Marine Fisheries Service from UCIDA’s lawyer, Jason Morgan of Stoel Rives law firm in Seattle.

One of the key contentions the plaintiffs have is that they say the council is trying to “wriggle out” of setting a fishery management plan across the fishery, including on state waters, as the court instructed, Morgan wrote.

“Plaintiffs are very concerned that if NMFS and the Council continue to focus only on the selected parts of the fishery occurring in the EEZ rather than the entire fishery (as instructed by the Ninth Circuit and as required by statute) the entire remand process is likely to be a wasted exercise,” he wrote.

Stakeholders didn’t get to weigh in on the initial discussion paper, developed by North Pacific Fishery Management Council staff for the council’s April meeting, Morgan wrote, and the plaintiffs are concerned that the council may not provide any funding for the salmon committee. The delay until at least April 2018 of any further discussion on the salmon committee is also concerning, he wrote.

“All of this points to a process that may be heading in the wrong direction,” he wrote. “…The longer that the Council and NMFS attempt to ‘wriggle out’ of their statutory obligations, the greater the continued economic harm up on the fishing industry, fishing communities, and the Nation.”

The plaintiffs reserve the right to seek further court intervention until a fishery management plan in compliance with the Magnuson-Stevens Fishery Conservation and Management Act is finished, he wrote.

The deadline to submit proposals for the scope of work for the Salmon Committee is February first. Written proposals can be emailed to Jim Armstrong at james.armstrong@noaa.gov.

Reach Elizabeth Earl at elizabeth.earl@peninsulaclarion.com.

More in News

Vice President Kelly Cooper speaks during a meeting of the Kenai Peninsula Borough Assembly in Soldotna, Alaska, on Tuesday, July 8, 2025. (Jake Dye/Peninsula Clarion)
Borough considers seasonal sales tax rate

Borough sales tax would be modified from a flat 3% to a seasonal model of 4% in summer months and 2% in winter months.

The Kasilof River is seen from the Kasilof River Recreation Area, July 30, 2019, in Kasilof, Alaska. (Photo by Erin Thompson/Peninsula Clarion)
King salmon fishing on Kasilof to close Thursday

If any king salmon is caught while fishing for other species, they may not be removed from the water and must be released immediately.

Un’a, a female sea otter pup who was admitted to the Alaska SeaLife Center in June 2025, plays with an enrichment toy at the center in Seward, Alaska. Photo courtesy of the Alaska SeaLife Center
SeaLife Center admits 2 seal pups, 1 orphaned otter

The three pups join the Alaska SeaLife Center’s ‘growing’ patient list.

James Wardlow demonstrates flilleting a salmon with an ulu during a smoked salmon demonstration, part of Fish Week 2023, on Wednesday, July 19, 2023, at the Kenai National Wildlife Refuge Visitor Center in Soldotna, Alaska. (Jake Dye/Peninsula Clarion)
Refuge to celebrate all things fish during weeklong event

Fish Week will take place July 16-19.

President Zen Kelly speaks during a meeting of the Kenai Peninsula Borough School District Board of Education in Soldotna, Alaska, on Monday, July 7, 2025. (Jake Dye/Peninsula Clarion)
School board finalizes budget with deep cuts to programming, classrooms

Multiple members of the board said they were frustrated by the state’s failure to fund education.

Former KPBSD Finance Director Liz Hayes speaks during a Kenai Peninsula Borough School District budget development meeting at Kenai Central High School in Kenai, Alaska, on Wednesday, Feb. 19, 2025. (Jake Dye/Peninsula Clarion)
School district finance department earns national awards

The two awards are based on comprehensive reviews of the district’s budget and financial reporting.

Children leap forward to grab candy during a Fourth of July parade on South Willow Street in Kenai, Alaska, on July 4, 2025. (Photo courtesy Sarah Every)
Celebrating the 4th in the streets

Kenai comes out for annual Independence Day parade.

Fire crews respond to the Bruce Fire, July 4, 2025, in Soldotna, Alaska. (Alaska Division of Forestry)
Firefighting crews respond to wildfire outside Soldotna

The 8-acre fire and two “spot fires” of less than one acre each are located near Mile 102 and 103 of the Sterling Highway.

Most Read