Ketchikan - The Alaska Department of Fish and Game announced today, nonresident anglers may not retain king salmon from August 1 through September 15 in Southeast Alaska and Yakutat marine waters, except in designated sport fish terminal hatchery areas in the vicinity of Juneau and Ketchikan.  Resident king salmon regulations remain unchanged. This period of nonresident king salmon nonretention will be effective 12:01 a.m. Thursday, August 1, through 11:59 p.m. Sunday, September 15, 2019. 

The Southeast Alaska king salmon sport fishery is managed under the directives of the Southeast Alaska King Salmon Management Plan (5 AAC 47.055).  This plan prescribes management measures based upon the Southeast Alaska Winter Troll catch per unit effort (CPUE).  The Southeast Alaska Winter Troll CPUE for the 2019 season is 3.38 which equates to 25,844 king salmon allocated to the sport fishery.  To address the implementation of the new treaty agreement which includes provisions to reduce the Alaska harvest ceiling the following year if the Alaska harvest ceiling is exceeded, the sport fishery is being managed conservatively with a harvest target of 25,300 treaty king salmon in 2019. As directed by the Southeast Alaska King Salmon Management Plan, if restrictions are necessary to keep the sport fishery within its harvest allocation, nonresident anglers will be restricted first, and the department shall only restrict resident anglers if nonresident angler restrictions are insufficient to remain within the sport harvest allocation. Based on king salmon harvest estimates to date and the projected harvest for the remainder of the season, a period of king salmon nonretention for nonresident anglers is necessary to ensure that the sport fishery remains within its harvest allocation.

King salmon regulations for Neets Bay remain unchanged.  In the waters of Neets Bay east of a line of the eastern most tip of Bug Island through August 14, the bag and possession limit is one king salmon 28 inches or greater in length with a nonresident annual harvest limit of three king salmon, 28 inches or greater in length.  Anglers are reminded that east of a line between ADF&G regulatory markers located approximately one mile from the head of Neets Bay is closed to retention of all salmon June 15 through November 15.

For further information regarding sport fisheries in Southeast Alaska, contact the nearest ADF&G office or visit: http://www.adfg.alaska.gov/index.cfm?adfg=fishingSportFishingInfo.eonr

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