Southeast Alaska Chinook Salmon Fishery Mitigation Program
Pacific Salmon Treaty

The Southeast Alaska Chinook Salmon Fishery Mitigation Program (program) was established in 2009 to help mitigate economic impacts of the 15% reduction in Chinook harvest levels in the region under the 2009 revision of the Pacific Salmon Treaty Agreement (see Background). Primary impacts of the harvest reduction are on Southeast Alaska "hook and line fisheries", which include commercial troll, sport fish and associated interests.

The State of Alaska received a grant of $7.41 million in mitigation funds from the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) in June 2010. A second grant award of $7.1 million was received from NOAA in August 2011. Funds may be expended through June 30, 2015.

The Alaska Department of Fish and Game (ADF&G) is the State of Alaska entity that is administering the mitigation program. ADF&G is assisted by other state agencies in implementing the program, including the Department of Commerce, Community and Economic Development (DCCED) and the Commercial Fisheries Entry Commission (CFEC).

An advisory Stakeholder Panel and public outreach is used to identify and recommend activities to be funded (program components) and the allocation of funds to each component. The Stakeholder Panel includes representatives from the commercial troll fishery, sport fishery, salmon processors, and Southeast Alaska community interests. Recommendations received through the stakeholder and public outreach processes are submitted to a Fisheries Subcabinet of the Alaska Governor's Office for consideration and approval.

This website provides information about the initial round of mitigation funding (see 2010-2011 Mitigation Program), as well as the process being utilized for allocation and distribution of a second round of funding (see 2012-2015 Mitigation Program).