Contact:
Kelly Reppert
Assistant Area Management Biologist
Phone: (907) 225-2859
June 16, 2006
The Alaska Department of Fish and Game, Division of Sport Fish announced today that the bag and possession limit for king salmon in two Ketchikan terminal sport fishery areas is 12 king salmon of any size, effective 12:01 A.M. June 12 through 11:59 P.M. July 31, 2006. King salmon caught in the terminal harvest areas by nonresidents DO NOT COUNT toward the annual limit.
The Ketchikan terminal sport fishery areas are as follows (see attached map):
· Those waters in Nichols Passage north of the latitude of Driest Point; in Reveillagigedo Channel north of the latitude of Harbor Point;
· In Tongass Narrows south of the latitude of the Lewis Reef light; and
· Neets Bay east of the longitude of the easternmost tip of Bug Island.
The Alaska Board of Fisheries authorized the department to use its emergency order authority to open terminal harvest areas to target Alaska hatchery king salmon. The areas opened by this emergency order allow anglers to target hatchery produced king salmon originating from four hatcheries (primarily Neets Bay, Deer Mountain, Whitman Lake, and Tamgas) in the Ketchikan area. Projected runs to these facilities will exceed broodstock needs, therefore a surplus of fish are available for harvest.
Anglers cannot possess king salmon in excess of the harvest limits for the area where they are fishing. This includes any king salmon less that 28 inches harvested in the terminal area. Regulations prohibit the possession of king salmon less than 28 inches when fishing outside of designated terminal harvest areas. This also includes king salmon 28 inches or greater in length in excess of the bag and possession limit for the area fished.