Sustainable Fishery

Sustainability

Our fishery is strictly monitored to ensure that the Sockeye salmon numbers will not be depleted. Alaska department of Fish and Game carefully monitors the numbers of returning Sockeye and Chinook salmon to each of the rivers in the Bristol bay watershed. Fishing is not permitted until the minimum escapement numbers have been reached. Once the numbers have been reached fishing is opened but still heavily regulated to give the salmon the greatest chance of survival. This strict management helps to secure the numbers of wild alaskan salmon for generations to come.

The Dangers of Strip Mining in Bristol Bay

Pebble Mine has been a threat to the ecosystem of the Bristol Bay Fishery for nearly a decade. The pebble deposit is a massive storehouse of gold, copper, and molybdenum, and is located in the headwaters of the Kvichak and Nushagak rivers. These are two of the major rivers that feed Bristol Bay. If built Pebble mine will be one of the largest mines in the world. Due to its size, geochemistry and location, Pebble mine runs a very high risk of polluting Bristol bay, the largest and most productive wild salmon runs in the world that supports a $1.5 billion commercial and sport fishery. This pollution would severely diminish the numbers of wild salmon and cause thousands of hard working fishermen and women to lose their livelihood. It would also raise consumer prices for salmon and one day could cause the extinction of this fishery. Currently the EPA has a proposal to protect Bristol Bay's salmon and clean water.

What Can You Do To Help?

You can help the movement against Pebble Mine and its supporters by writing your states senator as  and signing the petition at https://www.change.org/p/epa-protect-bristol-bay-from-open-pit-mining. By signing this petition you will be helping protect the largest sustainable salmon fishery in the world. For more information on the fight against Pebble please visit http://www.savebristolbay.org/