While by regulation fishing is heavily restricted along the federally managed waters of the Kuskokwim River and its salmon-spawning tributaries, to actually enforce these restrictions is a major undertaking. Both state and federal fisheries managers collaborate to conduct daily flyovers, and they travel upriver and downriver by boat from Bethel to make contact with fishermen and ensure compliance.
With the second driftnet opener of the 2023 season nearly past, enforcement officers with the Alaska Wildlife Troopers and Yukon Delta National Wildlife Refuge said that violations have been relatively minimal.
“I think we have seen the benefit of doing a lot of pre-season communication, a ton of village outreach, as much as we possibly can. And I think that's paid off,” Matt McDonald, the lead wildlife officer for the refuge overseeing federal Kuskokwim enforcement, said.
“I think, by and large, and the numbers show it, with 200 contacts and less than three violations that we've had to take enforcement actions on,” McDonald said. “People are trying to do their absolute best. And I think the communication is better. They know who to contact if they have questions about the regulations. So, in my opinion, I think things are going better.”
For the few fishermen that have been cited so far, McDonald said that officers had been able to track down net owners in their home villages and return their gear without much difficulty. The federal fine for salmon fishing during a closed period is $280.
“There's also a fine for gear that's not marked, but I'll be honest with you, most time if it's gear that's not marked, we try to find them and then have them marked there. And then we settle that right there, no citation,” McDonald said. “We do a lot of warnings.”
McDonald's counterpart on the state enforcement side is Alaska Wildlife Trooper Sergeant Walter Blajeski.
“Overall we have seen very good compliance with the regulations,” Blajeski said. “The state found two nets operating in the Tuluksak River, which is a closed tributary. And we have found nets in sloughs in the region that are either too close to the main stem, or they're they're deployed less than 100 yards upriver from the main stem, or they're not marked.”
On June 2, one day prior to the first set net opener of the season on the Kuskokwim River, the state issued a citation to a man from Akiachak for salmon fishing during a closed period for using a set net on the main stem of the river. This is the only citation that Alaska Wildlife Troopers have thus far made public.
In addition to emphasizing that officers will be actively checking for adequate safety gear aboard boats, Blajeski recommended making sure that there is contact information on fishing gear in addition to the required name and address.
“A phone number sure does help so I don't have to pull a net, I can make a phone call and get some information if there's an issue,” Blajeski said. “But definitely make sure the nets are marked. And make sure you're not running more than the allowed net length in the area that you're at.”
