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The below information is in regard to the Norton Sound Research and Restoration Initiative that funded projects in operation from 2002 until mid-year 2007.

Since the early 1980s, the number of salmon returning to rivers that drain into Norton Sound has been decreasing. Commercial harvests within Norton Sound in 1999 and 2000 were the lowest on record, 7,881 and 6,150 chum salmon. After the very poor runs of 1999, Alaska Governor Tony Knowles requested a determination for a commercial fishery failure in Yukon, Kuskokwim, and Norton Sound areas from the Secretary of the United States Department of Commerce. Subsequently, on August 8, 2000, the Secretary of Commerce found, "…under Section 312(a) of the Magnuson-Stevens Act and Section 308(b) of the Interjurisdictional Fisheries Act continued extremely low returns of salmon to Norton Sound and the Yukon and Kuskokwim Rivers have resulted in commercial fishery failures caused by a fishery resource disaster, beginning in 1997 and continuing to the present". In response to declared fisheries failures in Norton Sound, Federal funds were earmarked by Congress to carry out fisheries disaster relief in Norton Sound. Accordingly, the National Marine Fisheries Service, Alaska Region, received certification of the availability of $4,989,000 for this purpose.

The purposes of this federally funded program is to assess the economic and social effects of the commercial and subsistence fishery failures or to restore or prevent a similar failure in the future and to assist a fishing communities affected by such a failure.

Recently, several Norton Sound regional and local organizations, the Alaska Department of Fish and Game and several federal agencies initiated the Norton Sound Research and Restoration Memorandum of Understanding (MOU). The purpose of this MOU is to provide a forum to engage in a collaborative, regional and interagency-based approach to develop and implement a comprehensive and strategic Norton Sound Salmon Research and Restoration Plan (NSSRRP). The MOU established a Steering Committee to recommend funding for specific research projects to the Commissioner of Alaska Department of Fish and Game. This MOU also established a Scientific Technical Committee (STC) tasked to develop the NSSRRP. The Steering Committee adopted the NSSRRP after considering the recommendations of the STC and the public. Projects recommended by the Steering Committee fall under six broad categories:

• Escapement

  Maintain wild salmon stock escapements within ranges to sustain salmon production, diversity, and normal ecosystem functioning;

• Harvests

  Harvest in a manner consistent with regulatory and departmental management plans; provide for sustainable fisheries.

• Salmon Restoration and/or Enhancement

  Restore salmon to unproductive portions of rivers that drain into Norton Sound; manage enhanced production in a manner to provide for human needs while not compromising wild stock integrity and sustainability;

• Habitat Restoration and/or Enhancement

  Protect, restore, and enhance, where feasible, marine, coastal, and watershed habitat for wild salmon migration, spawning and rearing.

• Public Involvement/Education

  Promote public support and involvement for sustained use and protection of salmon resources.

• Socioeconomic/cultural

  Incorporate traditional ecological knowledge (TEK) into NSSRRP and associated research projects.

BACKGROUND

The apparent decline in production of chum salmon stocks within Norton Sound during the past 20 years caused many subsistence and commercial fisheries to be restricted or closed. But, commercial and subsistence harvests in the Nome Subdistrict have been a concern of fisheries managers since the late 1960s. The first subsistence salmon registration permits were issued in 1968. Fisheries management refocused attention from the nearly closed commercial fishery to subsistence users in 1984. Chum salmon became the primary stock of concern with significant fishing reductions beginning in 1990. In March 1999, the Alaska Board of Fisheries determined Nome area chum salmon stocks were not capable of providing adequate harvest levels for all subsistence fishers in the area. The Board established a Tier II chum salmon fishery to allow a limited number of participants based on past history and set season bag limits.

The chum salmon run failures resulted in restricting subsistence fishing schedules and little fishing opportunity for Nome area residents, increasing pressure to harvest other salmon species and to visit other localities to obtain fish. In even years, pink salmon runs are much larger and fishing effort shifts to them. Lack of chum salmon fishing opportunity has increased fishing efforts on late summer coho salmon.

Chum salmon runs in the neighboring Golovin and Moses Point Subdistricts to the east are declining, although not as drastically. In the past, chum salmon stocks within these subdistricts had cycles of weak runs with low escapements that responded well to restrictive management actions. However, since 1989, chum salmon runs to these subdistricts have had difficulty filling subsistence and escapement needs, even when commercial harvests have been greatly reduced or eliminated (Bue 2000a).

Commercial, sport and subsistence fishery restrictions and closures have been imposed to conserve fish for spawning escapements, but in some years salmon runs are below levels needed even for this primary conservation objective. Weak runs are observed for other species, most notably pink salmon in odd numbered years, and coho salmon. If escapement goals are not met, future salmon runs may be impacted.

In September 2000, based on guidelines established in the Sustainable Salmon Fisheries Policy, the Alaska Board of Fisheries identified certain chum salmon stocks within Norton Sound Management Area as stocks of concern. Specifically, the Nome Subdistrict chum salmon stocks were classified as "management concern" based on the low escapement levels since 1998 and the anticipated low level in 2001 (Bue 2000a). Nome Subdistrict salmon escapement goals have generally not been achieved the past ten years despite the use of specific management measures. Within the Golovin and Moses Point Subdistricts, chum salmon stocks were classified as "yield concern" based on the low harvest levels since 1995 and the anticipated low harvest level in 2001 (Bue 2000b).

Many local residents have expressed the need for additional projects to assess the adequacy of salmon populations and to safeguard their own interest in ensuring sustainable subsistence and commercial fisheries. Kawerak, a regional village non-profit group, developed counting tower projects operated in cooperation with ADF&G. Kawerak receives funding from the Bureau of Indian Affairs (BIA) through the Bering Sea Fishermen's Association (BSFA), and from the Norton Sound Economic Development Council (NSEDC). Various levels of matching support are provided by ADF&G through in-kind contributions. To date, four cooperative escapement projects have been developed: North River, Eldorado River, Snake River and Pilgrim River counting towers. ADF&G has received in-kind support for several projects from NSEDC, technicians to work at several ADF&G projects. ADF&G has counting towers on the Kwiniuk and Niukluk Rivers, a weir on the Nome River and a test fishery project on the Unalakleet River. With the exception of tthe Kwiniuk and Unalakleet projects, all other projects have been operational for less than 10 years, most projects operational 5 years or less. Project operational periods have generally been limited to chinook and chum salmon runs.

Little is known about numbers of spawning wild salmon and the population structure of wild salmon that spawn and rear in rivers draining into Norton Sound. Basic productivity of these stocks is also unknown.

Although commercial fishery harvests are known, the accuracy of the subsistence harvest is questionable. For all fishery harvests and escapements, age, sex, size information is almost completely lacking. Egg-incubation boxes have been scattered throughout the rivers of Norton Sound. However, no evaluation of the production from these incubation boxes has been made. Some habitat restoration projects have been identified but fish habitat, for the most part, has not been monitored. Fish and game regulations have not been enforced. Poaching is suspected to be widespread and is believed seriously deleterious on escapements in some drainages. Federal funds from the above-mentioned congressional appropriation are not sufficient to fund all the fishery research and restoration needs of salmon stocks in Norton Sound. However, these funds will be used to fund specific projects designed to assess, restore, protect, and/or improve salmon resources of Norton Sound. Specifically, these funds will be used to support sustainable salmon fisheries in Norton Sound and possibly augment salmon production in a manner that will not jeopardize the integrity or the sustainability of wild salmon of Norton Sound.

The overall goal of these projects is to protect, restore and increase salmon production in the Norton Sound region for maximum social, economic and cultural benefit to the residents of the region. Accordingly, the goal of research is directed at collecting information that provides for sustainable fisheries within Norton Sound and possibly the augmentation of salmon production, and at the same time to not compromise the integrity and sustainability of wild salmon stocks.

CONTINUING PROJECTS:

Project NS 05-01 Norton Sound Research and Restoration Program Administration. Project continues through FY 2006 as Project NS 06-01 Norton Sound Research and Restoration Program Administration.

Project NS 05-02 Norton Sound salmon escapement enumeration and sampling. Project continues through FY 2006 as Project NS 06-02 Norton Sound salmon escapement enumeration and sampling with no change in Statement of Work, but with revised budget request.

Project NS 05-07 Research Support. Project continues through FY 2006 as Project NS 06-07 Research Support.

Project NS 05-11. Norton Sound information database. Project continues through FY 2006 as Project NS 06-11 Norton Sound information database.

Project NS 05-12. Norton Sound environmental condition monitoring. Project continues through FY 2006 as Project NS 06-12 Norton Sound environmental condition monitoring.

Project NS 05-13. The establishment of habitat-based production models for coho salmon in the Nome and Unalakleet River drainages of Norton Sound. Project continues through FY 2006 as Project NS 06-13 Coho salmon smolt abundance and emigration in the Nome River: continuation of work to develop habitat-based escapement goals for Norton Sound coho salmon.

Project NS 05-15 Ecology of juvenile chum salmon from Norton Sound: estuarine habitat and the early marine life stage. Project continues through FY 2006 as Project NS 06-15 Ecology of juvenile chum salmon from Norton Sound estuarine habitat and the early marine life stage.

NEW PROJECTS:

New Project NS 06-03. Sockeye salmon restoration in Salmon Lake - Pilgrim River drainage.

New Project NS 06-04. Supplementation to Hutton Junior Fisheries Biology Program.

New Project NS 06-09. Estimation of abundance, run timing, and distribution of coho salmon in the Unalakleet River drainage.

New Project NS 06-10 Estimation of abundance, run timing, and distribution of coho salmon in the Fish River complex.

New Project NS 06-16. The effect of beaver activity on Kwiniuk River and Iron Creek salmon migration.

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