Juneau, AK – Central Council of Tlingit and Haida Indian Tribes of Alaska’s (Central Council) Annual Spring King Salmon Derby has been cancelled following a king salmon sport fishing emergency order issued by the State of Alaska’s Department of Fish & Game for the Juneau area (Marine Waters of District 11, District 15 south of the latitude of Sherman Rock and District 12 north of the latitude of Point Couverden). The emergency moratorium, which will run from April 15 through June 14, 2017, was made based on the 2017 preseason forecast for the total terminal run that indicated the lower end of the escapement goal is unlikely to be achieved.
“The cancellation of the derby is unfortunate, but we fully support the Alaska Department of Fish and Game’s decision to close the Juneau king salmon sport fisheries,” said President Richard Peterson. “As stewards of the land and sea, it’s vital we protect our traditional and customary resources to ensure sustainability so future Taku River king salmon runs return stronger.”
For the past 20 years, the Annual Spring King Salmon Derby has not only been a healthy, fun, family-friendly community event, it is also Central Council’s largest fundraising effort that supports the Alumni Scholarship Assistance program. To date, the scholarship program has provided over $475,000 in supplementary scholarships to over 1,500 students.
“Although we hope the derby can return next year, alternative fundraising activities are underway that will allow us to continue providing Alumni scholarships to our higher education students this coming academic year,” said Laird Jones, Higher Education Manager. “Thank you to all participants and businesses for their tremendous support over the past two decades.”[xyz-ihs snippet=”Adsense-responsive”]
