Kamishak District closes to seining after survey finds fewer pinks

The Kamishak District closes to commercial purse seine salmon harvest at 11:59 p.m. Wednesday, Aug. 12, when the Alaska Department of Fish and Game shuts those waters until further notice. The closure suspends harvest access for Lower Cook Inlet seiners near the end of the season.

The department set no reopening date. An aerial survey flown Saturday, Aug. 8, drove the decision. "An aerial survey of this district flown on Saturday, August 8 documented fewer than anticipated numbers of pink salmon," the advisory said. Glenn Hollowell, finfish management biologist at the Homer Area Office, issued the announcement Monday afternoon.

The closure narrows where the Lower Cook Inlet seine fleet can fish, though it does not end the season everywhere. Southern District purse seine crews have been shut down since 10 p.m. July 31, and the Southern District set gillnet season is scheduled to close Aug. 15. Parts of the Outer District, including the Dogfish Bay, Windy Bay and Nuka Island subdistricts, remain open on a Monday, Wednesday and Friday 16-hour schedule. The Eastern District's Aialik Bay Subdistrict remains open on a 16-hour daily schedule. The Tutka Bay Subdistrict closed to seining July 27 after pink salmon escapement in Southern District index streams fell below targets. Kamishak had been open around the clock, seven days a week, since late July, and has reported a preliminary harvest of roughly 47,000 sockeye salmon this season. No affected Kamishak purse seine operator or industry representative was available for comment.

The next Lower Cook Inlet commercial salmon announcement is expected Friday, Aug. 14. Recordings run on the Homer office line at 907-235-7307.