Public comments open on Fortymile caribou harvest plan through May 1

The Alaska Department of Fish and Game is accepting public input on a new five-year harvest management plan for the Fortymile caribou herd. The Fortymile Caribou Herd Harvest Management Coalition will meet April 17 at 1:30 p.m. by web conference to finalize the plan and prepare regulatory proposals.

The coalition will complete edits on the draft 2025-2030 harvest plan and identify which proposals to submit to the Alaska Board of Game and Federal Subsistence Board by the May 1 deadline. The plan guides how many caribou hunters can take and when, affecting subsistence and sport hunting across Interior Alaska.

The current plan expired in 2023. The coalition last updated the plan in 2019 after three years of meetings. The Department of Fish and Game uses the plan to set annual harvest limits and hunting seasons for the herd, which ranges across eastern Interior Alaska and into Yukon Territory.

The public can join the meeting online at https://us06web.zoom.us/j/84437315038 or by phone at (669) 444-9171 or toll-free (888) 475-4499. The meeting ID is 844 3731 5038 and passcode is 40MILE.

Tok Area Biologist Jeff Gross can answer questions at [email protected] or 907-883-2971. The previous management plan is available on the state public notice website.