The state closes Kuskokwim subsistence coho fishing as the run lags

Subsistence fishers on the Kuskokwim River from the mouth up to Aniak lost the use of gillnets, fish wheels, beach seines and dip nets for coho salmon Friday afternoon, when a state emergency order closed subsistence coho fishing until further notice.

The run has come in far short of normal. Coho passage at the Kuskokwim sonar reached about 43,000 fish by Aug. 5, against an average of roughly 106,500 for that date, with escapement goals still unmet. The Alaska Department of Fish and Game says the closure is meant to hold fish for spawning until more of the run can be assessed.

Some fishing stays open. Hook and line is still legal for species other than coho, with any coho released alive; nets remain legal in still waters like lakes and backwaters, where the state points fishers toward whitefish and pike; and six tributary mouths stay open near the Kuskokwim.

The closure removes a key subsistence food mid-run. Testifying to a state Senate committee in April, Kuskokwim resident Fritz George said families still practice subsistence, "but constant closures catch up with rainy season, which causes salmon to spoil."

It caps a season of reversals — the mainstem returned to state management in July after chum ran well above average, and coho fishing has since turned very slow. The department says limited harvest could return if numbers rise, and the Kuskokwim River Salmon Management Working Group meets Wednesday.