Wrangell-St. Elias subsistence commission meets next month in McCarthy

The commission that advises on subsistence hunting in Wrangell-St. Elias meets next month in McCarthy, and residents can testify.

The park's Subsistence Resource Commission — local rural residents appointed to advise on how subsistence is managed inside the park — is set to meet Oct. 9 and 10, from 9 am to 5 pm at the Historic Recreation Hall in Kennecott/McCarthy. The agenda includes updates from the Federal Subsistence Board and the state boards of fisheries and game, a superintendent's report, and time set aside for public comment.

What the commission weighs in on reaches a lot of people. Twenty-three resident zone communities, McCarthy among them, hold subsistence eligibility inside the park without needing a permit; rural residents living outside those communities can qualify through a separate permit process. Park and Tetlin National Wildlife Refuge staff issued 230 federal subsistence permits for moose, goat and sheep across Units 11 and 12 last year. The fall moose hunt in Unit 11 drew the most.

The system itself has been under legal challenge. In January, the U.S. Supreme Court declined to take up the state's case against the federal rural subsistence priority, leaving that priority in place on federal public lands and waters.

Those who can't attend in person can join by teleconference through the park's subsistence coordinator.