U.S. Department of Commerce Secretary Gina Raimondo has declared "fishery disasters" at multiple locations in Alaska, making them eligible for federal disaster assistance, according to a recent news release.
“Helping communities to bounce back from the impacts of fishery disasters is essential, and we are working to ensure there is relief coming for impacted Alaskans," Raimondo said in the release on Jan. 21. "Disasters like these, which impact multiple fisheries across Alaska, illustrate how vital sustainable fisheries are to our economy at not only the local level, but for the economic health of our nation’s blue economy.”
The disasters occurred from 2018 to 2021, according to the release, and included the following areas: Upper Cook Inlet East Side Set Net (2018); Upper Cook Inlet salmon fisheries (2020); Copper River Chinook and sockeye salmon fisheries (2018); Prince William Sound salmon fisheries (2020); Copper River Chinook, sockeye and chum salmon fisheries (2020); Eastern Bering Sea Tanner crab (2019/2020); Pacific cod in the Gulf of Alaska (2020); Alaska Norton Sound, Yukon River, Chignik, Kuskokwim River and Southeast Alaska salmon fisheries (2020); and Yukon River salmon fishery (2021).
The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration evaluates fishery disaster requests based on data submitted by the state, tribe or appointed official, according to the release.
"There must be commercial fishery economic impacts and declines in fishery access or available catch resulting from specific allowable causes, such as natural causes beyond the control of fishery managers to mitigate," according to the release.
Fishery-related businesses impacted by the disaster may also be eligible for assistance from the Small Business Administration.
Raimondo has received requests for several other states and tribes for disaster determinations and those are currently being evaluated, according to the release.
