The salmon has been counted a total of 393,143 at Miles Lake in June. The anticipated cumulative minimum in river escapement count for this date is 417,221. According to the sources the daily passage for June 23-27 has been above the minimum daily in-river goal while the passage for the previous seven days has been lower. This has resulted in an overall shortfall of 24,084, of which 5,763 have occurred in the last two weeks.
It is said that the aerial survey of delta stocks with observational conditions rnaging from poor to good. Record revealed that a total of 9,790 fish were counted in the Bering and Copper River districts vs. an anticipated minimum count of 19,258 for statistical week 25, June 15-21. The authority informed that the Copper River District was open for a 48-hour subsistence-only drift gillnet period beginning 7 a.m., Sunday, June 29.
Fishermen are not allowed to use vessel to subsistence fish with their legal quantity of gear, 50 fathoms, regardless of the number of subsistence permit holders onboard. The Bering River District is closed and is anticipated to open when the Copper River District is reopened to commercial harvest. Valdez Fisheries Development Association forecasts a total return of 9.8 million pink salmon. Pink salmon fishery is anticipated to open when cost recovery is approximately 30 percent complete.
