According to legislators Cook Inlet, the state’s most popular fishing hole, needs a package of new laws to tilt the balance of power in the Inlet from commercial fishermen to sport anglers and other users. Chugiak Republican Rep. Bill Stoltze, who represents a chunk of the Matanuska-Susitna Borough, told that there is growing frustration regarding this and the legislators are hoping to land something big in the session.
Stoltze said that the people in Mat-Su region are worried as the numbers of salmon are dwindling in the Susitna River and other drainages. Now they want some changes to revive the population of salmon in the area. The legislators along with other Mat-Su lawmakers present a trio of actions this session:
• Proposal to close down the Department of Fish and Game commercial and sportfish management office in Soldotna and move the staff to Anchorage.
• Green introduced Senate Bill 284 to transform the makeup of the Board of Fisheries, which regulates commercial and sport salmon catches.
• Resolution to create a Cook Inlet Salmon Task Force, which would look at how to boost salmon returns to the Inlet’s northern reaches, that is, the Mat-Su region, and would explore a buyout of commercial fishermen.
But the commercial fishermen are not ready to buy this easily as it would hamper their catch and boost sportsfishing in the region. They said that studies revealed increased sportsfishing pressure, storm water runoff and other byproducts of Mat-Su population growth and development are ruining salmon habitat, and voracious pike also are taking a toll.
However, both the sides support the task force resolutions as it would help managing the region more efficiently than before. It is said that the task force could bring out new information on how to help returns to northern streams, where the fishing is becoming poor.
