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Welcome
The Federal Subsistence Law is Broken “The Federal Subsistence Law is Broken.” So declared U.S. Interior Secretary Ken Salazar in a video shown at the annual Alaska Federation of Natives (AFN) convention on October 23, 2009. The Secretary announced “The system (implementation of the federal subsistence law) frankly, today is broken” like that was new news. Actually the law was broken the day it was signed into law almost 30 years ago. A review by the Department of Interior is planned. See www.doi.gov/subsistencereview/. Read More...
Senator Kookesh and the Subsistence debate Since troopers caught him red handed with twice his legal limit of salmon, Senator Albert Kookesh of Angoon, has 1) abused his position as an elected state official by unfairly denouncing the State of Alaska, 2) openly disparaged the very laws we trust him to make binding upon us, and 3) unnecessarily and selfishly widened the racial divide between natives and non-natives over hunting and fishing rights. Read More...
Thank you to all the volunteers, donors, and dinner guests who made both our Mat-Su and Fairbanks AOC Banquet & Fundraiser a success again this fall. Generous donations given to AOC by individuals, retailers, outfitters, and corporations fueled guest to bid high and purchase a record number of raffle tickets. Funds raised at these banquets will help assure representation for AOC members a numerous regulatory and policy making meetings in the upcoming year. Continued access to public lands in Alaska for hunting, trapping, fishing, and other forms of recreational use depends on AOC’s participation in the public process. Often times AOC is the only non-government organization advocating for our interests before regulation making bodies. AOC participation does make a difference and your financial contributions makes it possible. We hope to see you again at next years AOC banquets and fundraisers. Chitina Dipnet Lawsuit - Press
Release (Click to read complaint) The Chitina Dipnetters Association and the Alaska Outdoor Council's sister organization, the Alaska Fish & Wildlife Conservation Fund, on January 9, 2009 filed a complaint with the Fairbanks Superior Court challenging the Alaska Board of Fisheries (BOF) recent decision to reject "subsistence" classification for the Chitina dipnet fishery. The complaint charges that the BOF classification of the Chitina dipnet fishery as a "personal use" fishery ignores the customary and traditional (C&T) use of salmon stocks by dipnetters in the Chitina subdistrict of the Copper River. This C&T use is documented dating back to the 1800s and convinced the 1999 BOF to designate the Chitina dipnet fishery as a subsistence fishery.
The success of many of AOC’s long term goals such as continued employment of qualified fish and game staff, predator-prey management, well regulated public access to public lands and resources, management of salmon stocks on a sustained yield basis, and enforcement of fish and game regulations all depend on support from our legislators in the legislative process, especially the budget process. AOC staff and board members have had a productive year in 2009 representing fishers, hunters, trappers and members who access Alaska’s outdoors. Numerous agenda topics from past AOC Annual Meetings have been addressed by both State and Federal courts, the State Legislature, or the Boards of Fisheries and Game. The new Obama administration will have a profound effect on all aspects of federal land management. Many topics are still unresolved and may come before state and federal courts and agencies this year. Topics of discussion and items that may need AOC Delegate action;
"Up for Grabs"- Hunting, trapping, fishing, and motorized access to public lands in Alaska are all up for grabs in the current political arena. “Up for grabs” means whoever expends the greatest energy, money, or ingenuity and sticks with it wins. Regulations propagated by Alaska’s administrative staff,
department heads, and appointed Boards have a great influence on whether you
are going to have any fish or game to harvest and where, plus how you will
be allowed to go about harvesting your wildfood source. Federal rules which
apply to 60% of the land in the state have been limiting hunting, trapping,
and fishing opportunities on federal lands through their regulatory
processes for the last two decades. Motorized access on federal lands, plus
lands yet to be transferred to the State or Native Corporations, have seen
major restrictive revisions to open motorized access during that same time
span.
2010 Delegation Certification form - Click here to download printable form in pdf format.
"Salmon: Public stocks that never lose their value to Alaskans"- Attached under Executive Director report Winter 2009. While the value of
salmon on commercial markets may fluctuate, the value of salmon as a wild
food source to Alaskans - although unrecorded - continues to grow.
In-season harvest of salmon by individuals is limited to a small fraction
of the total statewide harvest by a multitude of regulations affecting
various classifications of users - subsistence, sport, and personal use.
These restrictions imposed by the Board of Fisheries and a general lack
of access to salmon-bearing rivers gives a false value of what salmon is
really worth to a majority of Alaskans.
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