Setnetters will open in the portion of the Kasilof Section within 600 feet of the mean high tide mark on the Kenai Peninsula shoreline from 5:00 a.m. until 11:00 p.m. on Tuesday, July 21.
Commercial Fisheries Biologist Pat Shields…
Through July 19, the estimated sockeye salmon passage in the Kasilof River is approximately 304,000 fish. Based on the previous 10 years (2005–2014) of passage estimates in the Kasilof River, the sockeye salmon run is on average 62% complete through July 19, which would project a final passage of more than 488,000 fish (ranging from 433,000 to 582,000 for runs 3-days early to 3-days late).
The optimal escapement goal (OEG) in the Kasilof River is 160,000–390,000 fish, while the biological escapement goal (BEG) is 160,000–340,000 fish. This level of passage is projected to exceed both the OEG and BEG.
Due to the rate of sockeye salmon passage into the Kasilof River, the current utilization of 36 hours of weekly fishing time in the Upper Subdistrict set gillnet fishery and use of the Kasilof River Special Harvest Area (KRSHA) has not been sufficient to control passage of sockeye salmon into the Kasilof River.
Allowing the Kasilof Section of the Upper Subdistrict to fish within 600 feet of the mean high tide mark of the Kenai Peninsula shore instead of the KRSHA is warranted given the inability to control sockeye salmon passage in the Kasilof River.