Board Of Game Considering New Protections For Nushagak Caribou Herd

Via KDLG radio, the Alaska Board of Game will consider ending a longstanding subsistence caribou hunting season for the Nushagak Peninsula Herd, located in the Bristol Bay area.

In 2020, the state eliminated a general hunting season for the herd but allowed the continuation of subsistence hunts.

But as KDLG reports, the Alaska Department of Fish and Game Division of Subsistence is requesting that the Board of Game consider additional protections from subsistence hunting:

This week, the board will consider a proposal to designate the Nushagak Peninsula caribou herd as a resource culturally and traditionally used for subsistence. If it does, the herd will be protected by law, which ensures that subsistence is prioritized above commercial and sport uses.

In order to make that decision, the board will consider eight criteria, said Bronwyn Jones, the southwest subsistence resource specialist for the state’s Division of Subsistence.

As part of the proposal, Jones and her team provided information about how the Nushagak herd meets those criteria, which include sharing of intergenerational knowledge, efficient harvesting and cost, and how the population fits into subsistence in the area.

The team also had to determine a pattern of use and reliance on the population over a long period of time.