Federal Subsistence Board lifts closure of Federal public lands on the Nushagak Peninsula to the harvest of caribou for RY2016/17

The Federal Subsistence Board has approved Temporary Special Action Request WSA16-02, which opens Federal public lands on the Nushagak Peninsula to the harvest of caribou July 1, 2016 – June 30, 2017.  This change applies to the portion of Units 17A and 17C south of the Igushik River, Tuklung River and Tuklung Hills, west to Tvativak Bay. 

The Nushagak Peninsula Caribou Herd has been growing rapidly for several years, and harvest has been below average during this time.  As a result, the population size exceeds established management objectives and managers are concerned about the long term viability of the population.  Immediate intervention is necessary to reduce the population and ensure subsistence uses of this resource into the future. 

Rescinding the closure and increasing participation in NPCH hunts offers the best potential to increase harvest and reduce population size.  Creating a regulatory framework that includes a population threshold, below which Federal public lands would be closed to all users except residents of Togiak, Twin Hills, Manokotak, Aleknagik, Dillingham, Clark’s Point, and Ekuk, ensures that the subsistence users who have traditionally utilized this resource will have priority access in the event the population decreases substantially. 

For more information, on this action, contact Chris McKee at (907) 786-3572 or (800) 478-1456 or paul_mckee@fws.gov.

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