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Bristol Bay
The marine waters of Bristol Bay and the adjacent southeastern Bering Sea support globally important seabird, waterfowl, marine mammal and fish populations.
The Bristol Bay region is one of the last global strongholds for Pacific salmon. The world's largest runs of wild sockeye salmon pass through Bristol Bay on their way to spawning grounds in rivers throughout western Alaska and the Arctic. Salmon is the life–blood of village economies and ways of life.
People living in Naknek, Togiak, Dillingham and numerous smaller villages in southwestern Alaska rely on salmon, herring, sea mammals and other ocean and coastal resources for subsistence, the irreplaceable mainstay of Alaska native tradition and culture.
The region supports many commercial fisheries in addition to salmon inlcuding red king crab, herring, halibut, pollock and cod. More than 40% of total U.S. fish catch comes from this region.
In 2007, President Bush ended a long-standing, bipartisan prohibition on offshore oil and gas drilling in Bristol Bay. The threat of offshore drilling in this sensitive area is imminent with an oil and gas lease sale scheduled for 2011. Seismic surveys and offshore drilling would pose grave risks to the region's fisheries and marine life.
Through our Friends of Bristol Bay program, AMCC is working with a broad coalition of fishing groups, conservation organizations and Native communities to restore protection for Bristol Bay.