Kametolook River Coho Salmon Subsistence Project, Perryville, Alaska (1997 - 2002).

Subsistence users from the remote Alaska Peninsula Native Village of Perryville had noted significant declines in the coho salmon run in the nearby Kametolook River since the 1989 Exxon Valdez oil spill (EVOS). The Trustee Council began funding a project in Federal Fiscal Year 1997 (October 1, 1996 - September 30, 1997) with the intent of restoring this coho salmon run. This project was a continuation of an evaluative phase of the project funded through the EVOS criminal settlement (Grant Agreement Number 21685881 May through September 1996). The criminal settlement funded the project for an assessment team from the Alaska Department of Fish and Game (ADFG) and local assistants from the Native Village of Perryville. The assessment period determined the preferred method to restore the Kametolook River's coho salmon run to historic levels. This phase ended with the approval of an Environmental Assessment (EA) and a Finding of No Significant Impact (FONSI) by the US Fish and Wildlife Service in May 1997. The EA and project review supported instream incubation boxes as the preferred restoration alternative.

Annually, every November 1997 through 2001, coho salmon eggs were placed in two Kametolook River instream incubation boxes to improve the green egg to fry survival over natural in-river conditions. Since, 1997, the Kametolook River coho escapement has shown some improvement. The later coho salmon escapement level can also be partially attributed to self-imposed in-river harvest restrictions by the villagers and commercial fishing restrictions in marine waters. Community involvement and use of local traditional ecological knowledge by the villagers of Perryville was also an integral part of the projects plan toward the restoration of Kametolook River coho salmon as a subsistence resource. Kametolook River coho escapement estimates didn't increase significantly over the six years of the project as hoped. This is due in part to the low number of annual returning adult coho salmon available for the egg takes and natural spawning.

In 1999, The Perryville Subsistence Workgroup was formed to address the subsistence needs of Perryville residents and has remained active throughout the remainder of this project. This group is currently seeking funding that will allow the egg box project to continue beyond September 2002. In addition, this group also hopes to obtain genetic and pathology samples of nearby coho systems (fish transport permit requirements) and the eventual transport of eggs from these systems to the Kametolook River egg boxes. This additional work should increase escapements in the Kametolook River and thus provide more eggs for the incubation boxes and eventually a surplus of adult coho salmon available for Perryville residents' subsistence fishing.

Also as part of the project, starting in 1996 a school aquarium project for the Perryville School was set up and maintained annually throughout all project years. Annually approximately 300 to 500 fertilized coho salmon eggs were placed in the Perryville school aquarium and students followed the development of the eggs to the swim up fry stage. The teachers developed lesson plans in biology and ecology around the aquarium project and developed a stewardship of the local salmon runs with the students.