Anadromous Waters Cataloging and Fish Inventories in Freshwaters Draining into Prince William Sound and the Northern Gulf of Alaska - 2025 & 2026

From summer 2025 through spring 2027, staff from the Alaska Department of Fish and Game (ADF&G), Division of Sport Fish (SF), Alaska Freshwater Fish Inventory (AFFI) program and local research assistants will conduct a systematic inventory of anadromous and resident fish distributions with their associated aquatic and riparian habitats in drainages of Prince William Sound and the Northern Gulf of Alaska. AFFI program staff will identify and survey target streams most likely to expand coverage of the State of Alaskas Catalog of Waters Important for the Spawning, Rearing or Migration of Anadromous Fishes (AWC) and, when anadromous fish are observed, AFFI staff will nominate those waterbodies to the AWC.

Increased AWC coverage will be the primary benefit of this project toward sustaining salmon habitat. Only anadromous fish habitat listed in the AWC receives protection under the Anadromous Fish Act. Also, providing more complete and accessible fish community and habitat information will benefit ADF&G, other state, federal, and local resource agencies better implement their respective fish habitat management, protection, and research missions. Better protection and management of salmon habitat will benefit salmon fisheries and the communities they sustain by safeguarding critical salmon habitat, thereby ensuring the long-term productivity of habitats and salmon populations. This may be especially critical to areas, such as PWS and the Gulf of Alaska, that are expected to gain substantial amounts (>1,000 km) of newly accessible salmon habitat due to glacial retreat because as rivers become more accessible to fish, they may also become more accessible to mining or other extractive, impactful uses. Moreover, establishing communication and partnerships via outreach with local and tribal communities can benefit ADF&G’s relationships with user groups that are keen on regulatory devices that aid their stewardship of culturally and economically significant waters.