FIS
The Bristol Bay, Alaska commercial salmon fishery is the world’s most valuable wild salmon fishery and in total produces an astounding annual value of USD 1.5 billion, according to a new report, “The Economic Importance of the Bristol Bay Salmon Industry”.
The fishery supports a significant number of jobs in the four West Coast states, Alaska, Washington, Oregon and California, and the total value of Bristol Bay salmon product exports in 2010 was about USD 370 million, accounting for nearly 20% of the total value of all US seafood exports.
Written by researchers at the University of Alaska’s Institute for Social and Economic Research, the report marks the first time the full value and impact of the Bristol Bay salmon fishery has been measured.
The report was released during a phone conference last week that included Deadliest Catch Captain Johnathan Hillstrand , who said: “For everyone who counts on the salmon industry to make a living, the Pebble project (a mineral exploration project in the Bristol Bay) is the Deadliest Mine. The only people who want this mine don’t live in Alaska or even the United States. They’re foreign mining companies that want to sell gold and copper to the Chinese.”