Pick Up Your Subsistence Fishing Permit For Kennecott-McCarthy

 Additional Subsistence Fishing Permit Events Announced for the Kennecott-McCarthy Area 

NOTICE FROM NPS, MONDAY JUNE 24, 2024 

Copper River (Photo: Country Journal) 

Call ahead (907-379-0040) to request your permit, beginning June 24.

Permits available for pick up in McCarthy on June 27 and July 11.

 

COPPER CENTER, AK – The park is offering two additional events for qualified local rural residents to pick up subsistence fishing permits in the Kennecott-McCarthy area. Staff will be available on June 27 and July 11 from 11 a.m. to 12:30 p.m. at the McCarthy Mail Shack and from 4 p.m. to 5:30 p.m. at the McCarthy Road Information Station at Mile 59. Applicants should call 907-379-0040 at least a day in advance to request a permit.

Federal subsistence fishing in the Upper Copper River District opened on May 15. This fishing opportunity is available to qualified local rural residents and a federal permit is required. The permit is a household permit, and only one permit will be issued per household for a given subdistrict. Subsistence fish wheels should be registered by the owner through either the National Park Service or the Glennallen office of the Alaska Department of Fish and Game.

If you are unable to attend these events, permits will still be available at the main Wrangell-St. Elias Visitor Center in Copper Center between 9:00 a.m. and 5:00 p.m., seven days a week. Walk-ins are welcome, but calling ahead is strongly encouraged to reduce wait times.

Eligibility Requirements:
For the events listed above, a government-issued photo ID (such as a driver’s license) and additional proof of the physical address of your primary residence is required when you come to get a permit. Documentation of physical address can include a voter registration card or a recent utility bill listing your physical address.

Permit applicants should be federally qualified subsistence users. To be eligible for a permit, your primary permanent residence should be in rural Alaska and your community or area should be listed for the intended species and location in the “Customary & Traditional Use Determination” (C&T) column of the Federal Subsistence Management Regulations Booklet for the Harvest of Fish and Shellfish: https://www.doi.gov/subsistence/fisheries.

Rural residents of the following areas and communities are eligible to fish for salmon in the Glennallen Subdistrict: the Prince William Sound Area and residents of Cantwell, Chickaloon, Chisana, Dot Lake, Dry Creek, Healy Lake, Northway, Tanacross, Tetlin, and Tok, and those individuals living along the Alaska Highway from the U.S./Canada border to Dot Lake, along the Tok Cutoff from Tok to Mentasta Pass, and along the Nabesna Road.

Rural residents of the following areas and communities are eligible to fish for salmon in the Chitina Subdistrict: Cantwell, Chickaloon, Chisana, Chistochina, Chitina, Copper Center, Dot Lake, Gakona, Gakona Junction, Glennallen, Gulkana, Healy Lake, Kenny Lake, Lower Tonsina, McCarthy, Mentasta Lake, Nabesna, Northway, Paxson-Sourdough, Slana, Tanacross, Tazlina, Tetlin, Tok, and Tonsina, and those individuals living along the Tok Cutoff from Tok to Mentasta Pass, and along the Nabesna Road.

Federal subsistence regulations, including customary and traditional use determinations for salmon, are made by the Federal Subsistence Board. If you feel that the regulations do not recognize your community’s customary and traditional use, consider submitting a regulatory change proposal. See also: how-change-fed-subsis-regulations.pdf (doi.gov). The Board is accepting proposals to change regulations through May 21, 2024: Call for Proposals to Change Federal Subsistence Fish and Shellfish Regulations | U.S. Department of the Interior (doi.gov).

For more information, contact the Copper Center Visitor Center at 907-822-7250.