Sockeye salmon swim up Hansen Creek to spawn at Lake Aleknagik on Tuesday, July 19, 2022. Despite its shallow draft, during most years this small creek sees tens of thousands of salmon return to spawn.
These D-1 lands are located along the Yukon and Kuskokwim Rivers and their tributaries; the fragile tundra above the Arctic Circle, the salmon-rich area of Bristol Bay and the temperate rainforest of Southeast Alaska. They provide significant migratory pathways and connectivity for our animals, including three of North America’s largest caribou herds; the largest gathering of bald eagles in North America; and the largest sockeye salmon run on the planet.
We, as the Bering Sea-Interior Tribal Commission, deeply thank the Biden Administration for listening to Alaska Native peoples and retaining D-1 protections. Now, we urge Secretary of the Interior Deborah Haaland to finalize these protections this summer.