NOAA Fisheries Finds Listing Gulf of Alaska Chinook Salmon Under the Endangered Species Act “Not Warranted

NOAA —

NOAA Fisheries has completed a status review and 12-month finding for Gulf of Alaska Chinook salmon in response to a January 2024 petition. The Wild Fish Conservancy petitioned to delineate and list one or more evolutionarily significant units (ESUs) of Gulf of Alaska Chinook salmon as threatened or endangered under the Endangered Species Act. 

We have determined that listing any of the three ESUs of Gulf of Alaska Chinook salmon under the Endangered Species Act is not warranted. This determination is based on the best available scientific and commercial information and the findings of the status review.

Based on the best available scientific and commercial information, we identified three ESUs for Gulf of Alaska Chinook salmon: 

• Southeast Gulf of Alaska – all populations in Alaska east of Cape Fairweather
• Central Gulf of Alaska – populations from Cape Fairweather through Cordova
• Northwest Gulf of Alaska – populations from Cook Inlet, the Kenai Peninsula, and the South Alaska Peninsula

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