Bristol Bay, Alaska’s legendary salmon runs provide extraordinary economic value, a new report found. The report quantified the economic benefits of Bristol Bay’s wild salmon, which generate $2.2 billion in value, support 15,000 American jobs, and supply 57 percent of the world’s sockeye salmon. Bristol Bay’s wild salmon are also the lifeblood of Alaska subsistence culture, providing food security to the region.
The report, titled “The Economic Benefits of Bristol Bay Salmon,” was produced by McKinley Research Group and released by the Bristol Bay Defense Fund—a coalition, including NRDC, working to protect Bristol Bay from the proposed Pebble Mine.
The report demonstrates, once again, that Bristol Bay’s wild salmon are an economic powerhouse—and that its pristine waters are no place for the billions of tons of toxic mining waste proposed by the Pebble Mine.
To read the rest of the story, please go to: National Resources Defense Council
