Final Environmental Assessment for the Harvest Specifications of the Cook Inlet Salmon Fisheries in the EEZ Off Alaska

This Environmental Assessment (EA) analyzes proposed harvest specifications for salmon fishing in the Cook Inlet Exclusive Economic Zone Area (CI EEZ). The Fishery Management Plan for the Salmon Fisheries in the EEZ off Alaska (Salmon FMP) governs management of the salmon fisheries in the United States EEZ off Alaska's coast. The North Pacific Fishery Management Council (Council) developed the Salmon FMP under the Magnuson-Stevens Fishery Conservation and Management Act (MSA) and National Standard Guidelines. In 2024, amendment 16 to the Salmon FMP and its implementing regulations established management of the Federal salmon fishery in the CI EEZ—including methods for establishing and assessing stock tiers, status determination criteria (SDC), and harvest specifications—for five species of Pacific salmon (Oncorhynchus spp.). This EA analyzes the impacts to the human environment of adopting the 2025 harvest specifications under a range of proposed alternatives. This EA addresses the requirements of the MSA and National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA) by providing analyses to support informed decision-making regarding the 2025 harvest specifications.