This project supports the oversight, management, research, and/or governance of the subsistence harvest of marine mammals for food for alaska's indigenous populations

This $213,520 cooperative agreement from the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration supports the Aleut Marine Mammal Commission's oversight, management, research, and co-governance activities related to the subsistence harvest of marine mammals for food by Alaska's indigenous populations. Through September 2023, the Commission will work collaboratively with NOAA as the trusted federal agency to co-manage marine mammal resources important as local food sources. Specifically, the funding enables the Commission to collect and analyze data on marine mammals interacting with Alaska-managed fisheries and other marine resources, consistent with NOAA's Marine Mammal Data Program objectives of supporting state agencies' information gathering and assessment efforts.

IT also allows for the CO-management of marine mammal resources with NOAA as the trusted federal agency for these important food-resource species.