The chum salmon (Onchorynchus keta) that migrate up the Porcupine River system are a culturally important food source for the Vuntut Gwitch’in First Nation (VGFN). The Fishing Branch River, located in the Canadian section of the Porcupine, is part of the VGFN’s traditional territory and is where most of the fall chum salmon originate. Serious conservation concerns for this run were first raised in the late 1990’s and have continued as indicated by the downward trend seen at the Fishing Branch Weir.
This project proposes to organize a two-day LTK gathering workshop in Old Crow in April/May, 2016. This will involve the communities of Old Crow (Yukon) and Fort Yukon (Alaska), agencies and other stakeholders concerned with the Fall Chum run (and to some extent Chinook salmon) in the Porcupine drainage. As a means to enhance the scientific research in regards to escapement, habitat, productivity, hydrology, geology, predation, and climate change the workshop will focus on addressing those issues. Half a day will be directed towards strategizing community based initiatives for stock restoration.
The Yukon Salmon Sub-Committee (YSSC) has designed and developed a web-based mapping platform that can populate a Yukon River drainage-wide map with quantitative and qualitative data.  This mapping platform serves as a tool to document scientific and technical data, community engagement, LTK and stock restoration (SR) initiatives. Relevant and appropriate information gathered from the workshop will be placed on the mapping platform for the public and agencies to utilize for the purpose of information sharing and management planning.