Resource Harvest For
Subsistence and Sport

Importance/Issues

The Alaska National Interest Lands Claim Settlement Act of 1980 (ANILCA Public Law 96-487) established by statute that subsistence hunting, fishing, and gathering would be legitimate activities on some 41,458,000 ac (16,777,457 ha) of new park lands, including lands within ALAG, ANIA, KATM (Preserve), and LACL. Because they existed before ANILCA, subsistence harvest of fish and wildlife is not authorized in Katmai National Park and KEFJ. ANILCA also allowed sport harvest within preserves; sport fishing has always been allowed in national park units unless specifically prohibited. Subsistence harvest regulations and bag limits are often more liberal than sport harvest, and have the potential to depress wildlife populations in local areas, such as around human population centers or access routes.