Economic Value
The Taku River is an important contributor to the economies of Southeast Alaska and British Columbia, especially for its commercial, sport and personal-use fisheries. A detailed report released in 2004 by the McDowell Group notes $5.4 million in total U.S. commercial harvest and processing output, including 80 jobs and $1.4 million in labor income. British Columbia added over $750,000 more. Other activities, including commercial air, guided river excursions, hunting and property taxes added still more to the general regional economy. the report mentioned above estimated "the annual economic impact from all activities on the Taku River to be $26.7 million," most of it, about $18 million, from commercial air activity directly related to tourism.
The Taku is the Southeast Alaska's top salmon-producing river. Data from the Alaska Department of Fish & Game notes that nearly 2 million wild salmon return to the river annually, including up to 100,000 Chinook salmon (king salmon), 350,000 sockeye salmon (red salmon) and 400,000 coho salmon (silver salmon), 50,000 chum salmon(dog salmon), and 1 million pink salmon (humpy salmon). Beyond its bounty of salmon, the Taku is home to eight other fish species, including steelhead, bull trout, Dolly Varden char, rainbow trout, lake trout, arctic grayling, whitefish and Southeast Alaska's largest population of cutthroat trout. In addition, hooligans (eulachon), crab, shrimp and halibut are harvested at or near the river's mouth. That marine wealth supports major sport, commercial and tribal fisheries in Alaska and British Columbia.
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