Researchers say climate change is playing a big role in the collapse, which has left thousands of people along the river without the salmon they depend on. 

The booming Bristol Bay salmon run has broken the record set just last year, while on the Yukon River, Chinook are too scarce to harvest.

With marine heat waves helping to wipe out some of Alaska’s storied salmon runs in recent years, officials have resorted to sending emergency food shipments to affected communities while scientists warn that the industry’s days of traditional harvests may be numbered. Salmon all but disappeared from the 2,000-mile (3,200-kilometer) Yukon River run last year.

Bristol Bay’s 2021 sockeye run is the largest on record: 63.2 million fish have returned to the bay, breaking the 2018 record of 62.9 million.

For the past 5-6 years, salmon runs all over Bristol Bay have been very strong.“This year’s record-breaking return is the result of this careful stewardship,” said executive director of United Tribes of Bristol Bay. “Our lands and waters must be protected so future generations can continue our way of life and Bristol Bay can remain the salmon stronghold for the planet.”

Federal fisheries experts paint devastating picture of the challenges facing Pacific salmon and point to climate change as the main culprit.

Fish provide a vital source of protein for over half the world's population, with over 56 million people employed by or subsisting on fisheries. But climate change is beginning to disrupt the complex, interconnected systems that underpin this major source of food.

Late last year one of the world’s largest credit rating agencies announced that climate change would have an economic impact on the U.S.

FISH production is being affected by climate change. Acting director of fisheries Nerissa Lucky said this was due to high sea water temperatures. CANARI technical officer Dr Ainka Granderson also said climate change posed a challenge for coastal communities in Trinidad and Tobago.Those communities are affected by the effects of extreme weather, coastal erosion, sea level rise, sargassum and coral bleaching.