Bristol Bay Defense Fund

Ventures

Securing lasting protections for Bristol Bay’s lands, waters, salmon and communities.

Bristol Bay Defense Fund is a coalition of Tribal governments, local communities, businesses, fishermen and other partners committed to protecting one of Earth’s last great intact watersheds and home to the world’s largest wild salmon runs. Through coordinated advocacy, legal action and communications, the coalition has stopped the development of the Pebble Mine, a monstrous mine that threatens the watershed, and continues working to secure permanent protections for the region, safeguarding the culture, economy and future of Bristol Bay.

Home to the world’s largest wild sockeye salmon runs—producing nearly half of all wild sockeye harvested globally.

Supports over 15,000 fishing jobs and generates $2.2 billion in annual economic value.

31 federally recognized Tribes call Bristol Bay home, carrying forward millennia of stewardship and culture.

Salmon provide up to 80% of the protein for local Alaska Native communities.

All five species of Pacific salmon spawn in Bristol Bay’s intact rivers.

Bears, eagles, and massive rainbow trout depend on the salmon that return every year.

The Bristol Bay Watershed is a living landscape: more than 40,000 square miles of tundra, rivers, wetlands, and forests.

One of the last great intact ecosystems left on the planet.

Defending All Of Bristol Bay

Bristol Bay Defense Fund (BBDF) is a coalition of business, Tribal, nonprofit and community organizations dedicated to protecting Bristol Bay and its people forever. BBDF ensures that leaders from the region have access to the resources, expertise and platforms necessary to defend their home.

Alaska Venture Fund hosts the Bristol Bay Defense Fund, serving as a strategic partner and providing functional support to the coalition. By strengthening Indigenous leadership and ensuring the coalition has the flexibility and capacity it needs to be effective, Alaska Venture Fund is a critical partner in its work to secure lasting protections for Bristol Bay.

We envision a future where our healthy communities are thriving and remain rooted in our salmon-based cultures and traditional Native values. We envision a long-term, sustainable fishery in Bristol Bay that supports the ecological, cultural and economic well-being of Alaska communities. But this can only be achieved if our watershed is protected.

Alannah Hurley United Tribes of Bristol Bay Executive Director

Toward Permanent Protections

In 2023, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency issued a historic veto that stopped the proposed Pebble Mine, safeguarding Bristol Bay from a project that had threatened its salmon and communities for decades. This was a landmark victory — but EPA action can be challenged or reversed by future administrations.

The Bristol Bay Defense Fund is now focused on securing durable safeguards. In May 2025, the Alaska State Legislature introduced the Bristol Bay Forever Act, which would ban metallic sulfide mining — the type most harmful to salmon — across the entire Bristol Bay Fisheries Reserve. Alongside congressional and administrative measures, this step is critical to keep the region safe forever.

Permanent protections mean more than stopping one mine. They ensure salmon return in abundance, local communities can rely on subsistence and jobs, and this globally unique ecosystem remains intact for generations to come.

Impact

Stopped Pebble Mine

The Bristol Bay Defense Fund coordinated advocacy, legal action and grassroots leadership was a driving force behind the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency’s veto of the proposed Pebble Mine in 2023.

Indigenous leadership at the center

United Tribes of Bristol Bay and other Alaska Native organizations guide the coalition’s strategy, ensuring advocacy reflects the voices and priorities of local communities.

Permanent protections in progress

With Pebble currently blocked, BBDF continues to work toward durable federal and state protections to safeguard Bristol Bay’s watershed for future generations.