The chief of the Bristol Bay Police Department in King Salmon, Alaska, John Rhyshek’s responsibilities include supervising police officers and the 911 Dispatch Center. He started his over 15-year law enforcement career as an Alaska state trooper. In his free time, John Rhyshek enjoys hunting, camping, and fishing in the breathtaking Alaskan natural environs.
One of Alaska’s magnificent natural areas is the Bristol Bay watershed, located in the southwest. The location is home to many animal species, including over 190 birds, over 40 terrestrial mammals, and 29 fishes. The watershed sustains the production of all five Pacific salmon species present in North America: pink, Chinook, chum, coho, and sockeye.
Spawning and rearing in the Bristol Bay watershed, these wild salmons support eagles, bears, other wildlife, as well as human civilization. Hosting the world’s largest sockeye salmon run, the watershed produces around 46 percent of the planet’s wild sockeye harvest. Valued at over $1.5 billion, the Bristol Bay watershed fishery provides, annually, close to 20,000 jobs across the United States.
