Unalaska, AK – State scientists from Alaska and Washington are meeting to discuss the National Marine Fisheries Service's biological opinion on Steller sea lions.

The biological opinion - or BiOp - concluded that the western stock of sea lions' population was weak and that restrictions on commercial groundfish fisheries in the western Aleutian Islands were needed to boost their numbers. Now, scientists from the Alaska and Washington Departments of Fish and Game have scheduled to meet in Seattle on June 2 to discuss the scientific basis of the biop. David Bernard, Steven Jeffries, Andrew Trites, Gunnar Knapp will make up the panel.

The State of Alaska has already launched a legal challenge against NMFS regarding fishing restrictions triggered by the BiOp.