A significant legislative initiative is under consideration in Russia’s Far East that could redefine access to natural resources for long-term residents. Authorities in the Kamchatka region are proposing to grant non-indigenous inhabitants of the remote Koryak Okrug and Commander Islands a legal status similar to that of the region’s officially recognized Indigenous Minorities. This move, announced at the Eastern Economic Forum, would give hereditary residents, who do not have indigenous ancestry but whose families have lived in the area for generations, the right to fish and hunt under preferential quotas.
The proposal, developed in cooperation with Russia’s Federal Agency for Fishery, is designed to restore a sense of fairness for communities whose ancestors settled these harsh territories during the Soviet era, many as far back as the 1930s and 40s. For these families, subsistence fishing and hunting are not a commercial enterprise but an integral part of their way of life and survival. Proponents argue that providing them with access to quotas and waiving fees for the use of bioresources is not a special privilege, but a fundamental improvement to living conditions in some of the country’s most isolated and challenging municipalities.
This debate stems from the unintended consequences of a 2020 law change. Previously, the system for granting subsistence fishing rights was lax, allowing unscrupulous entrepreneurs to create a shadow market by illegally harvesting resources under the guise of traditional practice. To combat this, new legislation was introduced requiring strict documentary proof of indigenous status. While the measure successfully curbed semi-criminal activities, it simultaneously stripped hunting and fishing rights from law-abiding ‘old-timer’ families, leaving them without a vital part of their livelihood. The new initiative seeks to specifically address this oversight and find a new balance between conservation, anti-poaching efforts, and the rights of all established local communities.