Consultation Response by
Brendan Kerr
Natural Living Assets
http://www.naturallivingassets.com
Contents
Recommendations to ensure salmon survival.
P2 *Key recommendations for the future sustainability of salmon and sea trout in Northern Ireland
P2 Adding Local Value
P2 Immediate Response to stressed and fragile stocks
P2 Uniqueness of each river system
P2 Habitat mapping
P3 From Conservation limit to abundance target
P3 Setting guideline targets
P3 Involvement of and local support for local clubs
P3 Immediate ban on sale of rod caught salmon and trout (Sea Trout)
P3 Strict bag limits and catch and release
P4 Role for continued research
P4 Hatcheries
P4 Dual habitat/ hatchery
P4 Genetics
There are a number of additional observations/questions.
P4 *Buy Out but no Increase in rod Catch
P5 *Smolts lost at sea
P5 *Why are Irish / N I stocks doing so badly? (cf East Scotland)
Adding Local Value
Protecting in river fish stocks and managing the habitat for salmon and Sea trout will be essential to maximise the value of salmon and sea trout for anglers and local communities.
This consultation from DCAL (1)
provides an opportunity to constructively input to the future salmon management strategy in Northern Ireland. Any salmon management strategy should have sustainability and future abundance as key objectives.
It is essential that the outcomes of this consultation provide realistic management goals to protect and enhance salmon both at a national and local scale. A strategy to support and empower local angling clubs to deliver realistic objectives would go a long way to achieving the goal of Atlantic salmon abundance. It will also be important to take a holistic approach including conserving biodiversity, for example, accommodate sea trout.
The data presented in the DCAL technical report (1) illustrates the case for urgent action. The SALSEA project http://www.nasco.int/sas/salsea.htm and subsequent local DNA studies indicate significant indiscriminate netting impacts on small streams such as river Carey and others along the NI north coast and glens of Antrim. Studies from the Bushmills salmon research scientific studies indicate that the number of smolts returning as adults from sea is at an all time low. http://www.dcalni.gov.uk/index/inland_waterways-fisheries-r08/bushmills_salmon_station.htm
Immediate Response to stressed and fragile stocks
Given the current stresses on stocks, financial and managerial resources need to be allocated to ensure the future sustainability of salmon runs and sea trout runs. A cross agency strategy to enable specific projects should be guided by the shared goal of salmon sustainability and future abundance partnership process.
Uniqueness of each river system
Individual rivers should be managed as required by their unique ecology and angling history.
Habitat mapping
Each salmon river should have its own individual habitat map a together with a full picture of pollution and management threats.
Inland Fisheries Ireland (IFI) apply a model based on particular reference rivers which although useful, requires modification for individual rivers. The results form the river bush salmon research station could be used in a similar way in NI.
http://www.fisheriesireland.ie/salmon-management/salmon-habitat.html
From Conservation limit to abundance target
The conservation limit approach should be further developed to accommodate a sustainability abundance target. Targets for conservation/ abundance should be set for each river and reviewed on a regular basis. This would include targets for habitat assessment, habitat improvement, use of local hatchery, catch returns, smolt count, redd count, electro fishing and local knowledge. There is excellent scientific data (AFBI, DCAL, and Loughs Agency and IFI) regarding conservation limits and the number of adult fish required to ensure smolt recruitment and these studied need to be shared and built upon. Abundance targets need to be achieved and evolved to take account of evolving ecological conditions.
DCAL Scientific and Technical Information
provides an opportunity to constructively input to the future salmon management strategy in Northern Ireland. Any salmon management strategy should have sustainability and future abundance as key objectives.
It is essential that the outcomes of this consultation provide realistic management goals to protect and enhance salmon both at a national and local scale. A strategy to support and empower local angling clubs to deliver realistic objectives would go a long way to achieving the goal of Atlantic salmon abundance. It will also be important to take a holistic approach including conserving biodiversity, for example, accommodate sea trout.
The data presented in the DCAL technical report (1) illustrates the case for urgent action. The SALSEA project http://www.nasco.int/sas/salsea.htm and subsequent local DNA studies indicate significant indiscriminate netting impacts on small streams such as river Carey and others along the NI north coast and glens of Antrim. Studies from the Bushmills salmon research scientific studies indicate that the number of smolts returning as adults from sea is at an all time low. http://www.dcalni.gov.uk/index/inland_waterways-fisheries-r08/bushmills_salmon_station.htm
Immediate Response to stressed and fragile stocks
Given the current stresses on stocks, financial and managerial resources need to be allocated to ensure the future sustainability of salmon runs and sea trout runs. A cross agency strategy to enable specific projects should be guided by the shared goal of salmon sustainability and future abundance partnership process.
Uniqueness of each river system
Individual rivers should be managed as required by their unique ecology and angling history.
Habitat mapping
Each salmon river should have its own individual habitat map a together with a full picture of pollution and management threats.
Inland Fisheries Ireland (IFI) apply a model based on particular reference rivers which although useful, requires modification for individual rivers. The results form the river bush salmon research station could be used in a similar way in NI.
http://www.fisheriesireland.ie/salmon-management/salmon-habitat.html
From Conservation limit to abundance target
The conservation limit approach should be further developed to accommodate a sustainability abundance target. Targets for conservation/ abundance should be set for each river and reviewed on a regular basis. This would include targets for habitat assessment, habitat improvement, use of local hatchery, catch returns, smolt count, redd count, electro fishing and local knowledge. There is excellent scientific data (AFBI, DCAL, and Loughs Agency and IFI) regarding conservation limits and the number of adult fish required to ensure smolt recruitment and these studied need to be shared and built upon. Abundance targets need to be achieved and evolved to take account of evolving ecological conditions.
Setting guideline targets
At Least three major targets are necessary
1. Ecological, incorporating biodiversity goals
2. Ecological abundance target fro salmon, trout and sea trout.
3. Ecological angler surplus, required for excellent angling
Only when these are achieved should there be any controlled netting for salmon and or sea trout. Only then should that be carried out in way that does reduce ecological and angler surpluses, if at all.
Involvement of and local support for local clubs
Some angling clubs are well placed to deliver key local goals. With support training, and technical advice they are well placed to be involved in enhancing rivers to ensure that there productive runs of salmon and sea trout. An abundance target would be set for each river and angling clubs would be supported and encouraged/ given guidance on how best to assess achievement of key tactical goals.
Help and support in the form of grants, support in kind form DCAL and other statutory bodied needs to be available to support local angling club initiatives. Partnership working with other agencies such as NIEA, Rivers Agency, DARD will be necessary to facilitate achievement of the key goal ie; Future Salmon, trout and sea trout abundance.
Accurate and precise catch returns would assist in building a better understanding, on which to build policy and strategic decisions. Angling clubs could have a significant role to ensure accurate records of stocking and catch returns are collected
Immediate ban on sale of rod caught salmon and trout (Sea Trout)
There needs to be an immediate ban on the sales of rod caught fish to ensure that anglers are encouraged “angle” for their sport and to avoid the fish mongering attitude on rivers, which does damage to the angling product.
Strict bag limits and catch and release
No one angler should be allowed any more than 2 salmon per season. This would enable those who catch small numbers of fish to continue to enjoy their angling with the prospect of a catch without being criminalized for doing so. Catch and release should be encouraged with a common sense attitude which encourages quality angling. The “Fish mongering mentality” among some, (i.e. where numerous fish are caught and killed) needs to be strongly discouraged and there needs to be strict controls, rigorously enforced on those who expect to kill more than 2 fish per season.
Role for continued research
The technical report form DCAL DCAL Scientific and Technical Information
indicates that many previous assumptions about salmon migration routes were incorrect. For example, the fact that the Torr head and Dun, north coast nets were both catching Foyle fish indicates that migration is not only from west to east as previously thought but in the opposite direction also.
There is much more yet to know about salmon, their migrations and interaction with sea trout, an over looked component of the migratory fish story in NI/ Ireland.
Hatcheries
Hatcheries have an essential role to maximise runs by ensuring that spare habitat is utilised. A local hatchery operation can galvanise local community action and function as a resource education centre for local schools and community.
Dual habitat/ hatchery
A dual habitat/ hatchery approach where only endogenous stock from local rivers are used to enhance production in nursery habitat where there is no attendant spawning habitat would enhance depleted recruitment of smolts..
Genetics
Hatcheries should only use local, endogenous brood stock. The SALSEA programme and AFBI are continuing to conduct further research the genetic structures of salmon, and the consequences for local genetic distinctiveness to river level. This work needs to be supported and continued with the ultimate policy aim of maximising stocks.
There are a number of additional observations/questions.
Buy Out but no Increase in rod Catch
Despite the fact that the nets have been bought out in 2002 total catches have continued to decline in recent years. Catches have gone from 100s of thousands in the 70’s to a few thousand.. i.e. a reduction to less than 10% of total catches with no obvious compensatory increase in rod caught fish as a consequence of very reduced, almost zero netting effort. Angling catches in total have not shown the increase that might have been expected from reduced netting efforts. (Except for 2007 the first year of no drift netting for salmon). Is this due to the precarious state of stocks at sea or are there other issues compounding the problem and preventing a recovery.
Smolts lost at sea
It is clear form the data, that between smolting stage and adult return phase, there is a significant impact on the survival of salmon at sea. Smolts are not returning to their rivers. Sea trout seem to have all but disappeared. Problems at sea do not excuse efforts at conservation and development on river habitats. Sea trout stocks have declined so and their biology needs to better understood.
Why are Irish / N I stocks doing so badly? (cf East Scotland)
The question also needs to be asked regarding the specific decline of salmon and sea trout in Ireland / NI. In recent years there have been significant increases in salmon numbers to rivers of Scotland’s East coast. The Tweed, for example is producing as many salmon now as it ever did with catches of around 20,000 fish which represents a huge improvement since the tweed foundation ( A Charity) managed the tweed resource since mid 80. Catches are more than double what they were. It would be helpful to more fully understand the reasons for this.
It would therefore be useful to manage salmon within regional local river basin management structures in place and appropriate to individual catchments. Support from and to local angling clubs/rivers trusts to pursue managerial goals to ensure abundance could be a way forward. Local communities need to give full value recognition to the salmon and sea trout resource.
Any comments welcome
Kind regards
Brendan Kerr
Natural Living Assets