Wild Salmon Stock Assessment and Scientific Advice for Management in Ireland

The Only way is Irish

An Irish Solution for an Irish problem???

Administration and management of salmon fisheries in Ireland Salmon fisheries were managed by the 7 Regional Fisheries Boards and the Central Fisheries Board Up to 1997 fishing allowed to 12 miles From 1998 to 2006 fishing allowed to 6 miles In 2000 NSC and SSC established In 2001, a carcass and tagging scheme commenced given concerns nationally and internationally about declining stocks.

Administration and management of salmon fisheries in Ireland From 2001-2006 salmon stocks were managed on a fisheries district level with CLs assigned by district by the SSC. In 2005 SSC guidelines move to a 75% probability of meeting the CL on a river specific basis by the SSCS. This advice is based on the operation of single stock fisheries (NASCO PA) and coincides with the decision to close the mixed stock fishery at sea.

New management approach based on 143 identified salmon stocks In 2006 and Independent Group (IG) reviewed the process and made high level recommendations In 2007 introduction of Single Stock Fisheries, Hardship scheme, Conservation Stamp Fund & exchequer funding.. From 2007 all fishing takes place within estuaries and as close to river mouths as possible and only on stocks meeting Conservation Limits

Perception of impact of Irish coastal fisheries

Angling licence increases with addition of Conservation Stamp 2010 - a single agency (IFI) was set up which amalgamating the various fisheries boards. This is sub-divided by 5 River Basin Districts to facilitate the implementation of the EU habitats and water quality directives

Conservation Limits and Scientific Advice

Conservation limits (CLs) for North Atlantic salmon stock complexes have been defined by ICES as the level of stock (number of spawners) that will achieve long term average maximum sustainable yield (MSY). WGNAS 2008 Requires a time series of stock data and the corresponding subsequent recruitment e.g. smolt output to adult returns, adult spawners to subsequent adult returns etc.

Conservation Limits

Remote sensed data - digital aerial photography Light aircraft - Cessna 172 DCS 460 CIR camera 15cm pixel resolution Global Positioning System

High resolution digital image

Step 2 - Transport Conservation limits for European index rivers using river size and latitude Step 1 - Wetted areas of each river in Ireland calculated using a GIS modelling approach Conservation Limits

Provides individual river CL estimates which can be further broken into 1SW and MSW CLs on the basis of proportions of the run, average egg depositions 1SW and 2SW, sex ratios

Estimating Returns and Compliance with CLs

Standing Scientific Committee provisional only Dec 07

STEP 3 FORECASTING RETURNS Rod harvest or count Rod C&R Total rod catch Exploitation rate range Estimation of spawning stock using rod exploitation rates Conservation Limits Inclusion of draft nets catch Inclusion of drift nets catch

Standing Scientific Committee provisional only Dec 07 Example Risk Plot for the Dundalk District 1 Prob. of meeting or exceeding CL 0.75 0.5 0.25 42 214 0 0 100 200 300 400 500 Catch option (number of fish) Glyde Dee Flurry Castletown Fane

SUMMARY CATCH ADVICE 48 rivers which will have an identifiable surplus over the Conservation Limit in 2008 and a harvest fishery can proceed in 2008. 12 rivers with 2 Sea Winter or spring salmon stocks where there will be a surplus over the 2SW Conservation Limit and therefore a harvest of spring fish is possible. 32 rivers which do not have an identifiable surplus over the Conservation Limit. In this instance, there are no harvest options available which will allow a 75% chance that the Conservation Limit will be met and no harvest fisheries should take place on these rivers. 4 MSW or spring salmon stocks which are also failing to meet Conservation Limits. 63 small rivers where the average rod catch has been less than 10 salmon annually since 2001. No harvest fisheries should take place in these rivers until such time as additional information becomes available to assess the status of these stocks relative to their Conservation Limit

Three categories for stock status related to catch advice 48 32 63

Total commercial catch and total commercial TAC Total Commercial Catch Total TAC 300,000 250,000 200,000 150,000 100,000 50,000 0 2001 2002 2003 2004 2005 2006 2007 2008 2009 2010 2011 2012 2013 2014 2015

The percentage of C&R salmon in rod and total catch Prop C&R rod catch Prop C&R in total catch 50 40 Percentage 30 20 10 0 2007 2008 2009 2010 2011 2012 2013 2014 2015 Year 2015 37 % in rod catch and 29% in total catch

Proportional change in counts of salmon in 2007 and 2008 since cessation of marine mixed stock fishery in 2006 (compared to average counts 2003 to 2006 except Boyne average 2005 and 2006 only) 300.0 250.0 Prop change in 07 Prop change in 08 Proportional change in count 200.0 150.0 100.0 50.0 0.0-50.0 Dee Boyne Liffey Slaney Bandon Kerry BW Waterville Feale Casla Screebe Erriff Burrishoole Ballysadare Eany East South West North

Fish counters Variation in the mean values for numbers of salmon counted through counters from 2002 2015 (# of counters used has increased) Linear trend 2002-2014 fairly stable, but marked decline since 2007, with 2014 being the lowest in the time series and slight upturn in 2015.

Marine survival all rivers Slight upturn the percentage of marine survival

The Standing Scientific Committee advises: Harvest of salmon should only be allowed in rivers where there is a surplus above the Conservation Limit identified and that no more than this surplus should be harvested. Where a surplus is available for all rivers in an embayment, an estuarine fishery can proceed but the surplus must be based on the 75% probability that all of the rivers contributing will meet and exceed their Conservation Limit simultaneously i.e. Killary Harbour (Ballinakill), estuary of the Owenmore and the Owenduff rivers (Bangor), Castlemaine (Laune, Maine) Harvest fisheries should not take place in rivers without an identifiable surplus above the Conservation Limit and further efforts are made to rebuild these stocks. No harvest fisheries should take place in those rivers where the average rod catch has been less than 10 salmon annually until such time as additional information becomes available to assess the status of these stocks relative to their Conservation Limits.

Irish Wild Salmon Management Process pre 2010 Standing Scientific Committee National Fisheries Management Executive National Salmon Commission Department of Communications, Energy and Natural Resources Public Consultation Legislation District Committee

Irish Wild Salmon Management Process post 2010 Standing Scientific Committee Inland Fisheries Ireland Department of Communications, Energy and Natural Resources Public Consultation Legislation District Committee

Acknowledgements Co-operation and assistance over many years from commercial salmon fishermen, licenced salmon dealers, processors and anglers Bursary students who have participated in the National Coded Wire Tagging and Recovery Programme since 1980. Staff of Inland Fisheries Ireland and the Electricity Supply Board Delphi, Casla and Screebe fisheries Information on foreign tags taken in Irish fisheries is made available by many state and semi-state organisations in other jurisdictions in particular AFBINI, Cefas, FRS (UK). Standing Scientific Committee on Working Group on North Atlantic Salmon are gratefully acknowledged for development of techniques and models for stocks assessment and catch advice.

The End

Where we are going Scientific and management advice. Real Time Data Assessment of the status of the salmon stocks. Habitat rehabilitation. Giving particular attention to the recovery of salmon stocks in Special Area of Conservation (SAC) designated rivers. Continuing with the modernisation of the State agencies servicing this sector. Continuing to work with all the stakeholders.