Management of single and mixed stock fisheries, with particular focus on fisheries on stocks below their conservation limit Report of a Theme-based Special Session of the Council of NASCO Wednesday 4 June 2014 Saint-Malo, Brittany, France Management of single and mixed stock fisheries, with particular focus on fisheries on stocks below their conservation limit Steering Committee Jóannes Hansen (Denmark (in respect of the Faroe Islands and Greenland)) Paul Knight (Co-Chair of NASCO’s accredited NGOs) Guy Mawle (Co-Chair of NASCO’s Socio-economic Sub-Group) Niall Ó Maoiléidigh (European Union) Edited by Hansen, J., Knight, P., Mawle, G., Ó Maoiléidigh, N., Hutchinson, P., and Forero Segovia, S. L. Management of single and mixed stock fisheries, with particular focus on fisheries on stocks below their conservation limit Contents Page no. Executive Summary i Introduction 1 Background 1 Objectives of the Theme-based Special Session 2 Summary of contributed papers and discussion 4 • Practical application of genetics in conserving the biological integrity (diversity) of populations of Atlantic salmon 4 • Overview of the 2013 – 2018 Implementation Plans in relation to the management of salmon fisheries 5 • Management of single and mixed stock fisheries, with particular focus on stocks below their conservation limits – Ireland 7 • Canada’s management measures for wild Atlantic salmon stocks 10 • The management approach to salmon fisheries in Norway 11 • Management approach to salmon fisheries in Scotland 14 • Management of single and mixed stock fisheries, with particular focus on fisheries on stocks below their conservation limit – England and Wales 16 • General Discussion (Morning Session) 19 • The management approach to salmon fisheries in the Russian Federation 21 • The management approach to North Atlantic salmon fisheries in Finland 22 • The management approach to the West Greenland salmon fishery – fairness and balance in the management of distant-water fisheries 24 • Recent investigations into the stock composition of the Norwegian and Russian coastal salmon fisheries (the Kolarctic Salmon Project) 26 • Recent investigations into the stock composition of the Labrador Atlantic salmon subsistence fisheries 29 • Recent investigations into the stock composition of coastal fisheries in Scotland 30 • General Discussion 31 Concluding remarks by the President of NASCO 35 Conclusions of the Steering Committee 36 Annexes: Contributed Papers 43 Executive Summary NASCO's goal in relation to the management of salmon fisheries is to promote the diversity and abundance of salmon stocks and maintain all stocks above their conservation limits. Under NASCO’s 1998 ‘Agreement on Adoption of a Precautionary Approach’ it is stated that application of the Precautionary Approach to salmon fishery management requires that conservation limits and management targets be set for each river and that Stock Rebuilding Programmes are developed for stocks that are below their conservation limits. NASCO’s ‘Guidelines for the Management of Salmon Fisheries’ state that: • conservation limits should be established for all river stocks of salmon, or where conservation limits have not been established, alternative measures should be used that are effective and appropriate in defining adequate stock levels; • fishing on stocks that are below their conservation limits should not be permitted, but if such fishing is allowed on the basis of overriding socio- economic factors, it should be limited to a level that will still permit stock recovery within a stated timeframe; • fisheries on mixed-stocks pose particular difficulties for management, since rational management of these fisheries requires knowledge of the stocks that contribute to the fishery and their status, and that management actions should aim to protect the weakest of the contributing stocks. The objectives of the Theme-based Special Session were to allow for a more detailed exchange of information on the management of salmon fisheries including: • progress in establishing conservation limits, or alternative reference points, and the approaches being used to manage fisheries in their absence; • how management measures are used to ensure the protection of the weakest contributing stocks in mixed-stock fisheries; • how socio-economic considerations, including the interests of indigenous people, are weighed against conservation needs and, where fishing is permitted on stocks below their conservation limits, the approaches being used to ensure that exploitation is limited to a level that permits stock rebuilding within a stated timeframe. The Steering Committee offers the following conclusions based on the information presented during the Theme-based Special Session: • many Parties/jurisdictions have established river specific conservation limits. Those that have not have expressed a commitment to do so but it is not always clear either when this will be achieved or how rational management decisions are currently taken in the absence of i conservation limits. The most significant of these, given the number of rivers involved (approximately 400), is Scotland; • many Parties/jurisdictions continue to have mixed-stock fisheries but the scale is very different ranging from 330 tonnes in Norway to 2 tonnes in Sweden. It is not clear how these are managed to protect the weakest of the contributing stocks but newly available genetic tools should assist future management. Some Parties/jurisdictions have already closed mixed-stock fisheries and others have a policy of phasing these out although in some cases over an extended period of time; • many Parties/jurisdictions allow fishing on stocks below their conservation limits and the rationale for doing so relates to different priorities among jurisdictions regarding socio-economic factors such as the economic needs of a community, the benefits of stakeholder engagement, the necessity for subsistence fishing and cultural issues. There appear to be very different approaches to the application of NASCO’s guidelines in different jurisdictions but the reporting on what constitutes overriding socio-economic considerations was not always clear. This aspect deserves further consideration; • where fishing is permitted on stocks below their conservation limits, it remains unclear whether stock rebuilding objectives can be achieved in a stated timeframe as required under the NASCO Guidelines. More information is required in the Implementation Plans as to the links between the management of fisheries exploiting stocks below conservation limits, other factors limiting stock recovery, and the NASCO requirement that a timeframe is specified for the recovery of the stock in question. The Theme-based Special Session was a new venture for NASCO intended to draw on the considerable range of expertise available during NASCO meetings and to facilitate a more detailed exchange of information on a specific topic, in this case the management of salmon fisheries. Overall, the Steering Committee believes that the Theme-based Special Session was very valuable and recommends that future sessions on topics related to habitat protection and restoration, aquaculture and related activities and other aspects of management of fisheries would also be of benefit. ii Introduction At its Thirtieth Annual Meeting in 2013, the Council of NASCO considered proposals from the Parties for changes to the structure, frequency and location of its Annual Meetings. The Council decided not to change the frequency of its Annual Meetings, but agreed to change its structure on a trial basis for the 2014 meeting in order to improve the opportunities for information exchange on a particular topic through a Theme-based Special Session. The topic for the first such session was ‘Management of single and mixed stock fisheries, with particular focus on fisheries on stocks below their conservation limit’. The Council had asked that the presentations during the Theme-based Special Session include information on how socio-economic issues are considered in management decisions and take the interests of indigenous peoples into account. A Steering Committee, comprising representatives of the Parties (Jóannes Hansen and Niall Ó Maoiléidigh (Chairman)), the NGOs (Paul Knight) and the Co-Chairman of NASCO’s Socio-Economics Sub-Group (Guy Mawle), was appointed to develop the Programme, make the arrangements for the session, in conjunction with the Secretary, and prepare a report. The session was held on Wednesday 4 June 2014 during NASCO’s Thirty-First Annual Meeting in Saint-Malo, Brittany, France. Background Over the last thirty years, there have been major reductions in fishing effort, increasing use of catch and release angling and other measures to reduce exploitation, yet the latest ICES advice continues to highlight the continuing low abundance of wild Atlantic salmon. Under the Strategic Approach for NASCO’s ‘Next Steps’, CNL(05)49, NASCO's goal in relation to the management of salmon fisheries is to promote the diversity and abundance of salmon stocks and maintain all stocks above their conservation limits. The key issues identified by NASCO include: • further improving the ‘fairness’ and ‘balance’ in the management of distant-water fisheries; • exchanging information and transferring expertise and knowledge between Parties and between NGOs and the authorities; and • further developing the knowledge basis for fisheries regulations. Under NASCO’s 1998 ‘Agreement on Adoption of a Precautionary Approach’ it is stated that