Salmon Conservation
No one doubts the value of a salmon, but this varies according to who catches it. To a kingfisher, goosander a young salmon is a tasty meal. To a poacher or commercial netsman it is somewhere near £8.50 per lb. To the rural economy each one caught on rod and line is worth £1,000+, whilst to a fishery's capital value it is worth around £5,000 per fish caught each year, whether kept or released. To someone caught with an illegally taken fish it is worth minus £1,000! To those concerned with restoring a depleted salmon run, a fish left in the river to breed is priceless.
With
that last point in mind, what have we done to increase the number of
fish on the redds?
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In 2000 we bought off the Severn Estuary drift nets for good with funding from owners, MSF (Orri Vigfusson's Migratory Salmon Fund), concerned trusts and fishermen.
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We signed up the Goldcliff putchers (upstream of Newport) to a five year moratorium. (2000)
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In 1998, we launched a scheme to reward anglers who returned salmon alive to the river. This was at first superseded by the National byelaws, which made the return of all salmon before 16th June mandatory.
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In 2003 we introduced another Catch and Release incentive scheme to cover 16th June to the end of season.
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We pressed hard despite the unpopularity associated to have worming shrimping and prawning banned on the Wye.
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We joined with the Wessex Salmon Trust to provide evidence for the EU complaint against the Irish drift nets.
And with what result?
Averaged over the last decade, about 1,200 salmon p/a will be freed to spawn the two rivers but in all probability, many more than that. For the first time since Roman times salmon have free access beyond the estuary nets and traps.
On the Wye, catch and release rates have risen from 7% in 1998, to 88% in 2006.
On the Usk, the salmon population is much nearer the safety zone. However, the Foundation has opened up an appreciable area of new spawning and nursery stream and to fully populate this we need extra fish. We recommend that anglers return all coloured or unseasonable salmon (they don't smoke or eat well anyway) and as many others as possible.
Catch and Release Scheme - River Wye
The Foundation got together with English Nature, Environment Agency Wales and the Countryside Council for Wales to fund an incentive scheme to make fishermen aware of the situation and reward them for releasing salmon.
On the Tweed, anglers were offered one the following choices: a side of smoked salmon, a sweatshirt, or a box of flies, if they returned a spring fish. The vast majority (75%+) opted for the sweatshirt. We noted that, and our scheme will give any angler who puts back a fish on the Wye after 16th June an embroidered sweatshirt.i
If you have returned a Wye salmon after 16th June and would like to receive a sweatshirt to record the event, please contact admin@wyeuskfoundation.org.
