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Salmon

Answer

Tagging studies suggest that the Irish Salmon Drift Net Fishery takes less than 1 per cent of salmon returning to rivers in the north-east of England, but this proportion is greater for stocks in Wales and the west of England, possibly increasing to around 10 per cent for some rivers in the south and south-west. I refer the noble Lord to the Environment Agency's Fisheries Statistics 2003 in the Library of the House. A river-by-river breakdown of salmon catches in England and Wales 1993–2003 can be found in Table 11 (nets) and Table 13 (rods). The-river-by-river assessment of salmon stock status against conservation limits can be found in Table 19 on page 50 of the attached Annual Assessment of Salmon Stock & Fisheries report in England and Wales 2004 in the House of Lords Library. The aggregated catch statistics for England and Wales are given on page 25. For Northern Ireland, the wild salmon stock estimates for the past 10 years are: Year 1995 87,250 1996 90,785 1997 107,893 1998 225,109 1999 62,146 2000 89,305 2001 69,980 2002 87,462 2003 79,067 2004 75,211 Source: ICES 2004 In Northern Ireland (NI) the overall catch in the Foyle area has always been split 50:50 between NI salmon statistics for commercially caught salmon, and the Republic of Ireland (RoI) statistics. This is because the agency that compiles the statistics (The Loughs Agency), is a cross-Border body. Most commercial fishermen reside in RoI, and land the majority of the catch in RoI, whereas the majority of river catchments are in NI, but there are some in the RoI. The stock status figure is for all NI catchments and those in the RoI running into the Foyle and is recorded as NI stock status. For Scotland the wild salmon stock estimates for the past 10 years are Scottish Salmon and Sea Trout Catches 1994–2003 Rod and Line (Released) Wild Number Year Spring Summer Total Spring Salmon Summer Salmon Total Salmon Salmon and Grilse 1994 54 5,007 5,061 1,534 6,595 1995 895 7,953 8,848 3,303 12,151 1996 853 7,278 8,131 2,282 10,413 1997 543 7,613 8,156 2,809 10,965 1998 813 7,718 8,531 4,933 13,464 1999 1,691 9,301 10,992 3,854 14,846 2000 1,758 11,938 13,696 7,376 21,072 2001 3,362 14,976 18,338 9,386 27,724 2002 2,231 13,579 15,810 8,248 24,058 2003 2,391 17,559 19,950 9,210 29,160 It is possible to provide figures for the number of salmon caught per annum, whether retained or released. However that figure will only be a representation of the actual stocks and is likely to fluctuate due to fishing practices and demand. The migratory aspect of the species renders it very difficult to come up with accurate figures for the stocks at any one time.

Secondary information

Type

Written question

Reference

435; 672 c186-8WA

Session

2005-06

Related items

Deposited Paper DEP 05/807
Friday, 24 June 2005
Deposited papers
House of Lords
House of Commons

Subjects

Conservation Fisheries Republic of Ireland Rivers Drift nets Salmon

Contains statistics

Yes