The State of Salmon in Welsh Rivers and What Needs to be Done
In 2021 salmon populations in Wales were the lowest on record. 90% of river stocks were “At risk” and the remainder were “Probably at Risk” of failing to meet threshold breeding levels necessary to sustain the populations. The parlous state of our salmon in Wales is evident and more needs to be done to reverse their decline.
Figure 1
To address the issues, a meeting was held at the Senedd, in Cardiff, on 18th October. Organised by Afonydd Cymru and Welsh Environment Link and hosted by Hugh Irranca-Davies MS and Cefin Campbell MS, the event welcomed key speakers and experts in salmon conservation to discuss the current state of salmon and sea trout stocks in Wales. Independent salmon expert and chair of the Missing Salmon Alliance science steering group, Nigel Milner, was in attendance and presented at the conference. The MSA are urging strong action to be taken by Natural Resources Wales (NRW) and the Welsh Government to reverse the decline.
Atlantic salmon undergo a fascinating migratory life-cycle - an odyssey across contrasting environments filled with numerous challenges. They begin their lives in freshwater and after 1-3 years, the young fish travel to sea migrating thousands of kilometres to feed in the North Atlantic and grow into adults before returning to their natal spawning grounds. Tight homing makes each salmon population genetically well-adapted to the environment of their river. Most female salmon reproduce only once in their lifetime. Such a life cycle means that each population is uniquely valuable, and once they’re gone, they’re gone forever.
The plight of Atlantic salmon is so serious that we risk losing in a few decades what we have had for millennia. This comes because of many pressures across marine and freshwater environments; from parasites and predation to pollution and the devastating impacts of climate change. The MSA’s flagship project, The Likely Suspects Framework, pinpoints and describes the key “suspects” in the Atlantic salmon’s lifecycle and ecosystem where survival rates fluctuate. In rivers, the likely suspects are poor water quality, habitat degradation, barriers, a lack of water due to over-abstraction. These, coupled with changes to rainfall patterns and warming water, are key contributing factors leading to the serious decline in numbers of migratory salmonids returning to the rivers of Wales.
As migratory fish that traverse many regions and habitats including freshwater and marine, salmon are key indicator species. Healthy salmon numbers, in our rivers and seas are a good indication that these ecosystems are thriving. The health of our rivers, oceans and ultimately our relationship with the natural world that sustains all human activity is bound up with the survival of salmon.
Science shows us that marine factors are responsible for much of the decline since the 1980s, due to declining return rates (see figure 1). These big-scale oceanic factors are climate -driven and locally we can do little about them, apart from lobbying vigorously for government-level meaningful actions. However, observed adult abundances are now even lower than can be explained by marine return rates, and this points to factors acting in rivers and coastal waters that are within our gift to change. Currently, there may be scope for recovering up to 2 to 3 fold increases in current run numbers. We therefore need to urgently address these factors which would offer a lifeline to salmon and the ecosystems on which they depend.
We need to better manage pollution, and better regulate farming and urban development, water quantity, renewable energy development and barriers to migration. To do this we need to educate land managers and the public about good practice and the value to everyone of clean rivers, estuaries and coastal waters. We need to monitor the successes and failures of measures that have already been undertaken over many years; and we need openness, willingness, and proactive data sharing across all bodies engaged in this work from government to the voluntary sector.
The status of Welsh fisheries is an indicator of the health and resilience of the natural resources of Wales. Currently, those natural resources are unhealthy and at great risk. We need a targeted approach, with prioritised actions now, before there is nothing left to save.
A newly released BBC Wales programme highlights the issue further. Do watch the programme here:
BBC iPlayer - BBC Wales Investigates - Whats Killing Our Rivers?
As an Alliance of six organisations, we will build on the existing work of our partners and maximise our impact by taking a coordinated approach and vital action in order to halt and reverse the decline of wild Atlantic salmon.
The goal of the Missing Salmon Alliance is to build an evidence-base to influence national and international decision-makers to regulate activities that adversely impact wild Atlantic salmon.
The Missing Salmon Alliance
The MSA is comprised of the following members:
Game & Wildlife Conservation Trust, Atlantic Salmon Trust, the Angling Trust with Fish Legal, The Rivers Trust and Fisheries Management Scotland.
https://www.missingsalmonalliance.org