Fisheries: Migratory and freshwater fisheries
Fisheries management
- Restrictions on exploitation of fish stocks
- Rod licences
- Mixed stock fisheries
Restrictions on exploitation of fish stocks
Introduction
Fish are an essential part of the freshwater aquatic environment; healthy fish stocks are an indicator of environmental quality. Maintaining the diversity of wild fish is therefore consistent with the UK's international commitments on Biodiversity, sustainable development, and conservation of salmon.
Responsibility for policy on salmon and freshwater fisheries in England rests with the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs. Within the policy framework set by Ministers, the day to day management and regulatory responsibility for salmon and freshwater fisheries rests with the Environment Agency, who have a statutory duty to maintain, improve and develop salmon, trout, freshwater and eel fisheries. The Environment Agency's fisheries work is funded by rod and net licence duties and Government grant-in-aid.
The Environment Agency has various powers to protect fish stocks and reduce exploitation the Salmon and Freshwater Fisheries Act 1975 (as amended) provides the Agency with the powers to make Byelaws and restrict the number of licences issued for individual net fisheries by making of Net Limitation Orders (NLO's). The Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs confirms byelaws and NLO's.
Salmon action plans
Salmon Action Plans (SAPs) are the means by which the the Environment Agency (EA) aims to meet the objectives of its National Salmon Management Strategy (launched in 1996) at a local level. The programme of SAPs for the 62 principal salmon rivers in England and Wales was completed in April 2004.
Amongst other things, the SAPs set specific spawning targets for individual rivers, against which stock and fishery performance are assessed. This provides a more objective approach than has previously been applied to salmon management in England and Wales and has been advocated by the North Atlantic Salmon Conservation Organisation (NASCO) to facilitate salmon management in the international context.
Each river's SAP contains a range of actions to help achieve spawning targets, such as reducing exploitation, improving habitat and water quality and minimising obstructions to migration. In delivering each SAP the Agency seeked the support of local fishery and other interests. This collaborative approach is vital to secure the best way forward for the management of salmon rivers. More information on Salmon Action Plans can be found at www.environment-agency.gov.uk
Fisheries action plans
The concept of Fisheries Action Plans (FAPs) first arose through the Review of Salmon and Freshwater Fisheries. The Review recommended that FAPs be developed for all catchments. This idea was supported by both the Government and the Agency, and details can be found at www.environment-agency.gov.uk
The purpose of FAPs is twofold; firstly to provide greater local stakeholder involvement in the management and development of freshwater fisheries; and secondly to ensure Agency accountability in delivering its fisheries duties at the local level.
FAPs, therefore, provide a route for local angling and fisheries interests to have a say in the way that their local fisheries are managed and developed. While the Agency is responsible for many of the resulting actions some fall within the remit of other stakeholders. FAPs also provide a mechanism for integrating the fisheries work of the Agency with that of angling groups, fishery owners, conservation bodies, local authorities etc.
Already the FAPS have brought results, with local groups fully participating in important actions such as studies into the impact of stocking of brown trout and implementing improvements in juvenile coarse fish habitat.
Byelaws
Byelaws can be introduced to protect fish stocks by restricting the methods and baits that are used by anglers and netsmen:, for example there are byelaws on the use of keepnets and prohibiting the use of crayfish as bait dead or alive, both of which are intended to preserve healthy fish stocks.
Byelaws have also been introduced to restrict the times that angling can take place during the year by imposing close seasons.
National byelaws have also been introduced in recent years to require statutory catch and release of salmon during certain times and on certain rivers where stocks of salmon are particularly depleted. For information on the byelaws that might apply in your area, please contact your local Environment Agency Office.
The Environment Agency also has the power to impose method restrictions on net fisheries by regulating the design and use of nets. Effort in net fisheries can also be limited by extending close seasons and imposing close times and closed areas.
Net limitation orders
Under the Salmon and Freshwater Fisheries Act 1975, the Environment Agency has the power to make Net Limitation Orders (NLO's) for management and conservation reasons. NLO's are used to regulate salmon and sea trout net fisheries in England and Wales. Each NLO limits, for up to a maximum of ten years, the number of net fishing licences that may be issued in any specific fishery. The Order can set or fix the number of licences at a certain level or at zero, depending upon the state of salmon stocks and the conservation case. It should be noted that there are significant limitations on the Agency's powers to reduce the number of licences. Most significantly, a licence holder who is dependent on fishing for their livelihood cannot be deprived of their licence. As a result, in most fisheries the number of licence holders can only be reduced when existing licence holders relinquish their licences.
If the Agency proposes an NLO that reduces the number of licences, even by natural wastage, and an existing licence holder objects, providing that Parts (a) and (b) of Section 26(1) of the 1975 Act are met, then the Secretary of State must hold a public inquiry. This would recommend to Ministers whether they should approve, modify or reject the NLO.
Rod licences
The right to fish for salmon in freshwater beyond tidal limits in England and Wales is a private one. The taking of salmon without the consent of the owner of the fishing rights is therefore an offence under the Theft Act.
Additionally, anyone wishing to fish for salmon, sea trout, eels or coarse fish in England and Wales must hold an Environment Agency rod licence although, as indicated above, this does not in itself confer a right to fish. The Agency has no powers to limit the number of rod licences it issues. Information on how to obtain a rod licence can be found at www.environment-agency.gov.uk.
Net licences
With the exception of a small number of private net fisheries pre-dating Magna Carta, there is a public right to fish for salmon in the sea, though this right can be constrained by national and local byelaws. Many net fisheries are of considerable antiquity and the methods they employ have been in use for centuries. Particular examples are the coracle net fisheries in Wales, handheld haaf and lave nets on the Solway and Severn, and Putchers on the Severn.
The long term prospect for net fisheries is one of decline. This due to a number of factors; the natural wastage of the netsmen and the phasing out of mixed stock salmon fisheries, being a couple. However, when in season, fresh wild salmon is highly sought after and can command lucrative prices at market, so there will always be some people interested in netting for a living. However, anyone using a net to fish for salmon must hold a licence issued by the Environment Agency. Illegal netting will be prosecuted and can result in a heavy fine.
More information on how to obtain a net licence can be found at www.environment-agency.gov.uk
Mixed stock fisheries
Some net fisheries take salmon from a number of different rivers, and such 'mixed stock fisheries' make the management of salmon stocks on a river by river basis more difficult, because it is difficult to assess the level of exploitation of each river stock in such a fishery. This is the reason that the Government decided in 1992 that the north east coast fishery should be phased out, and this approach has now been extended to other mixed stock fisheries.
In May 2006, the European Commission published a review of the implications of mixed stock salmon fisheries on the conservation of salmon populations in Atlantic Community waters, based on a Technical Report prepared by experts from the UK and Ireland. The aim of the report was to provide a basis for discussion on possible additional management measures, either in the context of the CFP and the EU policies on Nature conservation or under national or local legislation. The Commission report suggested that national legislation is perfectly adequate to minimize the impact of mixed stock fisheries on salmon conservation.
North east coast net fishery
In May 2003 an important £3.4 million buyout agreement was reached which has significantly cut the number of salmon taken off the North East coast of England by drift nets. 52 of the remaining 68 netsmen signed a formal agreement undertaking to give up their drift net licences in return for a compensation payment to which the Government contributed £1.25 million with private interests raising the remainder. From June 2003, just 16 netsmen will were licensed to use drift nets along the coast between North Yorkshire and the Scottish Border, compared to 142 in 1992.
The buy-out stems from a commitment given by the Government in its response to the independent salmon and freshwater fisheries review group. Their report recommended the accelerated phase-out of all mixed stock fisheries in England and Wales and that Government should provide funds to "pump-prime" compensation arrangements to accelerate the phase-out of such fisheries on a voluntary basis.
Over this short a period of time, it is difficult to judge the impact the North East net closures have had on salmon runs and catches. The evidence so far has been encouraging with an increase in salmon runs and catches. However, there could be other factors, and it will be several years before concrete conclusions can be drawn.
Research
Much of the specialist scientific research that Defra funds on salmon and freshwater fisheries is aimed at providing better advice on factors affecting the production of exploited species, particularly the migratory salmonids. Although Defra funds research on eels, most work on coarse fish is funded by the Environment Agency www.environment-agency.gov.uk Defra's programme is undertaken by CEFAS, and other scientific contractors, and addresses a range of topics, including factors affecting salmonid migration, reproduction, juvenile production and survival throughout the life cycle. Research into factors affecting salmonid stocks during the freshwater phase of the life-cycle have included studies of the effects of sediments on salmonid eggs and embryos, the management of riparian vegetation, the impacts of low concentrations of various chemical contaminants on the physiology and behaviour of the fish and the effects of physical and chemical obstructions to fish movements.
Eels
Eels are migratory fish, but unlike salmon and sea trout they spend their adult lives in freshwater, returning to the sea to spawn. European eels derive from only one common stock. The theory is that they cross the Atlantic to the Sargasso Sea -which is in the North Atlantic Basin, south-west of Bermuda and east of the island chain from the Bahamas to Puerto Rico - where they spawn and the larvae are carried by the Gulf Stream back to European shores.
The eel was once common around Britain, being present in most rivers, streams and lakes that are accessible from the sea. Commercial eel fisheries were the most valuable inland fisheries in England and Wales and provide significant benefits to the rural economy. However, there is considerable concern about the status of eel stocks in the UK and Europe. The abundance of eels in Europe has declined since the 1970s, which is thought to be related in part to oceanographic changes between the spawning grounds near the Caribbean and the coast of Europe, and to other factors such as pollution, parasites, barriers to freshwater migration and over fishing.
To address these concerns the Environment Agency has developed a National Eel Management Strategy, following extensive consultation with the eel fishing industry, angling and conservation interests and with government. The Strategy was published in March 2001, and the Agency has recently introduced a national package of eel fishing byelaws. Details can be found on the Environment Agency's website www.environment-agency.gov.uk or from your local Environment Agency office.
As mentioned above, the decline in eel stocks is an international concern and The International Council for the Exploration of the Seas (ICES) recommended that a recovery plan for European eel is urgently needed. It went on to say that the rebuilding plan should include measures to reduce exploitation of all life stages and restore habitats. ICES also recommended that if no such plan is agreed, exploitation should be reduced to the lowest possible level.
The EU Commission have also proposed action and in 2004 presented a community action plan for management of the European eel. This was welcomed by the UK Government and seen as representing an important step forward in addressing the decline in the European eel stock. The action plan set out a number of short and long term measures for consideration, intended to achieve the goal of ensuring that at least 40% of the potential production of adult eels returns to the sea to spawn.
These proposals are under consideration and the potential impacts both on the eel stocks, and the producers are being assessed to determine the best way forward.
Page last modified:
22 May 2008
Page published: 17 January 2005