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Increasing the sustainability of multi-sector Pacific
salmon fisheries in coastal rivers of British Columbia by
quantifying and reducing mortality of released fish
NSERC Strategic Grant - Special Fisheries Competition (2009-2012)
Academic Team: Steven Cooke, Carleton Univ.; Scott Hinch,
UBC; Tony Farrell, UBC; Murray Rudd, Memorial Univ.; Bill
Willmore, Carleton Univ.
Primary Partner: DFO Resource Management - Region Salmon
Team (Paul Ryall) and the Lower Fraser Area Team (Diana Trager)
Secondary Partners: Pacific Salmon Foundation, Trout Unlimited, Area E Gillnetters,
Fraser Watershed Watch Salmon Society, Chehalis Indian Band,
Pacific Salmon Commission, J.O. Thomas and Associates, Canadian Wildlife Federation, LGL Ltd. Environmental Research Associates
Collaborators: David Patterson, DFO Fraser E-Watch and Michael
Davis, US NOAA
 Project
Summary: Abundant and sustainable Pacific salmon (Oncorhynchus
spp.) stocks are important economically, ecologically,
culturally and politically to Canada. These six species of
Pacific salmon (i.e, coho, Chinook, sockeye, pink, chum and
steelhead) represent some of Canada's last remaining large
fisheries on wild fish. New federal fisheries policy and management
strategies have shifted large amounts of salmon harvesting
from marine to coastal river locations where First Nations,
recreational, and commercial fisheries all occur. Despite
the use of different gear (e.g. gillnets, beach seines, angling),
all sectors involved in freshwater Pacific salmon fisheries
will capture non-targeted or non-desirable fish. Being able
to release these fish and ensure their survivability is paramount
to achieve harvest allocations, stock conservation, and the
sustainability of these fisheries. Using lower Fraser River
fisheries as the model, we propose studies to: 1) quantify
sub-lethal disturbances (injury, stress, reflex impairments)
in salmon caught by different fishing gear; 2) assess mortality
rates of different species relative to gear type; and 3) identify
and test potential strategies for improving recovery of fish
released from different gear. Specifically, we will evaluate
the use of a flow-through box, in-river holding pen, and soft-mesh
sack to facilitate recovery of fish by coupling physiological
approaches with field-based telemetry studies. Another goal
of our research is to provide fishers with tools for assessing
fish condition easily and reliably. We will do so by validating
and refining the use of reflex impairment indicators (e.g.,
loss of equilibrium, loss of gag response) as predictors of
mortality. Such information would help fishers to decide when
to release and when to hold onto fish for recovery, and would
also enable them to revise their fishing behaviour in real
time to reduce mortality rates. Because all resource management
issues must include a thorough understanding and management
of human (i.e. fisher) behaviour and fisher-fish interactions,
we will also study the factors that would influence fisher
adoption and use of different recovery tools and the tradeoffs
that they would be willing to make with respect to different
legislated or voluntary actions. The current management process
does not have and therefore cannot use scientifically defensible
estimates for post-release mortality for different species
caught in the multi-sector fisheries. This situation has created
acrimonious relationships among the users groups with each
group being suspicious of the incidental harm or mortality
being inflicted by the other fishing groups. Collectively,
the proposed research will provide information to management
agencies to reduce uncertainty in current management approaches
and provide fishers with increased fishing opportunities and
associated harvest. Although the work will be restricted to
the lower Fraser River, the findings will apply to other coastal
river fisheries for Pacific salmon across BC and indeed throughout
the Pacific northwest.
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