Salmon Conservation Fund

Salmon Conservation Fund - 2010 update

INTRODUCTION

Salmon Conservation Funds are generated from the sale of salmon angling and commercial fishing licences which represents a major contribution by licence holders to wild salmon conservation. The revenue generated from the Salmon Conservation Fund is reinvested to promote the recovery of our salmon stocks and habitats taking into account project feasibility, funding availability and value for money considerations.

The fund is being managed by Inland Fisheries Ireland. River Basin Districts (RBD’s) are implementing projects on the ground. Projects are assessed based on the river’s conservation limit status, its water quality (Q-value) and the maximum potential project benefits to the river with funding prioritised for those rivers in most need of rehabilitation.

Conservation Limit

The ‘conservation limit’ for a river is the number of spawning salmon required to produce the next generation of salmon. This is developed using a range of scientific indices, i.e. Analysis of salmon fry (Juvenile abundance index) through catchment wide electrofishing undertaken on selected rivers, rod catch, smolt count, redd count index, and fish counter data.

Project Applications

In 2007 €637,000 was collected and allocated to 34 qualifying projects with works carried out in 2008/2009. In 2008, €697,000 was collected and allocated to 10 qualifying projects.

In 2009, €654,000 was collected and allocated to 11 qualifying projects with works carried out in 2010/2011. Salmon Conservation Funds continue to be collected in 2010 for salmon rehabilitation projects, with funds available for distribution to new projects in early 2011.

Download the complete brochure:  icon Salmon Conservation Fund - 2010 update (1.96 MB)