Additional investment into sustainability by Salmon Scotland
The Scottish salmon sector’s investment in a fund to support the wild salmon industry has increased following the success of the previous round in 2021.
The Wild Salmonid Support Fund, which opens for applications today, will make an additional £120,000 available this year to help support a sustainable future for wild salmon and sea trout in Scottish rivers.
Aimed at tackling the decades long decline of wild salmon and sea trout, the fund will invest in fisheries organisations that work to enhance and protect wild fisheries and habitats. Created by Salmon Scotland in partnership with Fisheries Management Scotland, both the wild fisheries and farm-raised salmon industries have been delivering this work as part of each sector’s interests to support and conserve habitats.
The five-year fund is financed directly by Scotland’s salmon farm companies, and last year more than £70,000 was awarded to five river and fisheries trusts after its launch in April. Beneficiary organisations included the Lochaber Fisheries Trust, which received almost £20,000 to implement juvenile surveys to assess fish densities and genetic diversity in eight local rivers. Argyll Fisheries Trust was awarded £18,600 to invest in habitat restoration in the Dalvuie Burn near Oban, with the aim of improving the recruitment of sea trout in local waters. A further £14,500 was awarded to Wester Ross Fisheries Trust, £10,000 was given to Flow Country Rivers Trust, and Carloway Estate Trust in the Western Isles received over £9,000.
The projects support a vast array of activities including scientific research and manual habitat restoration work in the shared connecting waters where the farm-raised salmon sector operates.
Tavish Scott, Chief Executive of Salmon Scotland, said:
“Salmon Scotland and our member companies are pleased to be able to work with the wild salmon sector to offer these awards with even more investment. Along with Fisheries Management Scotland, we recognise and share the concerns over the overall declining status of wild salmonids in Scottish rivers over recent decades. Scotland has a rich history of salmon resources and this heritage is reliant on ensuring a long-term future for wild stocks."
Alan Kettle-White, Senior Fisheries Biologist at Argyll Fisheries Trust, said:
“Argyll Fisheries Trust is thrilled to be receive funding support from the Wild Salmonid Support Fund which is enabling us to improve habitat for sea trout spawning in a coastal stream. The funding has allowed us to make improvements to these smaller streams, where funding is usually very hard to find.”
Kenneth J MacLennan, chair of Carloway Estate Trust, said:
“Carloway Estate Trust are delighted to have been successful with our recent application to the Wild Salmonid Support Fund. Having recently taken over the management of our local fishery for the benefit of the local community and visiting anglers, we hope to develop the river and loch system to encourage a healthy, strong and increased salmon population. The grant we received from the Wild Salmonid Support Fund, to reinstate and increase the salmon redds, will be the first step to achieving this target. We are excited to see what this can achieve and are confident that it will be of great benefit. We found the administration of the grant from application till the present to be very efficient and would consider applying again to what is a very worthwhile fund.”
For the 2022 round of funding organisations are invited to apply for grants between £10,000 and £35,000 before the application period closes on Monday, March 21. Decisions on awards are expected to be announced week commencing May 23. Visit the fund page for more information and an application link.