5. Interpret
5.3.2 Status and status documents
Traditionally, the term "stock status" has been used imprecisely by management agencies, and there is tremendous variety in what different agencies have produced as stock status documents. More recently, these kinds of documents have become increasingly formal, stylized, and adorned with acronyms and jargon that the uninitiated will find hard to understand. In North America, stock status documents from the north have tend to focus on harvesting. In 2000 the Alaska Department of Fish and Game and the Alaska Board of Fisheries jointly developed a series of formal policies establishing procedures for reviewing and updating salmon escapement goals, reporting on the status of stocks, and defining terms used for escapement goals and stock status documents. In 2005, Fishery and Oceans Canada released similar policies (Anonymous 2005). In the southern end of the range of salmon distribution, at least in North America, the whole topic of stock status as been shaped by the Endangered Species Act, and a losing struggle to preserve genetic diversity and even to preserve major stocks themselves.
Anonymous. 2005. Canada's policy for Conservation of Wild Pacific Salmon. Fisheries and Oceans Canada. Vancouver, B.C.
http://www.pac.dfo-mpo.gc.ca/fm-gp/species-especes/salmon-saumon/wsp-pss/index-eng.htm
Alaskan stock status documents
Historically, stock status documents in Alaska have contained several elements. First, in an introduction, the authors have provided a history of the stock, a history of fishery management problems, and an extensive discussion of any current problems. In discussing problems, the authors have looked for issues dealing with the management, with the stock's productivity, or problems with conflicts over the use of the stock. Next the authors have reviewed all available statistics that are useful for describing the state of the stock at the time the stock status document is prepared. Next, and more importantly, the analysts have used historical statistics to give the current statistics meaning and context. Often, but not always, stock status documents will include an analysis that leads up to a harvest policy or escapement goal recommendation (for example, see Der Hovanisian and Geiger 2005). In other cases, the escapement goal documents are produced separately from the stock status documents.
Der Hovanisian, J.A. and H.J. Geiger. 2005. Stock status and escapement goals for salmon in Southeast Alaska 2005. Alaska Department of Fish and Game, Special Publication 05-22.
Canadian documents
For Canadian salmon stocks, the CDFO evaluates status annually for conservation units by comparing indicators of abundance, spatial distribution, and trend to benchmarks in accordance with CDFO's Wild Salmon Policy. The CDFO monitors the status of the conservation unit in a spatial context because the size of conservation units ranges from a single population spawning in an individual stream to large meta-populations occupying many spawning streams. Benchmarks identify when the biological production status changes significantly, and benchmarks account for the uncertainty in data and control of harvest management. The lower benchmark is high enough to contain a substantial buffer above any level of abundance that could lead to a conservation unit being considered at risk of extinction by the Committee on the Status of Endangered Wildlife in Canada. Management actions are not specifically prescribed at benchmarks, however the CDFO initiates management actions in the status zones above and below the benchmarks.
Canadian stock status documents are prepared as stock status reports, science advisory reports, and research documents. The documents are peer-reviewed by scientific advisory committees whose advice is reported in proceedings documents. Stock status can also be reviewed jointly by Canada and the U.S. for stocks migrating between both countries and those assessments are frequently reported by the Pacific Salmon Commission.
Resources
Holtby, L.B. and K.A. Ciruna. 2007. Conservation units for Pacific salmon under the wild salmon policy. Canadian Science Advisory Secretariat, Research Document 2007/070.
http://www.dfo-mpo.gc.ca/CSAS/Csas/Publications/ResDocs-DocRech/2007/2007_070_e.htm
COSEWIC Stock Status Evaluation Process and Criteria
http://www.cosewic.gc.ca/pdf/assessment_process_e.pdf
Holt, C.A., A. Cass, B. Holtby, B. Riddell. 2009. Indicators of status and benchmarks for conservation units under Canada’s wild salmon policy. Canadian Science Advisory Secretariat, Research Document 2009/058.
http://www.dfo-mpo.gc.ca/CSAS/Csas/Publications/ResDocs-DocRech/2009/2009_058_e.htm
CSAS Stock status and scientific advisory reports
http://www.pac.dfo-mpo.gc.ca/science/psarc-ceesp/ssrs/diad-eng.htm
CSAS Research documents
http://www.pac.dfo-mpo.gc.ca/science/psarc-ceesp/resdocs/index-eng.htm
CSAS Proceedings
http://www.pac.dfo-mpo.gc.ca/science/psarc-ceesp/series-eng.htm
Pacific Salmon Commission reports
http://www.psc.org/publications_tech_techcommitteereport.htm
Stock status in the Pacific Northwest and California
Stock status in regions where stocks have been damaged or even completely destroyed by habitat alteration, overfishing, and unrestrained hatchery use are understandably focused on limiting future loss of salmon stock productivity. In many of these areas the stock status has been made very formal, and centered around the Viable Salmonid Population (VSP) concept (McElhaney et al. 2000). This is the framework used for assessing the viability of independent populations in Endangered Species Act listings. This approach uses a risk-matrix format to evaluate the condition of the four VSP parameters.
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Abundance
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Productivity
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Spatial Structure
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Diversity
McElhany, P., M. H. Ruckelshaus, M. J. Ford, T. C. Wainwright, E. P. Bjorkstedt. 2000. Viable salmon populations and the recovery of evolutionarily significant units. U.S. Dept. of Commerce, NOAA Tech. Memo., NMFS-NWFSC-42, 156 p.
http://www.nwfsc.noaa.gov/assets/25/5561_06162004_143739_tm42.pdf
