Joint Statement by Canada, Denmark (in respect of the Faroe Islands and Greenland), EU, Iceland, Norway, United Kingdom and the United States Regarding Pink Salmon, Oncorhynchus gorbuscha

RECALLING the North Atlantic Salmon Conservation Organization’s (NASCO) ‘Statement of the Council Regarding Pink Salmon, Oncorhynchus gorbuscha, in the NASCO Convention Area’, CNL(22)47, particularly the encouragement to Parties to initiate corrective measures when adverse effects on wild Atlantic salmon stocks are identified;

RECOGNISING that the pink salmon is an invasive species in the NASCO Convention Area;

OBSERVING that pink salmon populations are successfully reproducing in more rivers in the northern parts of the Convention Area and that a significant increase in the number of pink salmon has been recorded in 2023, most notably in rivers in Norway;

UNDERSTANDING that eradication, instead of commercialised management, is the preferred corrective measure to deal with this invasive species;

ACKNOWLEDGING and welcoming the extensive removal of pink salmon from many rivers of Norway in 2023 which limits the ability of this invasive species to continue to spread to other jurisdictions in the NASCO Convention Area; and,

REFERRING to NASCO’s ‘Agreement on Adoption of a Precautionary Approach’, CNL(98)46, which, inter alia, supports the initiation of corrective measures without delay, and to give priority to conserving the productive capacity of wild Atlantic salmon;

We, Canada, Denmark (in respect of the Faroe Islands and Greenland), EU, Iceland, Norway, United Kingdom and the United States, encourage jurisdictions bordering the North Atlantic where invasive pink salmon are found, to consider initiating, continuing, and, if warranted, increasing efforts to eradicate non-native pink salmon from their rivers as this may reduce the ability of this species to expand throughout the NASCO Convention area. 

We acknowledge the importance of preventing harmful effects to Atlantic salmon stocks during pink salmon removal.

We encourage the initiation of monitoring programmes, or to collate existing observations, to contribute to an overview of the distribution of non-native pink salmon for use by the NASCO Pink Salmon Working Group.