NASCO Agrees New Process to Review Commitments to Conservation
Over the years, NASCO has adopted a number of Resolutions, Agreements and Guidelines that address the Organization’s key areas of concern and support salmon conservation. These documents have proven valuable to NASCO’s Parties, jurisdictions and other stakeholders over the years and, since 2005, NASCO Parties and jurisdictions have developed ‘Implementation Plans’ for meeting the objectives of these agreements and provided annual reports on progress. This process is known as NASCO’s reporting cycle, a vitally important mechanism to strengthen the implementation of NASCO’s agreements and to hold Parties accountable to them.
At its 2025 Annual Meeting, NASCO agreed the process for its fourth reporting cycle, marking a departure from the previous format. This new cycle will build on objective analysis of threats and pressures to Atlantic salmon in each jurisdiction, enabling a reporting cycle that balances simplicity, effectiveness and transparency. The new reporting cycle comprises two main components:
Conservation Commitment Reports
- Each Party / jurisdiction identified the key threats / pressures on wild Atlantic salmon in their jurisdiction at a Special Session of Council at the 2025 NASCO Annual Meeting (presentations are available here). The three threats / pressures identified as highest priority will form the basis for each Party / jurisdiction’s Conservation Commitments Report (CCR).
- These CCRs will include one to three specific actions per threat / pressure to improve conditions for wild Atlantic salmon. The overall impact
of these actions combined must be urgent and transformative, in-line with NASCO’s Mission. Developing and reporting on these Conservation Commitments will demonstrate each Party / jurisdiction’s individual commitments towards addressing the highest priority threats / pressures. - The CCRs will be reviewed biennially by a Group comprising members of NASCO’s Parties, an NGO representative and a representative of NASCO’s accredited IPRI Organizations.
Performance Indicators
- Key metrics in each theme area (Management of Salmon Fisheries, Protection and Restoration of Salmon Habitat and Management of Aquaculture, Introductions and Transfers and Transgenics) to be reported on annually
- Reporting on these metrics will demonstrate Parties / jurisdictions progress towards the achievement of NASCO’s Resolutions, Agreements and Guidelines.
Parties and jurisdictions have now developed Draft CCRs, which will be made available on the NASCO website along with written feedback for Parties / jurisdictions. The Review Group will present its report of its review of these Draft CCRs in a Special Session at the 2026 Annual Meeting.
The Schedule for the Fourth Reporting Cycle and Terms of Reference for the CCR Review Group can be found on the NASCO website.
