Decision-making for the restoration of Atlantic salmon populations damaged by acid precipitation: the interplay of biology and economics
Acidification of Atlantic salmon (Salmo salar) rivers represents a major threat to salmon production in much of Nova Scotia, Canada. Efforts at understanding the efficacy of proposed remedial strategies have concentrated on estimating the biological parameters of the acidification issue. However, th...
| Published in: | Canadian Journal of Fisheries and Aquatic Sciences |
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| Main Author: | |
| Format: | Article in Journal/Newspaper |
| Language: | English |
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Canadian Science Publishing
1998
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| Subjects: | |
| Online Access: | http://dx.doi.org/10.1139/f97-226 http://www.nrcresearchpress.com/doi/pdf/10.1139/f97-226 |
| Summary: | Acidification of Atlantic salmon (Salmo salar) rivers represents a major threat to salmon production in much of Nova Scotia, Canada. Efforts at understanding the efficacy of proposed remedial strategies have concentrated on estimating the biological parameters of the acidification issue. However, the dominance of societal values in the allocation of resources to fisheries management problems demands alternative strategies for the remediation of acidity in salmon rivers be developed that account for both the biological and cost constraints on remedial strategy selection. A theoretical framework incorporating biological and cost detail is developed that demonstrates the dependence of optimal remedial strategy selection on the biological, physical, and cost parameters of acidification and responses to it in the juvenile portion of the life history. Marine smolt survival is also shown to have an influence on the selection of the optimal remedial strategy. Only when all relevant biological and cost parameters are appropriately estimated, validated and included in decision-making can useful strategies promising to optimize the restoration of Atlantic salmon stocks in acidified waters be developed. |
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