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MILJØFORSK-Miljøforskning for en grønn samfunnsomstilling

Recovering diversity in salmon populations and cultures of fishing: the subarctic River Tana basin as a confluence and a Living Lab

Alternative title: Gjenoppbygging av mangfoldet av laksebestander og fiskekulturer: Tanavassdraget som samlingspunkt og Living Lab

Awarded: NOK 4.2 mill.

The project aims to rebuild the salmon stocks in the Tana River through population-specific and target-based assessments, and through a multicultural setting that values local knowledge and the rights of indigenous people. A hierarchical Bayesian life history model will be developed to reconcile long-term monitoring data on Tana salmon with population genetic structure, life history diversity and ecological interactions. The model will provide a quantitative assessment of the stock status, and where the stock-specific targets are to be redefined by involving both the Sami and the other local population along the watercourse. A shift in the management regime from traditional fisheries management to reconstruction and conservation means that traditional Sami and tourist fishing must be planned and coordinated and be transferred to other watercourses and administrative bodies in the northern areas. The project will ultimately design interdisciplinary advice for how effective and socially robust governance and management practices must be implemented to safeguard biological diversity in watercourses in the northern regions.

The project aims to support collaborative governance for the recovery of a diverse Atlantic salmon complex, with a special emphasis on developing population-specific, target-based assessments of diverse salmon stocks in a multicultural setting that values lndigenous and local knowledge and rights. The scientific objective of RecoSal is to connect knowledge systems in support of recovering the diverse Atlantic salmon population complex of the River Teno system using a Multiple Evidence Base approach. The natura! sciences contribution to the knowledge base will formulate a hierarchical Bayesian life history mode! that integrates long­ term monitoring data on salmon populations, their genetic structure, and life history diversity together with the lndigenous and local knowledge (ILK) of the salmon and the river system. The mode! will produce a target-based assessment of stock status, and the population-specific targets will be redefined through inclusion of ILK. The direction of change from a fishery management regime toa focus on conservation implies a change in governance systems where nations, municipalities and communities will need to renew their relationship with the river. This implies new challenges to community and spatial planning in the region, as traditional Sami fishing, tourist angling, and other river-based activities will need to be reconsidered. The project will investigate how the changing ecological status of the river affects international, national and community relations and changes in governance and planning approaches. The project will provide transdisciplinary advice for designing and implementing effective and socially robust governance and management practices with an aim of ecological conservation and recovery of depleted biodiversity.

Funding scheme:

MILJØFORSK-Miljøforskning for en grønn samfunnsomstilling