Salmon fishing: proposed river gradings for 2024 season

The status of wild Atlantic salmon in Scotland

It is widely acknowledged that wild Atlantic salmon are in decline across their North Atlantic range. Earlier this year we published the accompanying Implementation Plan to our Scottish Wild Salmon Strategy. This plan sets out actions that we, the business and the charitable sectors will carry out to ensure the protection and recovery of Scottish Atlantic wild salmon populations. The plan runs over the next five years from 2023 to 2028.

Moreover, in the proposed river gradings for the 2024 season, 112 out of 173 stocks (65%) have been assessed to be in poor conservation status. These figures form part of a long-term trend in the decline of salmon populations over the past few decades.