Atlantic Salmon Conservation Strategy – Tracadie River Watershed

Description: In 2024 MREAC will prepare an Atlantic Salmon Conservation Strategy on the Tracadie River and its tributaries in northeastern New Brunswick. Local networking and stakeholder interviews will provide an insight to current levels of recreational angling, especially related to Atlantic Salmon as the target species. The conservation strategy will identify the suite of threats to fish and fish habitat and offer recommendations toward short or long-term solutions to these threats. Project research will inform MREAC of other available datasets pertinent to the plan, including that from forestry, blueberry farms, and other industry sectors. Significant effort will be applied to current water temperature monitoring on the main branch and significant tributaries. Water quality monitoring will include pH levels throughout the open water season to determine its potential as a limiting factor. Electrofishing will assess existing juvenile salmon (fry and parr) densities. Historic electrofishing results, as available, will be reviewed for a comparative analysis. A compilation of season long monitoring results and available historic data will be compiled into a final Atlantic salmon conservation strategy. Short-term and long-term recommendations will focus on addressing threats and limiting factors to support Atlantic salmon stocks in future years.