Canada’s Atlantic Salmon Conservation Foundation (ASCF) was presented with a cheque on 23 January for $30 million by Minister of Veterans Affairs and Minister Responsible for New Brunswick, the Honorable Greg Thompson, on behalf of the Minister of Fisheries and Oceans (DFO).
This funding establishes the Atlantic Salmon Endowment Fund which will help restore and conserve salmon populations in rivers and stream in the Atlantic provinces and Quebec.
The ASCF is an arms-length organisation that has six members, one from each of the Atlantic provinces, one from Quebec and one First Nations representative.
The $30m grant will be invested by the ASCF and the income earned on the investment will be used to fund projects that help watershed and community organisations working on a range of wild Atlantic salmon habitat, enhancement, monitoring and conservation initiatives.
The funding agreement between DFO and the ASCFG has been reviewed, and meets the requirements of arms-length endowment funds, according to the Treasury Board.
