Opinion

OKAY, I admit I had to look it up to check the meaning but ’zero sum game’ is such an apt phrase to describe relations between the wild salmonid lobby, the salmon farming industry and the government. For 20 years at least I have been arguing that whether you believe farmed salmon have an impact or not, the current method of solving our

Method one is for the wild lobby to scream through the media.This results in pressure on government to act, but not necessarily in the way that the wild lobby wants.

It also encourages the river proprietors of Scotland to believe they are both popular and conservationists. Neither is true.

ther the press, electorate or government are persuaded otherwise.

Method two is to work through government, creating working groups that mise.

It does not take long for all involved in this process to realise that each compromise given is not enough and more is asked for.

For many years I discussed my views with various of the movers and shakers did not subvert the working groups and, secondly, that the organisations or people that scream in the press were nothing to do with them.

bied endlessly to adopt a ‘farmers must change’ mindset.

The second is also not true. Even while I was being told about this, meetings were being held between the various organisations. Maybe they all sat and tied irking them.

Until I read Jon Gibb’s article in last month’s edition of this organ I had little hope that the world would change.To answer Jon, yes it is time the reset button was pushed.

We may be the underpinning key to the Scottish economy but we are small

tries then we need to work out our differences and provide a united front to the electorate and government.

increase the problem), wildlife interactions, farming education, ill designed legislation, and out of touch quangos. If we sat down in a room I am sure we could think of many more.

Think about what could have been achieved in the time that this useless wrangling has been going on.

Other countries have managed to solve their problems. I am incredibly lucky in that I get invited to places to see their solutions.

hatchery which took all of its breeding stock from the individual rivers.

Keeping them distinct, they bred a return for each river to supplement the growing stocks in the river. Denmark may have a reputation for breaking the mould in many forms of aquaculture but I had not expected to be quite so impressed.

and with such ease and peace.

Just as importantly they work with students, educating and using them as staff to create a new needs of both industries.This is a role model that we should investigate and, with government, adopt.

It really is silly to have the habitat, the tourism and the facilities for a vibrant angling industry and waste time lobbying instead of solving.

The best catches of salmon and sea trout occurred in the 1960s in Scotland.The generation production then.

Maybe it was, but why were the catches so much lower in the earlier part of the 20th century? My guess is that there were many contributing factors, reduced the breeding population.

on their way out. It would seem that the younger generation are not that interested in angling. tions devised and quickly, or we really will be talking about a zero sum game.

We may be the underpinning key to the economy but