Taku River Sockeye salmon (Oncorhynchus nerka) comprise a transboundary stock managed cooperatively by Canada and the United States under the Pacific Salmon Treaty (Treaty). The Transboundary Chapter of Annex IV of the Treaty requires Parties to develop of a “bilaterally-agreed maximum sustainable yield (MSY) escapement goal prior to the 2020 fishing season.” In light of this, work was undertaken to estimate biological benchmarks for the Canadian-origin Taku River Sockeye salmon stock aggregate, including the spawner abundance that maximizes sustainable yield over the long-term in average conditions (SMSY). Additional work was undertaken to consider management targets based on the various profiles (e.g. using overfishing profiles, recruitment profiles, and yield profiles), as well as candidate management benchmarks based on bilaterally-agreed definitions.

The specific objectives of this review are to:

1. Identify the spawning escapements that would produce maximum sustainable yields for the Canadian-origin Taku River Sockeye salmon Oncorhynchus nerka stock aggregate.
2. Identify the appropriate biological benchmarks for the management of the Canadian-origin Taku River Sockeye salmon stock aggregate.