THE ENVIRONMENT Agency has responded to a campaign that has been launched to help wild Atlantic salmon and other fish species migrate to and from their spawning grounds in the River Eden.

#BreakThroughCorbyWeir has been initiated by local anglers from the Yorkshire Fly Fisher’s Club, the Carlisle Angling Association and Fish Legal.

The campaign’s objective is to ease fish migration at Corby Weir near Wetheral, which is a major obstacle for them in the highly-protected river.

 

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Corby Weir was built by the Environment Agency in 1996 and completed eighteen months before the River Eden was designated as a Special Area of Conservation.

The campaigners say it has 'very limited use' except as an Agency gauging station.

They added that such artificial barriers are a 'primary reason' why freshwater ecosystems are the most threatened environment globally - and that it became clear almost immediately after the weir’s construction that adult salmon returning to the Eden to spawn were struggling to ascend it.

 

 

Shoals of juvenile salmon (smolts) migrating out of rivers to sea can also be delayed by weirs and become highly vulnerable to predation.

Tagging studies on the nearby rivers Ettrick and Derwent have shown a loss of up to 40 per cent of smolt runs – effectively 40 per cent of the river’s whole salmon population – at similar major weirs.

Reacting to the campaign, a spokesperson for the Environment Agency said: “Corby Weir is a vital part of our flood defences, which provides information on water levels in the river, allowing us to accurately measure river flows and issue timely flood warnings to help protect people in the Carlisle area from the devastating effects of flooding.

“Furthermore, having worked with local anglers and monitored the area, our evidence suggests that whilst the weir limits fish migration at certain times, particularly when flows are low, fish are able to pass through and it is not a complete barrier to fish migration.

“We are keen to do everything possible to ensure that fish are able to move freely past the weir at all times and are working with a number of partners and stakeholders to explore design and funding options which will monitor flood risk, monitor river levels and allow fish to pass more freely.”

 

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