Salmon and sea trouts in Tyne river now free to swim thanks to innovative 'ladder'
THE fish in the Tyne are doing fine thanks to a new “ladder” to help them reach their spawning grounds.
Fish in the Tyne river are now fine thanks to a new 'ladder'
Thousands of salmon and sea trout are now working their way up what was once one of the most heavily polluted rivers in the country.
And at Hexham, Northumberland, they have been helped round a weir by a fish pass which has just marked its first full year of use.
For the salmon, it’s a once-in-a-lifetime journey as after spawning they will die, having probably been out at sea for a couple years
Built by the Environment Agency, the Tyne Rivers Trust and Northumberland County Council, it is helping make the Tyne the best salmon river in England.
First proposed about five years ago, the pass helps the fish reach the upper stretches of the Tyne’s tributaries where they can spawn.
And about 40,000 fish are thought to swim upstream every year. Phil Rippon, technical specialist for the Environment Agency, said: “It’s been a long time coming as the pass was first dreamt up when the second Tyne Tunnel was built.
The fish have been helped by a trap which has now marked its full year of use
“It’s been a big project, so it’s great to see it in place. For the salmon, it’s a once-in-a-lifetime journey as after spawning they will die, having probably been out at sea for a couple years.
Salmon and trouts can now reach the tributaries where they can spawn
“They need to find well-oxygenated water and the right sort of gravel – and amazingly they always return to the same tributary.
“The weir acts as an obstruction to the fish, but they always follow the flow so the pass allows them just to swim up.
For the salmon, it’s a 'once-in-a-lifetime journey'
“And we know they are using it as we have done some monitoring and they seem to particularly use it at night.”