The work carried out by the Conwy Valley Fisheries & Conservation Association is generally unknown and unreported. A small band of enthusiasts, not all anglers, work tirelessly to help the salmon maintain its presence in the River Conwy system. The Conwy is one of only three rivers in England and Wales forecast in the 2012 salmon stock assessment by NRW and others, to have salmon stocks estimated to be “not at risk” by 2018. All three rivers so classified in the documentation, are stocked. Natural Resources Wales, the guardians of Welsh salmon, have declared that all salmonid hatcheries in Wales are to be closed, with the exception of a centre of excellence to be created at Cunrig in the Brecon Beacons, and that all stocking of salmon and sea trout into Welsh rivers is to cease, as they fear that stocking rivers with hatchery bred fish will damage the native fish stock. It was then, with a sad heart, and a feeling that verged on despair, that I went to film and to witness, what will probably be the last ever introduction of reared smolt, into the Conwy system.
The following photographs are posted as a witness to the event and as a tribute to the dedicated team who have been carrying out this work unpaid and unacknowledged for the past several years. Thank you, to each and every one of you.
The smolt pond
 First draw of the net  Removing smolt trapped in the net The last two pictures above were taken at the outflow from the pond to a stream leading to the river. Each draw of the net across the pond was to encourage the smolt to leave the pond and enter the river. And thence to sea.
Photographs courtesy of Paul King, secretary of Wirral Game Fishing Club
Tuesday 28 April 2015. Immediate Release |
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New appointments at Angling TrustThe Angling Trust Board of Directors met on Wednesday 22nd April and has formally approved the appointment of Roger Furniss as a Vice President and Sarah Collins as a Director of the Angling Trust.
Roger Furniss’s appointment as a Vice-President is in recognition of the huge amount of voluntary work he did to help create the Angling Trust as a united organisation for all anglers in 2009. Roger was a founding board member of the Angling Trust and gave several years’ dedicated service to the Board and as the Chairman of Fish Legal.
After retiring as a Director, he has continued to work closely with the Angling Trust & Fish Legal in his role as Secretary of the South West Rivers Association. He volunteered many weeks of his time serving on the hydropower working group to help make the Environment Agency’s good practice guidelines protect fish and fishing more effectively. He continues to contribute significantly to Angling Trust & Fish Legal campaigns on canoeing, hydropower, estuary netting and the Water Framework Directive.
Sarah Collins is the Chief Executive of Get Hooked on Fishing (GHOF) and successfully applied for the voluntary role of Chair of the Angling Development Advisory Committee following the retirement of David Moore, which also involves serving on the Angling Trust Board as a Director. Sarah brings a wealth of experience in education, safeguarding young people and angling participation to the Angling Trust from her role at GHOF and formerly as a head teacher in Yorkshire.
George Stephenson, Chairman of the Angling Trust said: “On behalf of the Angling Trust board I would like to thank Roger Furniss for all the sterling work that he has done for the benefit of fish and fishing at a national and regional level in a voluntary capacity. The post of Vice-President is reserved only for people who have made an outstanding contribution to the organisation, amongst the thousands of volunteers who are involved in our operations.”
He continued: “I am delighted that Sarah Collins is joining the Board of Directors. She offers not only great expertise in angling development, but also boundless enthusiasm, energy and commitment to the continued growth of the Angling Trust as the unified representative and governing body for angling in England.”
Notes to Editors
1. Contact: mark.lloyd@anglingtrust.net or 07973 468198.
2. Photos are available of both Roger and Sarah. Please contact Mark Lloyd for these.
3. The Angling Trust is the representative organisation and national governing body for anglers in England. It was formed in 2009 and has since incorporated 11 angling organisations to form a united organisation for all anglers. It is united in a collaborative relationship with Fish Legal, a separate membership association using the law to protect fish stocks and the rights of its members throughout the UK. Joint membership packages with Fish Legal are available for individuals, clubs, fisheries and other categories. |
This is your chance to speak to Board Members and express your opinions. Got to be worth a try!
I thought these short videos may be of interest. They are Greys advertising features, we have no connection with Greys, but they do say they can be shared: so here they are click here
It may seen tedious as well as pointless to respond to these consultations, but if we don’t, we risk creating the impression that we don’t care. The new NRW, so far, seems to give little priority to fisheries, this may be because we don’t make our views know or because it is in the process of change.
PLEASE take the time to have a look, there is actually a plane relating to your river, have a quick read and if anything comes to mind, send in your views.
It is saddening that those present at meeting with the NRW are the same “old crowd”. and so few in number. I say this with great respect for those that do take the time to represent anglers: they work hard and do a good job. Now is perhaps the time for you to have a go at putting forward your views
Click on this link:
The following invitation to express your views is copied directly from the National Assembly web site. This consultation does not appear to require you to fill in a questionnaire, simply write to express your opinions. Please try to be objective in any submission and provide some sort of evidence. All the links in the invitation below are working.
Consultation
Natural Resources Wales – Annual Scrutiny 2015
Purpose of the consultation
The Environment and Sustainability Committee has followed the creation and development of Natural Resources Wales, from the business case stage through to its creation and subsequent operation, and has undertaken various inquiries into aspects of this process.
A key feature of the Committee’s on-going scrutiny has been an annual session with the Chief Executive and Chair of Natural Resources Wales.
This year, the Committee has decided to seek the views of stakeholders and the public to help inform this scrutiny session.
We are interested to hear about your experience of working with and/or accessing services from Natural Resources Wales and how it is delivering its statutory functions (including the resources available to deliver these functions).
Where possible, we would like you to provide specific examples that support your point of view.
We will also be inviting a selection of stakeholders to give evidence to us in person on 22 April and we will be scrutinising Natural Resources Wales on 6 May.
Alongside this consultation we are inviting views to be submitted through Twitter using the hash tag #NRWscrutiny. We will be posing a series of questions at the start of each week during the consultation period to help encourage debate and a summary of Twitter interactions will be considered by the Committee before the final scrutiny session.
At the end of the process the Committee will express its view through published correspondence or a short report. All those that submit evidence will receive a copy.
Invitation to contribute to the inquiry
The Committee welcomes evidence from both individuals and organisations. If you are responding on behalf of an organisation, please provide a brief description of the role of your organisation.
Generally, we ask for submissions to be made in writing because it is normal practice for the National Assembly to publish evidence provided to a Committee on our internet site so that it becomes part of the public record. Please let us know if you have any objections to our publishing your evidence. We are also able to accept evidence in audio or video format. The Committee welcomes contributions in English or Welsh, and we ask organisations with Welsh Language policies / schemes to provide bilingual responses, where applicable, in line with their public information policies.
If you wish to submit evidence, please send an electronic copy of your submission to SeneddEnv@assembly.wales. Alternatively, you can write to: Committee Clerk, Environment and Sustainability Committee, National Assembly for Wales, Cardiff Bay, CF99 1NA.
Submissions should arrive by 10 April 2015 and should preferably be no longer than four pages of A4, have numbered paragraphs and in a word format. It may not be possible to take into account responses received after this date.
Disclosure of Information
You can find further details about how we will use your information at www.assembly.wales/help/privacy/help-inquiry-privacy.htm. Please ensure that you have considered these details carefully before submitting information to the Committee.
Supporting documents
Contact details
Should you wish to speak to someone regarding this consultation, please use the below contact details:
Environment and Sustainability Committee
National Assembly for Wales
Pierhead Street
Cardiff
CF99 1NA
Email: SeneddEnv@Assembly.Wales
Telephone: 0300 200 6565
Sent: Wednesday, 25 February 2015, 17:38
Subject: Urgent News: Major Victory To End Water Company Secrecy About Pollution and Abstraction
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Pictured: William Rundle (Fish Legal, Head Solicitor), David Wolfe QC (Matrix Chambers)
and Penelope Gane (Fish Legal) Wednesday 25th February 2015
Major Victory To End Water Company Secrecy About Pollution and Abstraction
Fish Legal has won a major victory in our groundbreaking case against Yorkshire Water Services Ltd and United Utilities Plc, which was the culmination of the six year legal campaign for greater transparency within the water and sewerage industry which we have reported to members before.
The Upper Tribunal ruled last Friday that water companies in England & Wales are ‘public authorities’ for the purposes of the Environmental Information Regulations (2004) and so are now under a legal duty to disclose environmental information they hold to the public.
The implications of this test case, which has been fought over the past 6 years, will be felt industry-wide. It could also affect companies operating in other privatised industries which have a similar role managing resources and services of public interest, such as the oil, gas, electricity providers and the Royal Mail.
Fish Legal often wants to know about sewage pollution and over-abstraction that damages rivers and coastal waters to help us fight legal cases on behalf of our member clubs and fishery owners. This judgment means we now have a right to get this information directly from the water companies themselves. In the past, several companies refused to provide any information when asked, whilst others expressly refused to disclose information in line with this law. The Judges in this case ruled they were wrong to do so. Any concerned individual or organisation now has a right to the environmental information held by the water and sewerage companies.
The water and sewerage industry causes significant damage to the environment every year. This is partly due to the very nature of what it does in treating sewage and abstracting water, but in many cases is due to mismanagement and underreporting of incidents. The industry will now have to open up what it does to much greater public scrutiny.
We are delighted with this result, which has at long last asserted the rights of our angling members, and the wider public, to get information from these companies when they cause pollution or other damage. Being able to obtain environmental information directly about activities that affect the environment will make it much easier to deal with complex issues affecting fisheries. We sincerely hope that with the industry’s greater accountability will come higher environmental performance.
This is a huge victory for the environment and for fish and fishing. Our legal team at Fish Legal has done a brilliant job fighting this case over the past 6 years, taking on some of the largest companies in the country and winning. This has only been possible because of the support of members of the Angling Trust & Fish Legal, whose subscriptions enable us to fight these battles for the benefit of all anglers and the water environment. Once again, we have demonstrated that when anglers unite, we can be a very powerful force for good.
Please click here to forward this message to every angler you know and encourage them to join us so that we can do more work like this for the benefit of all fish and fishing. There are lots of challenges we could take on if we had more funds.
If you are not a member yourself, please join
the Angling Trust & Fish Legal HERE or by calling 01568 620447
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Last updated: 11 February 2015, 13:04 GMT
Fishing doesn’t always get the best press.
For all Robson Green’s extreme shark-hunting, the general image is that the pastime is a bit staid, a bit boring, and generally a bit pointless.
But this view of fishing is a red herring. Angling is far from all those things, as a new ITV4 series, The Big Fish Off, hopes to prove.
The five-week show will see celebrities ranging from the aptly named David Seaman to Ollie Locke of Made in Chelsea fame do battle in an assortment of fishing challenges.
But no matter who catches the biggest fish, they’ll all be winners, because just whiling away a few hours on the riverbank brings these health benefits…
Fishing increases your Vitamin D
It doesn’t have to be sunny while you angle, simply being outside will help your body top up its critical Vitamin D reserves. Vitamin D helps regulate the amount of calcium and phosphate in the body, keeping your bones and teeth healthy, and has also been linked to helping battle depression.
Ups your concentration
Being outside also improves your ability to concentrate, according to research in the British Journal of Sports Medicine. Walking in nature or simply spending time under leafy trees prompts “electrochemical changes in the brain” which lead to a “highly beneficial state of effortless attention”.
Lowers your stress
Surveys of keen anglers have found that their main motivation is not just about what they might catch, but about what they can leave behind. Nearly 90% said escaping crowds was their ultimate goal, and there are now even charities supporting the power of fishing to treat post-traumatic stress disorder.
Helps your heart
OK, this one does slightly depend on you hooking a prize specimen, but if you do catch something, you’ve got yourself a low-fat meal that’s packed with blood pressure-lowering and heart disease-reducing Omega-3 fatty acids.
Angling keeps you fit
It might look like a lot of sitting around but a good fishing session can be very good exercise, toning your arms, and burning between 250 calories if you’re just sitting and 500 calories if you’re angling in waders.
It gives you a challenge and perspective. Like any sport, fishing helps fill that basic human desire for purpose. “Fishing, like many outdoor activities or farming practices, puts you at one with nature. You’re the hunter, the provider,” says Lucy Downing of Visit North Norfolk.
“You belong and have a purpose. In all, fishing takes you back to the very essence of humanity – giving you a sense of place in the world.”
Fishing boosts friendship
While there is no specific scientific formula for what makes a good male bonding activity, one that includes hunting things, buying lots of kit and having an excuse to drink a few beers is probably as good as you’ll get.
Certainly, a National Angling Survey a few years ago revealed over 38% of anglers were introduced to fishing by a parent, 19% by another family member and 26.6% by a friend, suggesting that familial and friendship groups are vital for the development of angling participation.
And yes, of course women go fishing too, but the same survey had a response rate that was 97% male.
I should perhaps of have added, or any other web site.
Click on this link: it kind of puts things into perspective, including this campaign.
Click here and then expand the item to full screen
Let us hope that this is the start of a turn around in political opinion with regard to angling in general. There are lots of us and generally we remain silent on these matters, we are by nature contemplative rather than overtly exuberant with regard to most issues but… For the full article see under the Angling Trust tab.
08.12.14
Trawler at sea (image used for illustrative purposes only)
Something remarkable happened in Parliament this week. There was a debate about the parlous state of our bass stocks and every MP who spoke in the chamber supported dramatic reductions in commercial fishing, writes Angling Trust Chief Executive Mark Lloyd. Many went further and proposed that bass should be only be legally caught by rod and line because recreational angling is so much more valuable to the economy and to society. No, you’re not dreaming. It really happened!
Pictured: Operation TRAVERSE – launch posterOn 12 November 2014, the Assistant Chief Constable of Lincolnshire, Mr Peter Davies, opened Operation TRAVERSE – targeting illegal fishing and fish theft in Fenland – a partnership approach involving Lincolnshire and Cambridgeshire Police, the Angling Trust, Environment Agency and Cefas Fish Health Inspectorate.Mr Davies said:
‘ We have listened to our communities and recognise that poaching and fish theft is of increasing concern – and also now appreciate both the wider criminal implications and negative impact on the environment and livelihoods. This is an important operation which we are pleased to work with all our partners to deliver‘.
Police and Environment Agency operational and call-taking staff have been briefed accordingly – and both anglers and the general public are urged to report incidents in progress, anything suspicious or other information to either the police on 101 or Environment Agency on 0800 80 70 60 – citing Operation TRAVERSE.
The launch of Operation TRAVERSE also featured a visit and briefing by Polish PSR government fisheries enforcement officers.
Last year, key Angling Trust enforcement staff visited Holland, researching how fisheries enforcement is approached there; earlier this year, a trip to Poland forged links with the PSR. Angling Trust ‘Building Bridges’ Project Manager Rado Papiewski, said:
‘We were extremely impressed with the professional and effective approach to fisheries enforcement in Poland. For that reason we felt that the enforcement agencies in England would benefit from learning more first-hand from the PSR – and sharing Best Practice. Kommandant Macieo Bialy and Rafal Sosnowski of the PSR, therefore, visited England at the Angling Trust’s invitation, briefing police officers and Environment Agency staff regarding their approach to this shared problem. Everyone from the British authorities who met the PSR officers was impressed and keen to see this new approach, learning from other countries, was maintained and developed. We are now liaising with the Lithuanian authorities. This more holistic approach is undoubtedly the way forward to achieve a greater understanding between all involved‘.
‘Building Bridges’ seeks to educate migrant anglers regarding British angling law and catch and release culture; further details can be found HERE:
Operation TRAVERSE has been brought to the attention of Daniel Kawczynski MP, Envoy to the Prime Minister on Polish and Eastern European Diaspora in the UK:
‘I appreciate and understand the concern amongst anglers regarding poaching and fish theft, and applaud the Angling Trust for leading on resolving these issues through a responsible partnership approach. I am particularly impressed that this work includes the long-term strategy of educating and integrating migrant anglers through the all-important “Building Bridges” project. This is crucial, because cultural differences concerning taking fish, which are causing problems in some areas of the country, must be addressed not only through direct enforcement, where necessary, but also through education, to help ensure these problems do not occur in the first place. Migrant anglers, however, have also positively contributed to the sport and have joined the Voluntary Bailiff Service – so we must understand that we are dealing with a minority; not all migrant anglers from Eastern Europe break our laws – and it is important to remember that. It is very pleasing to see how the innovative Operation TRAVERSE contributes to the bigger picture of Rural & Wildlife Crime, which is of concern to many people – and is a great example of cooperation, intelligence-sharing and partnership working. This is a vital opportunity to raise awareness of poaching and fish theft, and positively engage with migrant anglers; I wholeheartedly commend this proactive approach and thank the Polish authorities for their cooperation and assistance‘.
Angling Trust National Enforcement Manager Dilip Sarkar MBE said:
‘To resolve poaching and fish theft we need to raise awareness and properly locate the issue within the wider framework of Rural, Wildlife and Organised crime. The only way forward is to work in partnership and share intelligence on an international basis, and work on direct enforcement action alongside long-term prevention. We are, therefore, delighted with the support provided by Lincolnshire and Cambridgeshire Police, and look forward to working with all our partners. We are especially pleased, of course, to have the support of Mr Kawczynski in pushing this issue higher up the list of political priorities. What we need now is for anglers and the general public to make that call‘.
Copies of the poster promoting Operation TRAVERSE can be obtained from PC Nick Willey at Lincolnshire Police: call 101.
More Information
Information regarding reporting incidents to the police can be found HERE:
Contacts
Further information on the Fisheries Enforcement Campaign can be obtained from Dilip Sarkar: dilip.sarkar@anglingtrust.net or 07971 677639.
Further information concerning Operation TRAVERSE can be obtained from PC Nick Willey at Lincolnshire Police: Nicholas.willey@lincs.pnn.police.uk or 07768 501895
Further information concerning ‘Building Bridges’ can provided by Rado Papiewski:radoslaw.papiewski@anglingtrust.net or 07527 79925
Photographs for Download
1. Mr Peter Davies, Assistant Chief Constable of Lincolnshire Police, opens Operation TRAVERSE with the Angling Trust’s National Enforcement Manager, Dilip Sarkar MBE. Click HERE.
2. The Prime Minister, David Cameron MP, with his Envoy on Polish and Eastern European Diaspora in the UK, Daniel Kawczynski MP – who supports Operation TRAVERSE. Click HERE.
3. Police and Environment Agency staff pictured with Polish PSR officers, Kommandant Macieo Bialy and Rafal Sosnowski, at the launch of Operation TRAVERSE. Click HERE.
4. A briefing at Boston Police Station, involving police, Angling Trust, Environment Agency and Polish PSR staff, before the first day of joint patrols across Fenland. Click HERE.
5. Kommandant Macieo Bialy of the PSR, who shared Best Practice concerning fisheries enforcement in Poland, Environment Agency Fisheries Enforcement Officer Mihael Wildash, and PC Nick Willey of Lincolnshire Police. Click HERE.
6. PC Nick Willey of Lincolnshire Police, Kommandant Macieo Bialy of the Polish PSR, and Environment Agency Fisheries Enforcement Officer Michael Wildash, on patrol during the first day of Operation TRAVERSE – all anglers checked were appropriately licensed. Click HERE.
7. The Lincolnshire Police poster promoting Operation TRAVERSE and urging anglers and the general public to report incidents and information. Click HERE.
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Pictured: The new Deputy Area Coordinators Russ Bates, John Chappell and Brian MarlowAngling Trust Press Release
For Immediate Release
Tuesday 4th November 2014
Voluntary Bailiff Service Appoints New Deputy Area Coordinators
The Voluntary Bailiff Service (VBS) pilot project in SE England has now been running for two and a half years, and looks forward to a particularly significant and exciting New Year.
VBS efforts are locally overseen by Area Coordinators (AC), and with a busy time ahead Deputy Area Coordinators (DAC) have now been appointed to our busiest areas: Russell Bates in West Thames, John Chappell in South London & Kent, and Brian Watling in Solent.
DACs will support ACs and provide cover during periods of leave or when other life commitments take priority. This is to ensure continuity, improve communication and increase quality delivery.
DAC Russell Bates said: “I am entirely committed to the VBS, thouroughly enjoy my involvement and am keen to support the Angling Trust and Environment Agency (EA) howsoever I am able through the VBS“.
DAC John Chappell said: “The VBS is a really important initiative, enabling anglers to receive proper training and support the EA in proecting fish and fisheries. I am looking forward to getting more involved“.
DAC Brian Watling said: “Communication is really important, and I am very happy to help our AC, Keith Dipper, is keeping things on track and moving in the right direction“.
EA VBS Project Manager Adrian Brightley said: “The EA is very grateful to all our volunteers, and really appreciate the time they invest in supporting our work. We welcome the appointment of DACs and very much look forward to working with them“.
Angling Trust National Enforcement Manager, Dilip Sarkar MBE, said: “Anglers are often accused of being apathetic – but the VBS confirms that there are people out there prepared to step up and help protect fish and fisheries. We have proved that VBS works, and, in line with other European countries, look forward to expanding coverage nationally in due course and increasing the support we can provide. The new DACs are most welcome and to be commended for their commitment to the cause“.
Anyone interested in the VBS should contact bailiffs@anglingtrust.net and see:www.anglingtrust.net/vbs |
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This is a very sad day for me and, I’m sure many many anglers. The NRW Board have made their decision.
The Campaign submitted their comments to no avail. It would be remiss of me not to place on record thanks to all those that took the time to respond, especially to Chris White, who has been ferret like in his determination to counter the evidence put forward by NRW and others, in support of their argument.
IT SEEMS THE LACK OF RESPONSE BY INDIVIDUAL ANGLERS HAS BEEN USED AS AN INDICATION OF OUR LACK OF CONCERN!
There follow the text of the email I received today in response to the Campaigns submission
Thank you very much for taking the time to respond to our consultation on ‘NRW’s salmon stocking, third party salmon stocking and the future of NRW’s hatcheries’. I’m writing to you today so that I can update you of our Boards’ decision on the way forward.
As you know, last year we reviewed our approach to salmon stocking, and the associated hatchery operations. We considered a wide range of evidence, and concluded that this evidence clearly suggested that salmon stocking is not effective and could harm wild populations. We consulted on these findings and received 112 responses to the public consultation. While the majority of responses opposed our proposals, very little new evidence was provided.
NRW Executive Directors reviewed the consultation feedback, the evidence for change and NRW’s legal obligations. They concluded that, on the strength of the evidence, the recommendations of the review should stand – and that stocking of both salmon and sea trout should end without delay. Yesterday, the NRW Board ratified this decision.
In the short term, this policy change will mean that, where salmon and sea trout are currently held in NRW and 3rd party hatcheries, they will be used to complete the hatchery cycle and the fish will be stocked out before the end of 2015. The Mawddach and Maerdy hatcheries will close and any ongoing commitments will be transferred to Cynrig hatchery near Brecon. We will also be assessing the feasibility of developing a freshwater research centre at the Cynrig site.
We recognise that some people will not agree with this decision but we strongly believe that this is the best course of action to secure the future of wild salmon and angling in Wales. We will now make time to meet with those affected by this decision to agree alternative ways to ensure that Wales’ rivers have healthy and thriving salmon populations.
Michael Evans
Head of Evidence, Knowledge and Advice
Natural Resources Wales
NRW Board paper. Click on the link below to see the paper and recommendation to the board to close Welsh hatcheries. We supported mitigation.
Board paper October 2014
Click here then click play. Amazing!!!
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