November 2015 Conserving, restoring and enhancing the water environment and habitats of the River Dee Expanding our team at Welsh Dee Trust Progress report on Middle Dee Catchment Partnership Work Update on Management of Invasives in the Catchment Llangollen Weir Hydro Scheme Concern rises about salmon stock levels in the Dee Gareth Foulkes-Middle Dee Catchment Advisor Additions to Welsh Dee Trust Team David Prysor Jones-Upper Dee Catchment advisor The Welsh Dee Trust has partnered with United Utilities to employ two catchment advisors to work across the Dee Catchment including North Wales, Cheshire and Shropshire to raise awareness of how pesticides and nutrients, getting into our rivers and ground waters, can lead to increased costs and
difficulties in drinking water treatment. The advisors will bring practical help, in the form of small grants, to improve water quality. These can cover items such as fencing out watercourses, training for farmers, soil samples, slurry and silage analysis, track improvements, sprayer equipment testing and MOT, 1:1 farm advice, pesticide amnesties. The aim is to engage with many sectors, not just farmers, including anglers, gardeners, householders and smallholders to raise awareness and take action to protect the water environment. The advisors will also work closely with other organisations, such as the National Farmers Union and NFU Cymru, Farmers Union of Wales, Farming Connect Environment Agency & National Resources Wales, Natural England, Wildlife Trusts, Woodland Trust, farm advisors, agronomists and local councils. Working in partnership with the Welsh Dee Trust and other stakeholders, with overlapping aims, will help the delivery of actions where there is pollution arising from activity which is leading to a deterioration in raw water quality. United Utilities are actively supporting the Middle Dee Catchment partnership though direct financial support and this will include support into the Upper Dee Catchment. In addition, Richard White (pictured opposite) has been employed as a part-time project officer to work on the Upper Dee Catchment, concentrating on trying to improve the habitat and connectivity for migratory fish. Initial surveys are being undertaken and then riparian habitat and fish passage schemes will be drawn up. Funding will be made available for these alternative methods of mitigation following the closure of the hatchery at Maerdy. Richard is already experienced in this type of work within the catchment, having previously worked with us while employed by Afonydd Cymru. Partnership Working These three employees join Mark Pierce who continues to work tirelessly within the Middle Dee, through the Middle Dee Catchment Partnership, bringing to completion diffuse pollution schemes on the Wych, Worthenbury and Aldford Brook tributaries as well as habitat schemes on the Cerriog, with funding from Natural England. We hope to attract further funding to expand this type of work throughout the catchment. Invasive Species Work We have continued to work with partners to combat Invasive weeds, and volunteers have again given up thousands of hours of time. Following the successful launch of the Big Dee Day The Invasion, at the end of June, there were organised balsam pulls and strimming parties throughout July. During August, anglers and other volunteers turned their attention to spraying Japanese Knotweed, and we were happy to find very large reductions in the size of Knotweed stands compared with their previous visits, last year. This means we have been able much less herbicide this year. However we remain thankful for a grant from Keep Wales Tidy that allowed us to replenish our stocks along with provision of more PPE (protective clothing) for our volunteers.
Throughout the summer Welsh Dee Trust volunteers carried out a trapping program to monitor the extent of reported Signal Crayfish within the catchment. So far the results suggest that they are confined to a small area below Llangollen and above the Aqueduct Volunteers in PPE and with Supplies funded by KWT Lyn Byrne has returned after maternity leave to take up the role of Project Officer for the DINNS Project, on a part time basis, but is being assisted by Mark Hudson who is also being employed by the North Wales Wildlife Trust. They will be organising a stakeholder meeting on Tuesday December 15 th at 7pm at Acrefair Sports and Social Club. If you are interested in getting involved or have information about Invasive species within the Dee catchment, please come along or please get in touch with Lyn (LynByrne@wildlifetrustswales.org) or Mark (markhudson@wildlifetrustswales.org) or visit the project website ( www.dinns.org.uk). Hydro Application in Llangollen Recently, yet another application for a hydro Scheme was submitted for a scheme Whitewater Estates Ltd at Mile End Weir, Llangollen. As with the Scheme at Chester Weir, the Welsh Dee Trust submitted a response detailing our opposition due to its deleterious effect on fish passage, principally Atlantic Salmon which one of the designated species for the Dee SAC. Supportive evidence, including the Habitats Directive, Dee Restoration Plan, Living North See Report and SNIFFER report WFD 114 -IMPACT OF RUN-OF-RIVER HYDRO-SCHEMES UPON FISH POPULATIONS were referred to. Other Angling clubs and wildlife interests have written separately. Closure date for submissions was November 19 th so we now must wait and hear from NRW, who will consider the application according to their own HEP guidelines. We must continue to oppose any projects that threaten to damage the already dangerously low salmon populations within the Dee. This year has been an awful year for most salmon rivers throughout Britain, but the Dee is one of those at the most acute risk. Previous results, from the Dee Stock Assessment Program, show we are falling below the set conservation limit and the early reports from 2015 figures suggest a further fall, particularly in the number of grilse that are running the river. Final figures for 2015 run will be reported in due course. Those interested in the national picture may wish to visit the following link- http://www.anglingtrust.net/news.asp?itemid=2832&itemtitle=government+announces+new+draft+mea sures+to+address+decline+in+salmon+stocks§ion=29§iontitle=angling+trust+news#.vlbxz6 Ky-I4.facebook For further information contact: Name Richard Lucas 01244 543039 Welsh Dee Trust email rmlukas@msn.com