Anglers urged to have a say on new byelaws
Anglers are being urged to have their say on proposed byelaws which could be introduced to protect salmon and sea trout stocks in rivers across the region and beyond.
The Environment Agency is proposing the new measures to protect stocks in the River Severn, the Severn Estuary, River Wye and River Usk. Officials want to reverse the current decline of returning adult salmon numbers and four-week consultations have now started.
The proposals follow an international decline in wild Atlantic salmon stocks and it is hoped they will improve the chances of salmon survival and increase numbers that can successfully spawn, leading to the long-term future sustainability of this iconic species.
They would prohibit the operation of the commercial draft net and putcher fisheries and require the release of all salmon and sea trout caught by lave nets in the Severn Estuary.
The number of available lave net licences would be limited to allow this heritage method to continue. Byelaws would require mandatory catch and release of all salmon and sea trout caught by rod and line and lave nets and restrict angling fishing methods.
Kevin Austin, deputy director of Agriculture, Fisheries and the Natural Environment, said: “We are taking decisive action to protect salmon stocks by introducing rod and net fishery byelaws where necessary in order to protect salmon and dependent fisheries.”
He added: “The decline in the numbers of wild salmon, seen not just in English rivers but throughout the North Atlantic, is of great concern.
“We are determined to protect the future of this important species.”
