Northwich Angling Association recieved notice a short while ago, of a proposal to build an Otter Park on the river weaver between Northwich and Winsford. I dont need to spell out the potential disaster that Cheshire carp waters may face if this proposal goes ahead. Below is NAA'S press release, please read it. We will have the most impact by each of us writing to the address at the bottom stating why we object, please do not state what you may or may not wish to do to the otters. This is the biggest threat the NW has been faced with, please do your bit, thankyou
‘Otter Park’ proposal: a serious threat to fisheries in Cheshire.
The ‘Weaver Valley Management Board’ (WVMB) has issued a document which promises to turn the River Weaver into “A home for Tarka and Ratty”.
It states that a “a proposed Otter Park will run along the Weaver between Winsford and Northwich forming an attractive green space rich in wildlife.”
The document goes on to say that:
“The Environment Agency’s Otter habitat survey found that Otters move freely in the River Weaver as far as Winsford and signs have also been found at Northwich. New habitat will be created for these popular animals, creating a stimulus to improve water quality for people and wildlife, and improve fish populations. The key action points are:
1. Create the ‘Weaver Otter Park” between Winsford and Northwich, including backwaters for fish breeding, fish passes from meanders to main river, wetland habitat creation and interpretation.
2. Identify further sites in the lower Weaver Valley.
The Otter ‘Bio-diversity Action Plan’ is a national initiative which aims to restore the otter population in areas where they are known to have existed prior to the 1960’s, when many died due to ingesting herbicides and pesticides used in agriculture. However, the introduction of otters to new areas, including unsuitable areas like urban rivers, has caused havoc in other parts of the country. Many valuable specimen fish have been killed and, in some cases, entire fisheries decimated.
Northwich Anglers Association bailiff Neil McComb has first hand experience of the problem:
“At my syndicate lake in Hereford one pair of otters emptied a two acre stock pond which contained over 100 carp up to 25 lb. in weight. More carp were killed in the main lake, where many of the larger specimens sustained horrific damage with fins bitten off, eyes scratched out and chunks of flesh bitten away, especially from the tail wrist and back. All of this happened in just a couple of months between December and February”.
Some fishing clubs have been forced to close, or to slash their fees and there are, of course, wider implications for the tackle trade and for tourism. Anglers simply will not travel to, or pay to fish waters which have had their fish stocks plundered by otters.
The proposal to create new habitat in order to encourage otters to populate the lower Weaver Valley, including the area between Winsford and Northwich, could spell disaster for Northwich Anglers Association, and for angling clubs throughout Cheshire.
Although Otters are territorial animals they have a range of up to 25 miles and, if encouraged to breed in new areas, could spread much further afield by using streams and watercourses to reach other fisheries. The implications of this are painfully obvious. Consider the number of still water fisheries, either connected to, or lying in close proximity to the Weaver and its tributaries.
Some of these waters contain specimen fish which are priceless, not just in financial terms but as an asset to anglers. In particular, one of our fisheries (a SSSI) holds carp which have grown to weights in excess of 40 lbs. with many others now topping the 30 lb. mark. Some of the fish are believed to have been in residence now for around 60 years, and the venue in question is considered to be one of the most important in the North of England. We know that otters attack the largest, slower moving fish first. Often these specimens are badly mauled and left to die a slow and distressing death. The thought that this could happen here in Cheshire is devastating.
Recently we have developed and stocked a new complex of three still waters with a view to encouraging increased participation in angling by juniors, families, the disabled and other groups. This is a long term investment which has cost many thousands of pounds and has turned an area of wasteland into a place of tranquility and natural beauty. This is typical of our commitment to the countryside and the whole community, not just anglers, will benefit for years to come.
The River Weaver itself is thriving, and a recent survey by the Environment Agency confirmed its importance as a first class mixed coarse fishery. The river holds roach, perch, bream, carp, tench, pike, chub, dace, gudgeon and eels, and further upstream there are even a few brown trout. The presence of so many fish, and the fact that the river is free from pollution, is largely due to the efforts of anglers.
The work we have done to improve fisheries, and the environment in the Weaver Valley, hasn’t just taken 5 or 10 or even 20 years. It has taken generations, yet all of this could be wiped out at a stroke.
We cannot turn the clock back to the days before the Industrial Revolution when the Weaver Valley was a very different place, and greater numbers of otters may have lived in the Winsford and Northwich area. You cannot simply reintroduce a predatory animal into an environment which has changed beyond recognition, and hope that everything will be alright. It won’t !
We have already seen the damage caused when mink are released into the wild without any thought for the consequences. The impact on indigenous birds and waterfowl has been horrendous.
In 2003, the last time a large-scale survey was carried out, the European river otter (lutra lutra) was present in more than five times as many areas as it was in 1979 (1). Despite this there has been a dramatic decrease in the availability of eels – once the otter's staple diet, during the same period. The eel population now stands at just 5% of what it should be, which is why otters are feasting on other species of fish which are highly prized by anglers.
The proposed ‘Otter Park’ appears to have been made without any regard for anglers, even though the WVMB has promised to “take into account all waterway users” and has acknowledged that “angling is very popular in the Weaver Valley area”.
We have to question some of the claimed advantages which WVMB says otters will bring. In particular, the notion that otters “will improve water quality for people and wildlife”; which simply doesn’t make sense. Also, the claim that otters will “improve fish populations”. Surely they will have the opposite effect ?
The only way to protect fisheries from otters is to install electric fences. However, these would be prohibitively expensive to install, costly to maintain, and would change the face of the countryside forever. Realistically, the only way we can save our fisheries is to stop more otters arriving in the first place.
What can you do to help ?
By far the best thing you can do is to write to WVMB and register your objection to the proposal. The more letters they receive from concerned individuals, the better our chance of success.
Please write to:
Mike Cooksley,
Chairman: Weaver Valley Development Board,
Cheshire West and Chester Council,
Regeneration
Backford Hall
Chester
Cheshire
CH1 6PZ
Main Site
|
..perspective trig.get back to thaa vroom 
...holts are being built to help them stay and breed...Grey Mist carp are now at risk..... 
Previous Topic
Index