9:00pm Friday 30th October 2009
By Steve Sowden
MORE than 20,000 young fish will be released into a Somerset river next week in a major re-stocking exercise.
The fish, including chub, dace, roach and bream, will help replace stocks lost in 2008 when abnormal weather conditions caused a deterioration in water quality on the River Yeo and River Parrett.
The Agency’s Fisheries, Recreation and Biodiversity team are due to take delivery of the fish on Tuesday (November 3) between 12noon and 1pm.
Measuring four to five inches in length, the year-old fish are being transported to Somerset from the Agency’s hatchery and fish rearing centre at Calverton near Nottingham.
Now is an ideal time for re-stocking with cooler water temperatures. The fish will be released into the River Parrett at Langport. As they grow they will disperse with some re-populating the nearby River Yeo.
The fish deaths in May 2008 coincided with high rainfall and warmer than average weather that resulted in a drop in dissolved oxygen levels in the River Yeo.
The Agency received several calls from concerned members of the public after dead fish were seen floating in the river at Langport.
In addition to re-stocking, the Agency recently installed five monitoring stations on the Rivers Yeo, Cary and Parrett to give early warning of any water quality problems.
The stations automatically monitor dissolved oxygen levels, a factor that can change following ‘algal blooms’ or pollution and cause sudden fish deaths.
Data from each site is sent by telemetry to the Agency’s office at Bridgwater where scientists can immediately respond to any sudden changes in water quality.
The equipment has been installed as part of a £45,000 pilot project. If successful, the Agency plans to install more river monitoring stations to create a network of sites across the Somerset Levels.
Iain Turner, of the Environment Agency, said: "The loss of fish last year was unfortunate, but the Yeo and Parrett are productive rivers capable of supporting healthy fish populations.
"This latest re-stocking will boost numbers and help speed up the recovery process,’ said Iain Turner for the Environment Agency."
This latest event follows a similar re-stocking of 30,000 young fish at the same location last year.
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