The Salmon and Trout Association: "Game anglers influencing national decision makers over the management and protection of salmon, trout and sea trout, the conservation of water and the diverse environments upon which all aquatic life depends."

S&TA presents aquaculture evidence to Petitions Committee

On September 7th, an S&TA team gave evidence to the Scottish Government’s petitions Committee, supporting the information we wrote to accompany our Aquaculture Petition, with its 17,000 signatures.
We asked the Committee three specific questions; why is the Government allowing:

• salmon farms to operate to standards below those required to protect wild fish?
• international fish farming companies to operate under less stringent environmental constraints than in their home countries?
  
• the siting of smolt farms in freshwater lochs with natural salmon populations?

• participate in drawing up a list of sensitive wild fish catchments
• agree to the premise that no new farms be permitted on sites identified on this list
• encourage industry expansion into large, offshore units, and close down existing sites identified on the sensitive list  
• remove all smolt cage units from river systems containing wild salmon

We also asked why the Government was not using the powers given it under the Aquaculture and Freshwater Fisheries Act 2007 to regulate the fish farming industry more robustly.  This led to a unanimous agreement from Committee members to write to the Government requesting an answer to this baffling question.

New aquaculture campaign

S&TA has engaged a dedicated campaigning consultant - the experienced lawyer, broadcaster and environmental campaigner, Guy Linley-Adams - to focus on aquaculture,  with the sole aim of moving the fish farming industry towards environmental sustainability.  We believe that this is the first time a fisheries organisation has asked someone to concentrate exclusively on one specific issue.  However, that is a mark of how wild fish interests now view the danger of impact from poorly operated fish farms.
The aquaculture debate can get complicated, but S&TA’s campaign will have two simple objectives:

• see the relocation of fish farm sites identified in areas sensitive for wild fish    
• remove all smolt cage units from river systems containing wild salmon populations

These are messages which our target audience – politicians, civil servants, retailers, funders and, most important of all, consumers – should understand.
We freely accept that salmon farming is important to Scotland, but so are wild salmon and sea trout fisheries.  We want the two to coexist, thereby maximising social and economic benefits to communities.  That cannot be achieved by allowing fish farming to ignore its impact on legitimate neighbouring businesses.  The Scottish Government must face up to its international responsibilities and use its regulatory system to set environmental standards that will genuinely protect wild fish. 
   
Guy has already started – and it is enlightening to see how a lawyer’s brain approaches this particular issue…!

Funding

We hugely appreciate the continued support of our members in meeting the costs of our core work in addressing the many issues we cover on a daily basis.  However, if you would like to add to this by donating towards this vital Aquaculture Campaign, then please do so by either:

• Visiting the web site and click on make a donation
• Contact Debbie Creasy on 020 7283 5838 and make a credit card donation
• Send a cheque to S&TA, Fishmongers’ Hall, Freepost, London EC4B 4AB  

And please don’t forget to Gift Aid your donations, which is currently worth an extra 28p for every £1 you generously give us.  Thank you!

Meanwhile, Commission bidding for our annual auction will open on the website next week.  Lots range from exclusive fishing days to a tour of the Mercedes GP Petronas F1 headquarters hosted by Ross Brawn, a visit to the Matthew Wright Channel 5 television programme 'The Wright Stuff' to meet him and his celebrities that day, plus fine bronzes, fine dining, original paintings and much more – and all proceeds go to the S&TA.   This is the perfect opportunity to support our work – and buy something extraordinary at the same time! 
The auction will be held at the S&TA fund raising Dinner on October 12th, which will include commission bids received beforehand.  

Killer Shrimp identified!

An invasive species of shrimp, commonly known as the ‘killer shrimp,’ has been found at Grafham Water reservoir in Cambridgeshire.  This is the first time the shrimp has been found in this country. Dikerogammarus villosus has spread from the Ponto-Caspian Region of Eastern Europe. It is believed to have spread across Western Europe over the past ten years, primarily via the Danube.  It can grow to 30mm in length, much larger than our native freshwater shrimp, and often has striped or spotted markings.

The shrimp is a voracious predator and kills a range of native species, such as freshwater invertebrates, particularly native shrimps and even young fish.  This alters the ecology of the habitats it invades.  It often kills its prey and leaves it uneaten.  It tends to dominate the habitat, sometimes causing the extinction of native species.

Insects such as the indigenous gammarus shrimp, damselflies and water boatmen, common sights on British lakes and rivers, could be at risk, with knock-on effects on the species which feed on their various life stages.  This could have serious implications for both stillwater and river trout fisheries, which rely on invertebrates for a large part of their diet.

The Environment Agency and Anglian Water have put containment measures in place to try and stop the species spreading out of Grafham, although the chances of this being an isolated occurrence must be remote.  If you find a shrimp you are suspicious about, especially in samples taken during Anglers’ Monitoring Initiative sessions, please contact alert_nonnative@ceh.ac.uk immediately, as well as informing local EA contacts as normal.  Read more about the Killer Shrimp here .

Meanwhile, all anglers can help stop the spread of these alien killers.  Please ensure that you dry out tackle, nets, waders etc. after every fishing trip, paying special attention to felt sole waders, which have been identified as a major threat to carrying waterborne diseases, invertebrate eggs etc.

Finally on this issue, remember that it was an angler who first spotted the alien shrimp!  What better example of fishermen being the eyes and ears of the water environment, as David Bellamy once famously called us?  It just shows the importance – and huge potential – of angling environmental initiatives such as the Riverfly Partnership.

Our Rivers Campaign

S&TA, along with RSPB, WWF and Angling Trust, is calling on people to take part in the first ever Our Rivers Awards by going online and voting for the 'best' or 'worst' river in England and Wales. With only 5 per cent of rivers in England and Wales described as being in a pristine condition, this new survey has been launched to celebrate and bring attention to some of Britain's best loved and long forgotten rivers. So, if your local river is teeming with wildlife or choking with pollution, we want to know in order to celebrate the amazing rivers we have in England and Wales, whilst raising awareness of the threats they face.

The first person to cast their vote for the Our Rivers Awards was television presenter and producer and keen conservationist, Philippa Forrester, who is currently appearing in Halcyon River Diaries on BBC1. Philippa Forrester said: "Living close to a river, I get to see an amazing array of life, from the emergence of mayflies in Spring to the darting flash of a hunting kingfisher and the secretive habits of the water vole. It may be small, but my vote has to go to the river which runs close to my home, the real star of the Halcyon River Diaries, because it is a very special place for me."

To cast your vote, click here.

Voting remains open until the end of British Summer Time on the 31st October 2010.

Join us on Facebook

S&TA has launched its own Facebook fanpage. If you have a Facebook account, you can now keep up to date with all the S&TA news and latest work on our fanpage. Just visit our website and click on the facebook icon. If you do not have an account but are interested in joining facebook, simply go to www.facebook.com and fill in your details and then click ‘sign up’!  It is free and simple.  Once your account has been set up, you will be prompted on how to add details, find friends and load photos.

Riverfly Partnership

Two dates for your diaries.  The postponed Riverfly Partnership Conference will now be held at the Natural History Museum on March 10th 2011.  For further details and bookings, please click here.

Finally, enter your riverfly images in the Riverfly Photography Competition – a collaboration with The Royal Entomological Society National Insect Week 2010.  Closing date 31 October 2010.  First prize £500, second prize £250. Winning images to be published in Fly Fishing and Fly Tying Magazine and The Royal Entomological Society Antenna. Visit the website for further information.

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