The annual hauls of salmon and sea trout by anglers on the world famous River Tweed fishing beats fell to their lowest levels for decades this year, fuelling even greater levels of concern for the future of the multi-million pound industry.
First estimates for the 2018 fishing season which ended on November 30th suggest a total of 5,580 salmon were taken by rod with 763 sea trout hooked. The figures are said to be 90% accurate at this stage with minor adjustments expected before official statistics are published by the River Tweed Commissioners in their annual report.
The figures compare very unfavourably even with last year's disappointing statistics of 7,003 salmon and 2,594 sea trout. And the figures for the five years before 2017 read as follows: 2016 - 7,680 and 1,671; 2015 - 8,091 and 2,323; 2014 - 7,767 and 2,050; 2013 - 20,316 and 4,608; 2012 - 14,556 and 3,314.
Factors which have been advanced as reasons for this year's devastatingly low catches include the so-called Beast from the East snowstorms in the early part of the year, the extreme drought during the summer, the continuing operation of the North-east Drift Net Fishery off Northumberland which is blamed for intercepting salmon and sea trout heading for Scottish rivers, and the activities of fish eating birds, notably goosanders and cormorants.
The poor prospects of catching fish has meant many stretches of the Tweed and its tributaries have lain unbooked by angling parties for significant periods of the season.
In an end-of-season report on its website, Fishpal Ltd., the Tweed angling business based near Kelso, declares: " Well that's the 2018 Salmon and Sea Trout fishing season over, quite a few will say finally as it has been a very tough one all round.
"The beast from the east played havoc in the early part of the spring, then the long hot drought which seemed to last forever. These conditions by no means helped the catches this season, but it's undeniable that there was a severe lack of fish in the river system, especially fresh fish in the autumn with the majority of fish caught been coloured.
"What does the future hold? Is it a cycle? Is it something more drastic? Predation is a huge concern on the river and recent report from the RTC says during the latest count the numbers of goosanders has fallen. Down with us this season we haven't caught a single grayling and very few trout compared to recent years - would appear they have been gobbled up or went on their holidays!"
In a long running war of words, representatives of the proprietors of the prime Tweed fishing beats have kept up pressure on the UK Government to close down the 150-year-old drift net fishery, accusing the licence holders operating out of ports in the north-east of England of "taking our fish".
In March this year it looked as though the netsmen had finally been "defeated" only to receive a last minute reprieve.
Borders Tory MSP Rachael Hamilton told local newspapers in the spring that she had received confirmation that the Conservative UK Government intended closing all drift-net salmon fisheries in 2018.
In a letter to Mrs Hamilton her party in government also confirmed its intention to stop the take of salmon from the majority of the remaining net fisheries by 2019. Genetic testing had apparently revealed over 70 per cent of fish caught by the North East drift-net fishery were of Scottish origin, the nets preventing fish reaching their home rivers.
The MSP for Ettrick, Roxburgh and Berwickshire, said: “I welcome the UK Government’s commitment to close all drift-net salmon fisheries in 2018. This action will help increase salmon stocks in the River Tweed. The UK Government is committed to keeping our Scottish rivers healthy with strong salmon stocks.”
But it turned out to be one of the shortest "victories" in fishing's political history.
In April this year, the small number of drift netters who remain in northeast England won a significant victory following a strong campaign of opposition on their behalf by the National Fishermen's Federation with the announcement that proposals by the Environment Agency (EA) and DEFRA to close the traditional drift-net fishery with immediate effect, and severely curtail inshore beach fisheries for salmon and sea trout, would not be implemented for the 2018 season.
According to a recent article in Fishing News there is almost certain to be a renewed effort to have the inshore fisheries shut down in 2019. And pressure seems certain to grow following the latest catastrophic drop in Tweed catches.
But there will be stiff resistance from across the Border. The Fishing News reported: "The drift netters argue they are just a convenient scapegoat. They say their small-scale, tightly controlled and limited fishery is insignificant when viewed against the huge area of the North Sea and out into the North Atlantic, and against the loss of fish to the constantly increasing number of predatory seals that kill unknown numbers of salmon and sea trout along the coast and in river estuaries annually.
"Further evidence that far more significant natural forces are affecting Atlantic salmon stocks comes from a recent report that argues powerfully that exploding mackerel stocks are eating salmon smolts and depriving them of food".
" The recreational salmon angling sector has applied pressure on the commercial salmon fishery for decades, maintaining that netsmen are one of the main reasons for reducing numbers of migratory fish – salmon and sea trout – returning to their rivers of birth to spawn.
In 2017 the North East Fishery took 9,157 salmon (2016 18,824). Environment Agency figures include a five-year average of 11,930 salmon. Meanwhile sea trout returns for the two years were 35,148 and 38,863 respectively with a five year average of 41,569.
The Fishing News article warned: "Fishermen say the closure of the salmon and sea trout net
fisheries would make their whole operation unviable.The almost
inevitable result would be further fleet downsizing and job losses in coastal
communities where alternative forms of employment are few and far between."
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