Salmon numbers soar a decade after river restoration project
By Conservation Correspondent
Atlantic Salmon are thriving in a Lake District river a decade after a major restoration project brought itbackto its natural course.
Latest Environment Agency surveys have found significantly more young salmon in Swindale Beck at Wild Haweswater, near Penrith, offering fresh hope for the endangered species.
The project began in 2016, when the RSPB, United Utilities and Environment Agency worked together to restore a 1km stretch of river that had been straightened and embanked around 200 years earlier.
By bringing back its natural bends and reconnecting it with the floodplain, the work created better habitats for fish, improved water quality and helped reduce flood risk.
Salmon returned to spawn in the restored stretch within just three months of the work being completed.
Environment Agency surveys now show encouraging numbers of young salmon, including newly hatched fry and juveniles known as parr.
Glen Swainson, RSPB site manager at Wild Haweswater, said the results showed how quickly nature could recover when given the opportunity.
The healthier river is also supporting brown trout, otters, eels, kingfishers and other wildlife, while helping protect the quality of water flowing into Haweswater Reservoir, which supplies around 2.2 million people across the North West.
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The project is being held up as an example of how restoring natural river habitats can benefit wildlife, water quality and local flood protection.
