Salmon fishing in the River Bollin is expected to thrive once again thanks to a new fish pass to help them lay their eggs upstream.
Cleaner river water has meant that locally extinct species, including salmon, have started to re-colonise the River Bollin.
But Styal weir – a barrier built in 1797 which alters the flow of the river – has blocked traditional migratory routes upstream, preventing fish such as salmon, trout, eel, chub and roach from reaching optimum habitat for breeding, feeding or shelter.
The Environment Agency is working in partnership with the National Trust at Quarry Bank Mill, in Styal, to build special fish and eel ladders to help the wildlife negotiate the weir, which is more than four meters high.
It is being built in conjunction with a new hydro-power scheme, which will comprise of a submerged pipe that would lead to a turbine, and will provide 55 per cent of the mill’s energy requirements on site. It is also expected to reduce its carbon footprint by around 70 tonnes.
The turbulence in the water would attract fish and other creatures to the fish pass, opening up a new spawning habitat further upstream in the River Bollin.
And trust bosses hope the new hydropower system and fish pass will attract more visitors to the mill as they will be able to learn all about hydroelectricity and see the system in action from a viewing platform.
There will also be a fish counter and video link to the fish pass inside the mill.
The work is expected to be completed in October 2013.
