Why have fish counts stopped on the River Wear?

Fish counts on the River Wear have stopped because two essential counting devices have been non-operational for over a year.

How are fish populations being monitored without working counters?

Authorities are estimating fish populations using data from angler catches and electric fishing surveys.

When will the broken fish counters be fixed?

One council-owned counter is expected to be fixed by May, and the Environment Agency hopes to repair its counters this year, with River Tyne counters anticipated to be fully operational by summer.

Home / Environment / River counters fail, fish data lost

River counters fail, fish data lost

31 Jan

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Summary

Two river counters have been out of service for over a year.
Equipment failure prevents accurate salmon and sea trout counts.
Estimates use other data, but accuracy is potentially reduced.

Fish counting equipment on the River Wear has been non-operational for over a year due to two broken counters, preventing any official counts since December 2024. The Environment Agency, owner of one device, cited frequent high river levels as a cause for recent breakages. Durham County Council expects to fix its counter by May, while the EA hopes for repairs this year.

Despite the equipment failures, the Environment Agency is using alternative data, such as angler rod catches and electric fishing surveys, to estimate fish populations. Similar issues affect the River Tyne, where counters have been partly broken since October 2024, with repairs now anticipated by summer after earlier estimates for autumn 2025. The EA noted that counter repairs require suitable weather conditions for in-river work.

Ecologists emphasize the importance of fish counters for assessing population sustainability. These devices provide crucial data for determining if fish numbers are sufficient to maintain healthy populations. The current situation highlights a significant gap in ecological monitoring, potentially impacting conservation efforts.