Home / Environment / River counters fail, fish data lost
River counters fail, fish data lost
31 Jan
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.
