History of the Wye & Usk Foundation

A timber blockage discovered on a Wye tributaryAn over grazed and stock damaged spawning streamFencing on the Duhonw, work carried out in WHIP.Ideal habitat on the Clywedog, a Wye tributary that was restored under WHIP.Putcher ranks in the esturay - the buyout benefited migrating fish species on both rivers.Liming on the upper Wye to rectify acidity problemsTeaching children about the life cycle of the salmon - an important part of the Lugg & Arrow Leader+ Project.Signal crayfish

Declining fish stocks were the initial catalyst for the formation of the Wye Foundation. Building on the efforts of volunteers, the Foundation formally began in 1995 with the generous backing and support from fishermen, riparian owners and others interested in the well being of the river. Initially, a full time fisheries graduate, Richard White, was engaged and work began with a full survey of the tributary system of the upper Wye.

Results of the survey showed that there were considerable problems within the catchment. Barriers to migration, pollution ,damage from excessive grazing and over shading were prevalent throughout the tributaries. In 1996 work began: timber blockages, some as high as twelve feet, weirs and other barriers were removed (over 500 in total) to restore the passage of both brown trout and salmon to their native spawning streams. Several cases of pollution, including sheep dip, were also resolved as a result of the initial survey.

The next phase, and perhaps the most interesting aspect of the Foundation's work, involves restoring habitats that once supported a much wider range of fish, birds, animals and plants. This includes the Atlantic salmon, so important since much of the local economy depends on this species. In partnership with The Environment Agency Wales, Countryside Council for Wales, Game Conservancy Trust and Brecknock, Radnorshire and Montgomeryshire Wildlife Trusts, the Foundation was successful in obtaining substantial EU funding for the Wye Habitat Improvement Project . This has resulted in an encouraging upturn in the natural brown trout populations as well as improving the nursery habitat of salmon. We also found that a whole range of other important species benefitted including otters, shad, lamprey and the native White Clawed Crayfish.

Since 1995 the number of returning Wye salmon has been below the level necessary to guarantee the survival of future generations. As a result, we also turned our attention to conserving these fish for spawning. Our 'Catch and Release Schemes' plus changes to the byelaws raised the percentage of salmon put back from 7% to over 70%.
Realising that Catch and Release Scheme alone would still not allow sufficient escapement, we also embarked on a plan to reduce the effects of commercial fishery in the estuary. This took us into partnership with the Owners and Fishermen of the Usk and in 2002 we became the Wye & Usk Foundation. Since then we have been running large catchment restoration projects on both rivers.

On the upper Wye, our pHish Project is remedying the problems of acidification, alongside habitat restoration and the setting up of the successful Passport scheme, while the two UP! Projects have improved fish access and habitat restoration in the upper Usk.

In 2005 we successfully bid for Leader + funds to repeat the successful habitat restoration projects on the Rivers Lugg and Arrow. This project also included education for primary school children in the catchment about the life cycle of salmon. Fry were reared in the classroom to stock out in the river Arrow where fish passage had been restored.

In 2006 the Herefordshire Wye improvement Project allowed development of the fisheries in the English part of the catchment. The Upper Wye Crayfish Project was followed by the Lugg and Arrow (Radnorshire) Project to restore the upper reaches of these two rivers. Further work has been completed in the part of the catchment under the Lugg and River Arrow (LARA)project (2008-2010).

More recent projects include tackling problems such as invasive weed eradication GUTW and gravel extraction from our rivers (RASP). The Water Framework Directive has led to funding for further fish pass work in the Arrow and Garren. In January 2010 we started a 4-year €1.6m project (ISAC) to restore the river Irfon, a major upper Wye tributary. For full details, please see the Projects section.

MILESTONES