Wild Atlantic salmon could disappear from Welsh rivers within the next two decades due to manmade barriers, Natural Resources Wales has warned. Welsh rivers have seen a 70% loss of wild Atlantic salmon in the last 25 years.
In response to this, and the decline of Wales' wildlife today, Welsh Government Minister for Climate Change Julie James has announced a £10 million investment to help preserve and protect wildlife in Welsh seas, forests and disappearing grasslands. The Minister named nine new projects that will benefit from the latest round of Nature Networks funding.
Wild Atlantic salmon returns to the river they were born just once in a lifetime to spawn. To do so, they set off across high seas and swim against currents as they mission upstream. But now, the ancient fish is met with man-made barriers, like dams, that trap them in lower areas of the river.
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This means that manmade barriers such as roads, dams and farmlands have left animals stranded on unconnected ‘islands’, blocking migration routes and in turn harming the health of the wildlife population in Wales. These broken up habitats have left animals, such as the wild Atlantic salmon, fighting for survival.
In an effort to save the salmon population and other wildlife species, the Welsh Government has set up the Nature Networks Programme to build ‘wildlife corridors’ and has called on 'Team Wales' to help tackle the nature emergency.
The following map shows man-made barriers for wildlife in Welsh rivers. Red dots show sluices, blue dots show weirs, green dots show dams and white dots show other.
Led by Swansea University, the 'Reconnecting the Salmon rivers of Wales' project has received more than £600,000 from the first round of the Nature Network Fund, which has awarded £7 million to 29 environmental projects. The aim of the project is to remove physical barriers that have blocked migration routes in the West Cleddau, East Cleddau, Usk, Tywi and Teifi rivers, restoring 141 kilometres of fragmented river habitat.
Professor Carlos Garcia de Leaniz, coordinator of the Reconnecting the Salmon Rivers of Wales project, said: “People in Wales have been fortunate enough to enjoy the presence of iconic migratory fish like the Atlantic salmon, the sewin, the sea lamprey, the European eel or the shad for millennia.
“These form part of Welsh culture and are an integral part of Wales’ heritage and natural capital. But the UK has also some of the most fragmented, polluted, and dirtiest rivers in Europe, and the future of our native migratory fish is now under serious threat of extinction.
“A recent [Natural Resource Wales] report indicates that if nothing is done Atlantic salmon may disappear from most Welsh rivers in as little as 20 or 30 years. We cannot let this happen.”
After visiting River Usk, which has seen the steepest decline of Atlantic salmon, the Minister for Climate Change said: “We all want a Wales that we are proud to pass onto our future generations. Currently they are facing quite a different world if we don’t stand up and act quickly in a Team Wales effort to tackle the climate and nature emergencies. Whilst we must do all we can to protect our precious Atlantic wild salmon- healthy, free-flowing rivers will benefit all of our physical and mental wellbeing.”
The nine projects receiving funding are:
Plantlife International (Wales wide). The Wild Plant Conservation Charity, is receiving £1m for the ’Glaswelltiroedd Gwydn/ Networks Wales’ project. More than 90% of Wales’ species-rich grasslands have disappeared during the late 20th Century and only 20% of Sites of Special Scientific Interest are in a ‘favourable’ condition. This project aims to reverse this decline which will support pollinators, enable healthy livestock and sustainable agriculture, combat the effects of climate change and pollution and re-establish the connection between grasslands and our communities.
The National Trust for Places of Historic Interest or Natural Beauty. North Wales. The National Trust for Places of Historic Interest or Natural Beauty is getting £642,662 to roll out the ‘Prosiect Uwch Conwy’ project. The project is based in the Uwch Conwy area and covers the Migneint-Dduallt-Arennig Special Area of Conservation (SAC), which is in poor condition due to drainage and overgrazing. It will aim to protect these important designated sites restore the natural hydrology of the blanket bogs – which store carbon, help prevent flooding and are home to rare species.
Cyngor Gwynedd. North Wales. Cyngor Gwynedd’s ‘Partnership Delivery of MPA (Marine Protected Areas) Improvements in Wales’ project is getting £391,600. It will improve the resilience of five large Marine Protected Areas across Wales which are sections of ocean where activity that can damage the environment are restricted to help nature thrive. It aims include delivering a water quality programme; rolling out a coastal otter programme and data analysis project; providing a marine litter support and guidance programme and running a programme to help local people to reduce disturbance to native species.
The Game and Wildlife Conservation Trust. North and Mid Wales. In North Wales, Brecon and Montgomeryshire, the Game and Wildlife Conservation Trust has been awarded £999,600 to roll out the ‘Wales Curlew Connections, Cysylltu Gylfinir Cymru’ project. In Wales breeding curlew is predicted to be on the brink of extinction within the next decade unless action is taken. The project will up to seven Important Curlew Areas (ICAs) where there are opportunities to maximise curlew recovery including the Mynydd Hiraethog Site of Specical Scientific Interest (SSSI), Migneint-Arenig- Dduallt SSSI, Ruabon /Llantysilio Mountains and Minera SSSI.
Freshwater Habitats Trust. Mid Wales. The Freshwater Habitats Trust has secured £719,908 for the ‘River Irfon catchment: Helping communities develop nature networks to protect and restore freshwater biodiversity’ project in Powys. It is setting out to increase the resilience of the freshwater biodiversity network in the River Irfon catchment in Powys and protect critical freshwater sites and species. The project is also aiming to give local people more opportunities to get involved with nature and to make sure that it can continue to meet all these goals in the long term. It will cover the River Irfon Special Area of Conservation and three of its tributaries - Tirabad Dulas, Garth Dulas and Chwefru.
The Zoological Society of London. North and West Wales. The Zoological Society of London is receiving £849,322 for the ‘Project SIARC (Sharks Inspiring Action and Research with Communities) Phase 2’ project. It will strengthen the protection of marine Special Areas of Conservation (SACs) in Wales the recovery of threatened species of shark, skate and ray through involving local communities. The project will focus on two Special Areas of Conservation - Pen Llŷn & Sarnau (PLAS) and Carmarthen Bay and Estuaries (CBAE). Both areas support diverse fish communities of conservation importance and research will focus on six species of sharks, skate and ray which are threatened and important to Welsh heritage.
Vale of Glamorgan Council. South Wales. The Vale of Glamorgan Council is getting £844,828 to deliver the ‘Restore the Thaw Landscape Project’ project. Working alongside a wide range of partners, the project will deliver a range of biodiversity improvements along the River Thaw, its tributaries and surrounding landscapes and involve a wide range of people in nature recovery projects. The project area contains a network of protected sites including seven Sites of Special Scientific Interest (SSSI) and 120 Sites of Importance for Nature Conservation (SINC). It will concentrate on increasing tree cover through hedgerow and tree planting and natural regeneration and improving water quality by creating and restoring ponds and wildlife links and refuges.
Monmouthshire County Council. South east Wales. Monmouthshire County Council has been awarded £999,095 to deliver the ‘Gwent Green Grid’ project. Working across Gwent’s five local authority areas, the project will promote a resilient ecological network and focus in or around protected sites and designated landscapes and intervening connected landscapes. It will deliver targeted high quality green infrastructure improvements and boost the resilience of ecosystems at the sites.
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