Barrowford
Another of the Trust’s larger scale projects, the modification of the weirs at Barrowford aims to open up Pendle Water, a main tributary of the River Calder, in order to allow fish to migrate further upstream.
The lowermost weir is smaller in comparison and work carried out will involve simple chipping away of the concrete so as to improve fish passage.
The next weir upstream requires an additional low concrete weir to be installed on the front of the existing one in order to raise the water level. In doing so, the fish will be provided with a sufficient take-off depth from which to jump. Several large stones will be placed around 8m further downstream again to raise the water level in front of the new low weir. This work will make the whole lower weir system much more passable to fish in all flow conditions.
The upstream weir however is on a much larger scale and we propose an installation of a Fish Pass set into the weir itself. A Fish Pass is a concrete structure consisting of a channel containing a series of stepped pools that fish can easily jump through, allowing access to spawning ground in the upper reaches of the river for migratory fish such as Salmon and Trout. The removal of the series of barriers at Barrowford also aims to increase the biodiversity in the upper reaches of Pendle Water and create a much more varied and sustainable ecosystem.
