Padiham Weir
The River Calder is a major tributary of the River Ribble and has recently experienced thriving coarse fish populations attributed to water quality improvements and strategic fish restocking. There is evidence of salmon and trout attempting to migrate upstream, however a number of obstructions on the Calder system have prevented this from happening. Around 30 weirs have been identified, having been constructed for past industrial purposes but now redundant, and Padiham Weir is one of the lowermost and significant barriers to fish migration.
Padiham Weir – too high for migrating fish to jump
The Trust has recently carried out modification of this weir by installing a rock ramp style fish pass, the beginning of the Trust’s attempt to open up a further 20% of the Ribble catchment to salmon, trout, grayling and eels for the first time in many years. Above Padiham there are four more weirs that require work, one at Montford that was removed by the Trust back in March 2010, and 3 weirs at Barrowford that the Trust are currently working on.
Work in progress… Work complete, some tidying up to do!
Padiham weir removal has been one of the Trust’s greatest success stories, fish of all species and ages are now able to pass the weir in all flow conditions. The increased number of fish in the upper reaches will in turn lead to a greater variety of wildlife such as kingfishers and otters, hence creating a much more biodiverse and sustainable ecosystem. As well as this, it is anticipated that there will be greater investment in fishing clubs/riparian owners, with a knock-on effect for the local community in terms of a much more attractive environmental asset in which to fish, walk and bird spot.
