LOW FLOW CONCERNS ON THE RIVER ERICHT
With water levels falling and the threat of potentially record-breaking heat early next week, concerns are once again being expressed locally regarding the water abstraction situation on the River Ericht at Blairgowrie.
The situation, for the unfamiliar, is that a fish farm has a licence to abstract water from the river, which it does via a lade. This reduces the flow over a stretch of about 4.5km of the River Ericht. Any adult salmon that happen to be in that stretch may find it difficult to migrate under such conditions and potentially more prone to fungal disease.
Following the very dry summer of 2018, SEPA, who licence and regulate water abstraction, reviewed the abstraction licence and imposed some controls at low flows. Basically, once various low flow thresholds are passed, the level of abstraction has to be reduced in steps and the fish farm can partially recirculate flow by pumping.
However, when these conditions were imposed from summer 2019, the requirement was only to meet what is called Moderate Environmental Status. At the time, SEPA did intimate that a further review would take place in November 2019, to bring that waterbody up to Good Environmental Status. However, this has yet to take place, although we do understand that it is on the agenda.
So, as things stand, even at very low flows, abstraction can still take place and, although less water can be taken than was the case in 2018, based on last year’s experience, it is still more than we and others think is necessary to protect the river’s ecology. The promised further to review to Good Ecological Status will further tighten the restrictions.
Therefore, we encourage SEPA make this review a priority so that, in future, particularly if low flows and high temperatures become more common, we can be assured that the ecology of this important river will be better safeguarded.
In July 2018, the River Ericht in the middle of Blairgowrie practically dried up.
While all this water was abstracted down the lade.