Cromarty Firth Rivers River Watch Scheme Alness AA
The new Cromarty Firth Rivers River Watch Scheme is a partnership between local angling clubs, Northern Constabulary and the Cromarty Firth District Salmon Fishery Board.
The wild fisheries of the Cromarty Firth Rivers are important wildlife and angling resources and the exploitation of their fish stocks needs to be carefully managed to ensure their sustainability for future generations.
Responsible anglers return a high proportion of their catch and contribute financially to the management of our rivers. Local angling clubs provide fishing opportunities both for local anglers and visitors at an affordable cost.
These fishing’s are however under threat from a number of pressures. Fishing by methods such as illegal netting and poisoning is a very serious threat to our rivers as are pollution events. Fishing by unauthorised anglers is also a problem as such anglers are unlikely to follow conservation policies and do not contribute to the upkeep of the fisheries.
Fishery Board Water Bailiffs and Police Officers have extensive powers to deal with illegal fishing and the Scottish Environment Protection Agency is responsible for protecting our rivers from pollution. The resources of all these organisations are limited and need to be targeted to the maximum benefit.
Local anglers can play a vital role in acting as eyes and ears on the riverbank. The reporting of incidents by anglers will not only allow the best use of Fishery Board and Police time but will act as .
Within each club a reporting scheme will allow anglers to provide information to Bailiffs and Police. Some incidents will be sufficiently serious that a rapid response may be required others will give information to plan future patrols to make the best use of Bailiffs time. The scheme will provide a valuable deterrent against illegal activities without involving anglers in direct confrontation with offenders.
Advice to Alness AA Anglers
Do not confront anyone thought to be fishing illegally.
Take note of the:
Time.
Location(including which bank of the river they are on)
Number description and approximate age of anyone acting suspiciously.
What they are doing.
Description and registration and location of any vehicles involved.
Report to the club contact as soon as possible, for serious incidents report immediately to local Police and Water Bailiffs.
When reporting an incident do not make it obvious that you are phoning for assistance go out of site before making a call. This reduces the risk to yourself and makes it more likely that the offenders will still be there when Police or Bailiffs arrive.
Any pollution incidents or fish kills should be reported both to SEPA and Water Bailiffs.
