08/04/2005 - The Environment
Agency and Birmingham City Council are joining
forces to rescue threatened fish from a Birmingham
pool.
On Thursday 14 April 2005, our officers will
remove up to 150kg of small roach and 50kg
of small carp from Shenley Pool, Weoley Castle,
Birmingham.
The fish removal has been organised as part
of an ongoing management programme drawn up
by ourselves and Birmingham City Council,
the owners of the pool, after a large number
of fish died in recent years.
The deaths were linked to the high fish population
in the pool. The situation was worsened by
the considerable growth of algae in the pool,
which lowered oxygen levels.
The operation, and others like it, has been
made possible by revenue from fishing licence
sales.
After discussions with the Council, we carried
out a survey on 27 January 2005. The survey
results indicated that the pool is overpopulated,
with small roach in particular, and that there
was a strong possibility of further fish deaths
this summer if no action was taken.
The results indicated the fish population
could be up to ten times the recommended amount
for a pool of this size and type. The small
fish eat the microscopic organisms which would
normally graze on the algae. Therefore removing
some fish should allow these organisms to
keep the algae in check.
An added bonus of removing a percentage of
the fish will be that there would be less
competition for food, enabling the remaining
fish to increase in size. This should improve
the angling results on this very popular pool.
Health checks carried out during the January
survey cleared the fish for transfer to another
water. We will transfer the fish to Edgbaston
Reservoir, another fishery managed by Birmingham
City Council. This means that the fish will
still be available to local anglers.
Once the transfer has been completed, we
will work with the council to try to deal
with other problems which threaten the fish
in the pool. These include the presence of
Canada geese in large numbers and people stocking
the pool with exotic and unsuitable fish.
Derrick Dennis, our officer dealing with
the operation, says: "We have a duty
to protect fish stocks in rivers and pools
in England and Wales and this operation is
an example of the work we do to meet this.
"The operation will have a double benefit
as it will mean that the Shenley Pool fishery
will be preserved if not improved and that
the fish will remain in Birmingham, increasing
the potential of Edgbaston reservoir. It is
important to point out that operations like
this would not be possible without the contribution
anglers make by buying fishing licences."
Birmingham City Council's Cabinet Member
for Leisure, Sport and Culture, Councillor
John Alden, says: "I welcome the move
to resolve the problem of overstocking at
Shenley Pool, and hopefully prevent oxygen
starvation to the fish stock in the summer,
combined with the re-stocking of Edgbaston
Reservoir. This will enable anglers, which
account for the largest number of active participants
in any sport, to enjoy their sport in two
well stocked pools."
