Post by tuniwes on Mar 3, 2010 21:35:13 GMT
I am pleased to announce that a fly monitoring project will be launched for the Ogmore catchment area in the next 8-10 weeks.
With the help of the South East Wales Rivers Trust www.southeastwalesriverstrust.org.uk
we have been able to secure funding from the Environment agency to hold a training workshop in Bridgend for up to 12 participants.
The workshop will consist of a practical, river based "hands on" session where delegates will learn kick sampling techniques followed by a classroom based session on invertebrate identification and classification techniques.
The course is run by the Riverfly partnership www.riverflies.org please take a look at this site, it fully explains the aims and objectives of the fly monitoring initiative. Once we are acredited our results will be accepted by The EA and included in the national results for Wales see www.riverfly.co.uk/
Many of the pollutants that pose a very real threat to us are undetectable to the eye, sheep dip, factory waste, uncontrolled sewage etc but by monitoring the health of our invertebrate life we have the opportunity to raise the alarm when things go wrong. Here is an EA press release detailing how this has already worked on the Rhymney
www.riverfly.co.uk/Rhymney%20Pollution.pdf
At the moment we simply don't know how good or bad our rivers are. The EA through cutbacks have practically stopped doing any sampling and unless we as anglers take the initiative we will never know for sure if our rivers are improving or getting worse.
There is also the possibilty that potential polluters may take extra care not to cause problems if they know that their actions are being monitored on a regular basis.
In very basic terms fly monitoring involves kick sampling and analysing invertebrate life at control sites four times a year. It would obviously make sense to choose sites that are most at risk.
We are looking for volunteers to become trained and involved in this fly monitoring project. You should be prepared to commit to carrying out four samples a year, working in groups of three and probably sampling up to 3 sites on each session. This commitment is important as the cost of training is £1000.
As well as helping to protect and improve our river, getting "up close" to what happens on the river bed and identify what trout are actually feeding on must make us better anglers and enhance our enjoyment of the sport.
I am hoping in time to a include a section on this thread for pictures of actual insects,nymphs etc from the Ogmore
Please feel free to contact me via PM message or give me a ring on 07872399110 if you are interested in participating in the scheme.
Ian Finylas
OAA Habitat and conservation officer
Ogmore liason officer South East Wales Rivers Trust
With the help of the South East Wales Rivers Trust www.southeastwalesriverstrust.org.uk
we have been able to secure funding from the Environment agency to hold a training workshop in Bridgend for up to 12 participants.
The workshop will consist of a practical, river based "hands on" session where delegates will learn kick sampling techniques followed by a classroom based session on invertebrate identification and classification techniques.
The course is run by the Riverfly partnership www.riverflies.org please take a look at this site, it fully explains the aims and objectives of the fly monitoring initiative. Once we are acredited our results will be accepted by The EA and included in the national results for Wales see www.riverfly.co.uk/
Many of the pollutants that pose a very real threat to us are undetectable to the eye, sheep dip, factory waste, uncontrolled sewage etc but by monitoring the health of our invertebrate life we have the opportunity to raise the alarm when things go wrong. Here is an EA press release detailing how this has already worked on the Rhymney
www.riverfly.co.uk/Rhymney%20Pollution.pdf
At the moment we simply don't know how good or bad our rivers are. The EA through cutbacks have practically stopped doing any sampling and unless we as anglers take the initiative we will never know for sure if our rivers are improving or getting worse.
There is also the possibilty that potential polluters may take extra care not to cause problems if they know that their actions are being monitored on a regular basis.
In very basic terms fly monitoring involves kick sampling and analysing invertebrate life at control sites four times a year. It would obviously make sense to choose sites that are most at risk.
We are looking for volunteers to become trained and involved in this fly monitoring project. You should be prepared to commit to carrying out four samples a year, working in groups of three and probably sampling up to 3 sites on each session. This commitment is important as the cost of training is £1000.
As well as helping to protect and improve our river, getting "up close" to what happens on the river bed and identify what trout are actually feeding on must make us better anglers and enhance our enjoyment of the sport.
I am hoping in time to a include a section on this thread for pictures of actual insects,nymphs etc from the Ogmore
Please feel free to contact me via PM message or give me a ring on 07872399110 if you are interested in participating in the scheme.
Ian Finylas
OAA Habitat and conservation officer
Ogmore liason officer South East Wales Rivers Trust
