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Fish Legal has successfully settled a civil action against a poacher on behalf of its member club the King's Lynn Angling Association.

Fish Legal fishing newsFish Legal issued proceedings against Mr Chirokov, who was one of three men arrested by police on 25th May 2008 at a makeshift camp set up on the banks of the Wissey from where they took fish illegally from the river over a number of days.

When apprehended by the police, the group had in their possession an assortment of fishing paraphernalia including a commercial-type gill net, a crayfish trap, several baited rods, two dinghies and a large number of live fish threaded through the gills onto a washing line and submerged in the water in an attempt to keep them fresh.

During a hearing at King's Lynn County Court on 7th October 2009, the defendant gave an undertaking – or sealed promise – to the judge that he would not trespass or fish on the club’s waters at any time in the future. If found in breach of this undertaking, the defendant could face a charge of contempt of court which carries with it the possibility of a prison sentence.

Mark Lloyd, Chief Executive of Fish Legal said:
“Poaching is not simply an irritation for anglers but, as in this case, it can have a detrimental impact on fish populations. There are also welfare issues to consider, as the fish had been threaded onto a line to keep them alive for hours”.

He added:
“Although two other poachers were successfully prosecuted by the police, there was insufficient evidence to prosecute this defendant, which is why Fish Legal pressed forward with a civil action to ensure that he didn't go back to the waters”.

Ashley Brown of the King's Lynn Angling Association said:
“There clearly is a problem with poachers taking fish so we hope this sends out a clear message that King’s Lynn AA will take legal action against anyone caught taking fish from their waters. It is unfortunate that we have to resort to this but we have spent over £2000 with help from the EA on signage warning no fish can be taken and these are being ignored. I would like to thank Fish Legal for taking on our case."


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Published in Latest UK fishing news

Fish Legal is delighted to have secured a £17,500 settlement for its member club, the Royal Tunbridge Wells Angling Society, as a result of a civil claim mounted on behalf of the anglers following the pollution of the River Grom in June 2006.

Fish Legal Fishing NewsA series of equipment failures at the Tunbridge Wells sewage treatment works saw partially treated sewage pumped into the Grom over a 6 day period with a devastating effect on the river and its ecology. There was an extensive fish kill during the incident and water quality on the upper Medway was seriously affected for approximately 14km downstream of the confluence with the Grom.

Electro-fishing surveys carried out by the Environment Agency post pollution in July 2006 returned just 1 immature chub on the Grom. A year later, sampling carried out in August 2007 on the Medway upstream and downstream of the confluence with the Grom found average fish species richness for a river of type upstream, but severely impoverished populations downstream of the confluence, with a complete absence of grayling, trout and chub and only 1/7th of the expected fishery biomass.

The first problems with the sewage treatment process at the works began on the 17th June 2006. Southern Water however failed to inform the Environment Agency that the works were malfunctioning and the situation only came to the attention of the Agency on the 18th June when a member of the public phoned through reports of dead fish and pungent, cloudy waters on the Grom. The time delay meant that Agency staff were unable to respond swiftly with aeration equipment to boost oxygen levels in the river and avoid the worst effects of the pollution.

The damage of the river was compounded when back-up equipment brought in by Southern Water to help rectify the situation also broke down and it was not until 22nd June that the treatment works to be returned to full operation
Fish Legal solicitor, Guy Linley-Adams, explained:

“The Grom, which is a relatively small tributary of the River Medway, was still recovering after a similar, serious pollution incident from the Tunbridge Wells works in 1989. We were particularly disappointed that Southern Water did not respond quickly and appropriately to mitigate the environmental impact of the 2006 event. We have however been very encouraged by Southern Water’s willingness to engage with Fish Legal, to recognise the damage caused to our member club’s fishery downstream of their works and more generally, to recognise the presence of angling clubs across the Southern Water region.”

He added:

“Since the incident, Southern Water has spent in excess of £2 million on improvements at the sewage works concerned and they have extended an open invitation to all members of the Royal Tunbridge Wells Angling Society to visit the newly refurbished works to see for themselves the investment that has gone into improving the quality of discharges into the club’s waters.”

Southern Water and Fish Legal together are looking to compile a list of all angling clubs downstream of sewage works in Southern Water's area so they can be contacted immediately in the event of any problems at any of Southern Water's sites.

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Published in Latest UK fishing news

The Angling Trust has announced that Stephen Marsh-Smith has resigned as Chairman of both the Angling Trust and Fish Legal and that Stuart McPherson has resigned as a Director of the Angling Trust and Committee Member of Fish Legal and Chairman of the Marine Committee.

Angling Trust Fishing NewsThe Angling Trust Board thanked Stephen and Stuart for all their voluntary work which has contributed to the formation of the Trust. The Fish Legal Committee expressed their thanks to Stephen for 8 years’ service to the ACA and Fish Legal.

Michael Heylin was elected as Chairman of the Angling Trust at an Angling Trust Board meeting on Friday 4 September. Roger Furniss was elected as Chairman of Fish Legal at a Fish Legal Committee meeting shortly afterwards. Both appointments were supported unanimously by the Directors of Angling Trust and Trustees of Fish Legal respectively. A new Chairman of the Marine Committee will be recruited as soon as possible.
Michael Heylin said: “I am privileged, humbled and honoured to be able to Chair the Angling Trust, an organisation which I believe is absolutely vital for the future of angling in England. The Board and I are determined that the organisation will be transparent, accountable and listen to its membership and that we will take action to protect the interests of all sea, game and coarse anglers throughout England.”

Roger Furniss said: “I have seen how valuable the work of Fish Legal is to its member angling clubs and riparian owners at first hand on many occasions and I am looking forward to the opportunity of helping expand and develop this work which benefits all angling. The Fish Legal Committee and I will be looking at ways of increasing the resources available to this unique organisation in partnership with the Angling Trust in England and with the relevant governing bodies in Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland.”

For further information and photographs of the new Chairmen, please contact Mark Lloyd on mark.lloyd@anglingtrust.net or 07973 468198.


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Published in Latest UK fishing news

Fish Legal has sent formal letters of claim on behalf of two of its member clubs – the Ribblesdale Angling Association and the Mid-Ribble Angling Society – after both clubs had their fishing wiped out by mud pouring into the River Ribble when a gas pipeline was laid across the river and its tributaries between June 2006 and August 2007.

Fish LegalEntrepose – the contractors for National Grid - left large areas of earth next to the river exposed during the works and failed to put in place a comprehensive and effective system of settlement lagoons and silt traps to protect the watercourse from sediment-laden run-off. Further slugs of sediment flowed downstream when trenches were excavated in the river channel itself.

The claim made by Fish Legal on behalf of the anglers follows the prosecution and conviction of Entrepose by the Environment Agency for 18 separate pollution offences under Section 85 of the Water Resources Act 1991. The company also asked for another 18 other offences to be taken into consideration.

National Grid won the lucrative contract to lay the gas pipeline from Panal, near Harrogate in North Yorkshire to Nether Kellet near Carnforth in Lancashire. Entrepose was contracted to undertake the £55million project on their behalf.

John Whitham of the Mid-Ribble Angling Society and the Ribble Fisheries Consultative Association said,

“The silt pollution at the height of the salmon season made the river unfishable. Some club members had taken time off work and travelled from as far afield as London - and, in one case, America - to find that the river was so dirty that the fishing they had planned and looked forward to for many months was ruined.”

He added:

“We are aware that such developments are probably necessary but the companies contracted to do the work must be held responsible for all their sub-contractors ensuring that there is no damage to the environment or the assets of others. Not only does such neglect affect anglers but also the local tourism industry and many others associated with the sport of angling.”

Fred Higham of the Ribblesdale Angling Association was angered by the lack of care taken by Enrepose:

“from the outset, and at our first site meeting with the Entrepose Management Team, we highlighted our concerns at the possible siltation effects on the river. When I said my concern was for the river, their reply was, “ours is for the pipeline.” They seemed to be unaware of the river habitat’s sensitivities or to even care about the potential damage they could and did do, not only to our fishing, but also the environment.”

Mark Lloyd, Chief Executive of Fish Legal and the Angling Trust, said:

“Any company carrying out work of this scale should put in place stringent measures to prevent soil being washed into streams. Entrepose seem to have been surprised by the fact that it rained very heavily in the North West of England. Their mismanagement of this huge project led to significant damage to fish spawning and invertebrate habitat as well as ruining our members’ fishing. We hope that the company will agree to settle these claims for the loss of amenity promptly and without dispute.”


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Published in Latest UK fishing news

Fish Legal, the legal arm of the Angling Trust, has today written to the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs attacking the decision of six of the large water plcs to appeal against revised discharge consents sought by the Environment Agency to put an end to privatisation era temporary consents.

Fish Legal Fishing NewsAlmost twenty years ago, in 1989, at the time of water privatisation, the water companies were granted temporary consents for many thousands of discharges carrying storm sewage into English and Welsh rivers. This followed the discovery, immediately pre-privatisation, that vast numbers of these discharges had no legal consent.

At the time, it was quite clear that the granting of temporary consent was a quick fix designed to enable the Government of the day to sell the water companies into private hands with no potential criminal liabilities.

Last year, Fish Legal made requests under EU freedom of information laws to the Environment Agency which revealed that between 3,000 and 4,000 of these temporary consents granted almost twenty years ago still existed. These temporary consents were without any properly enforceable conditions, meaning they were as good as useless in controlling pollution.

The request made to the Agency followed a series of cases of damage to fisheries caused by sewage discharges emanating from pipes that still enjoyed these temporary consents. Under pressure from Fish Legal, the Environment Agency decided, in April of this year, to impose a set of standard conditions on all those discharges in order to bring them into proper regulation.

It is, therefore, with utter dismay that Fish Legal has learnt that Anglian Water, Yorkshire Water, Welsh Water/Dwr Cymru, Thames Water, Severn Trent Water and United Utilities (formerly North West Water) have appealed against the revised discharge consents that the Agency sought to attach to those discharges.

Guy Linley-Adams, Head of Legal at Fish Legal, commented

“Although many years too late, the approach taken by the Environment Agency has been entirely reasonable in attempting to deal with this long-standing hangover from privatisation. That these water companies have seen fit to appeal against a set of conditions which are hardly onerous and which any reasonable person would consider the bare minimum that should apply to pipes potentially discharging raw sewage into our rivers, is shameless. Fish Legal’s view is that twenty years is far too long to have left these sewage discharges effectively unregulated.”

Fish Legal has written to the Secretary of State in support of the Environment Agency’s revised discharge consents and now calls upon all six of the water companies concerned to withdraw their appeals immediately..

Mark Lloyd, Chief Executive of the Angling Trust and Fish Legal, said:

“This is a test of the water companies’ commitment to avoiding pollution of English and Welsh rivers. If these water companies press ahead with these appeals, then they can expect widespread hostility from anglers into whose waters these companies seem to feel they should be able to discharge raw sewage without condition or penalty.”


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Published in Latest UK fishing news

Fish Legal, the legal arm of the newly-formed Angling Trust, has taken decisive action against a team of poachers operating in Eastern England. The poachers were found guilty but were fined just £60 and had their equipment confiscated. Fish Legal’s lawyers have threatened the poachers with an injunction to prevent them returning.

 Uk Fishing news from the Angling TrustAngling Trust chief executive said: “one of the priorities of the Angling Trust is to fight for better protection of fish stocks from poachers and other illegal activity. This action should send a clear message to all poachers that we mean business and will use all legal means to prevent them damaging our members’ interests.”

Letters were sent by recorded delivery to the poachers ahead of court action asking them to make an enforceable promise that they will never again fish on waters of the King’s Lynn Angling Association (KLAA). If they do not agree to the undertaking, then Fish Legal will apply for injunctions against them.

On the 25th May 2008 police arrested three men on the banks of the River Wissey near Hilgay, and took them to Downham Market Police station where two of the men were later charged. The individuals had been found with an assortment of fishing paraphernalia including a 60m x 2m net, a crayfish trap, several rods and two boats – one with an outboard engine. The men had set up camp on the bank and were barbequing some of their haul. In a particularly cruel attempt to keep their illegal catch fresh, fish – including tench and perch - had been threaded onto a wire which was then submerged.

All of the men arrested initially denied the charges brought against them. During police questioning, one of the offenders imaginatively claimed that the large net containing fish found in his possession was not his but had become entangled in his boat propeller.

Two of the group were subsequently convicted at Central South and West Norfolk Magistrates Court for a variety of offences under both the Salmon and Freshwater Fisheries Act 1975 and the Theft Act 1968, including fishing in the closed season, fishing without a rod licence and illegal use of a net.

Ashley Brown, Secretary of the KLAA, explained: “The club has spent over £2000, with help from the Environment Agency, putting signage on all access points on club waters highlighting that no fish can be removed. When the defendants were arrested KLAA hoped the courts would make an example of them. KLAA felt very let down with the outcome and so decided to contact Fish Legal for advice on whether we could take further action as we needed a deterrent to stop people stealing our fish as these are the future of the club”.

This one of many benefits of membership of the Angling Trust and Fish Legal for clubs, commercial fisheries and riparian owners. This work can only be carried out with the support of thousands of individual anglers.

For more information on membership of Angling Trust, visit Angling Trust or phone 0844 7700616.

Published in Latest UK fishing news

Fish Legal has won £1,500 damages on behalf of one of its Welsh member clubs after a chemical cocktail polluted the River Sirhowy.

Fish Legal fishing news

On 27th April 2007, just weeks into the start of the open season, John Otter, Secretary of the Islwyn & District Angling Club in Gwent was called by an alarmed member of the club who had spotted the discolouration in the river. Stretches of the River Sirhowy owned by the club at Blackwood were running white and thousands of fish were killed.

Published in Latest UK fishing news
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