Weir Walkers is our in-house programme of exploring our rivers and back to identify barriers to fish passage - not just weirs (despite the title) but culverts and other features that stop fish moving upstream to spawn and re-populate. Guided by our staff team, volunteers walk the length of a beck looking for barriers and recording them for future prioritisation and action.
Wherever we look, the results show that our rivers and streams are heavily blocked by a large number of weirs and other barriers to fish passage. Weirs stop fish from swimming up-river to breed in the headwaters, where more gravel bars form providing the key habitat needed for fish to shelter their eggs and feed their young. Weirs also prevent natural sediment transportation down the river which allows the formation of natural gravel-based fish breeding habitat in the lower reaches of the river.
There are also a number of long culverts where the river travels underground in man-made tunnels. These deter fish from entering side streams due to the lack of daylight, artificially smooth riverbeds and shallow water flows.
Click on these images to explore details of what we and our volunteers have found so far.
If you would like to know more about our Weir Walkers programme, please get in touch.
