TRAPPED FISH SHOW FERMOY WEIR REPAIR DELAYS ARE DEADLY, ANGLING EXPERT SAYS
Footage taken of a shoal of small fish trapped in a shrinking pool of water at the broken mill race in Fermoy has highlighted the need for speed when it comes to repairs to Fermoy Weir, according to local angling expert Tommy Lawton of Fermoy Coarse Angling Club.
Local resident Dónal O'Lochlainn took video of the fish crowded together in a greenish pool of water and posted it on his own social media to highlight the dangers for fish species as the waters recede in the good weather.
"I don't know what species they are but these small fish are trapped," Mr O'Lochlainn told The Avondhu. "As the water keeps dropping, these poor fish will run out of oxygen and they will die."
It is hard to identify what species of fish they are but angler Tommy Lawton, who has been involved in assisting Inland Fisheries in rescuing hundreds of fish trapped in the mill-race beside O’Neill Crowley Quay, said the fact that the fish were small did not detract from the point that the continuing delays in fixing Fermoy Weir are creating "an environmental disaster" on the river.
"It doesn't matter the size of the fish," he said. "All sorts of fish including trout and roach are getting trapped there. The weir has been needing repair with years and years."
DEADLY DELAYS
Cork County Council lodged a planning application with An Bórd Pleanála for Fermoy Weir remedial works and fish bypass on the River Blackwater almost exactly one year ago, on June 9th, 2022. The planning file currently states "requires further consideration."
Mr Lawton said the delays were having a deadly impact on local wildlife and that the fault lay with Cork County Council and An Bórd Pleanála for the lack of urgency with which they were treating the case.
"Cork County Council and An Bórd Pleanála are creating this environmental issue as far as I am concerned," he said.