|
|
|||||||
|
|
|||||||
|
News Search
|
|
16-01-03 Scotsman Salmon season opens with a weather eye on future By Gethin Chamberlain COLD, wet and windy, the salmon season opened on the River Tay yesterday in conditions only the keenest fishermen could have savoured. If not many fish were caught, those die-hards who assembled in Kenmore could point to the generosity of the sponsors, Dewars World of Whisky, for dulling their faculties. However, the falling numbers of salmon in Scotland's rivers has raised concern about the future of the sport. The event yesterday will be followed today, for the first time, with a seminar to discuss a variety of ways of restoring the salmon habitat and species. Among the experts from around the world attending the meeting in Kenmore will be the celebrity botanist David Bellamy, who was at the opening ceremony yesterday. Dr Bellamy, who will be speaking on habitat issues facing fishing around the world, said he believed fishing was crucial to Scotland's economy and environment. He said: "You have a chance of looking at Scotland as a whole and making a difference here. People have to keep the community going through fishing. If you took fishing away, many of our waters which are now improving would not have been cleaned up. I call it the green renaissance." He said it was the responsibility of the Scottish Parliament to safeguard the environment and to consider the impact of development, which resulted in increased water run-off into rivers and which could threaten fish stocks. He also urged the parliament to tackle the problem of mink. "I really do think that unless the parliament looks at the problem of mink the day will come when we won't have any salmon in the future." The Tay is regarded as Scotland's premier salmon fishing river and the contribution that the sport makes to tourism and the local economy is seen as vitally important. The drop in salmon numbers in the last five years has been dramatic on the Tay, prompting the creation of the Tay Foundation to raise money to support the improvement of salmon stocks and to ensure the survival of the sport, with the knock-on effects for the tourist industry and environment as a whole. The launch of the salmon season on the Tay is traditionally regarded as the official opening of the season across the UK. Yesterday's event saw more than 100 enthusiasts gather at the Kenmore Hotel to parade down to the riverbank, where the television presenter Fiona Armstrong launched the season by toasting the salmon and the river with a quaich of whisky. Ignoring the perils posed by the weather, which had turned the river into a torrent, Ms Armstrong, a keen angler, took to the water in a small rowing boat and spent some time casting in vain before returning to the safety of the bank.
|
|
||||
|
................................................................................................................. Copyright ©2004 Gethin Chamberlain. All rights reserved. |
|||||||
