Dam / Weir / Barrier Removal

IFI Barrier Assessment and Screening Tool (I-BAST)

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Under the AIE Regs to request records of the circa 175 barriers assessed using the secondary assessment tool mentioned below


For the purposes of this AIE please provide the records in the electronic format held by IFI


I-BAST assessment
For primary assessment, Inland Fisheries Ireland has developed the I-BAST (IFI Barrier Assessment and Screening Tool) application as an initial screening and barriers assessment tool. To date, we have surveyed almost 22,600 structures using the I-BAST assessment and a further 175 structures using the secondary assessment.’

The register lists all barrier currently assessed (SNIFFER assessment) and includes an indication of whether a report is available (column k in excel file).


To date the register includes 232 structures, 56 of which have a report completed and available.

Please note that some of these reports are catchment wide reports and encompass all barriers assessed within that catchment. e.g. Boyne catchment

Attached the register of barriers assessed with this letter. This lists in a high-level record what I consider within the scope of your request. It provides a brief description of barriers assessed and any subsequent records related to it. e.g., Reports and or drone imagery.

Please note that each row has a corresponding SNIFFER excel assessment, this assessment contains the measurement data in raw format e.g. height/ width /head height/ velocity etc. of each barrier.

Records of Interest

If you could please indicate which specific barriers/ reports are of interest to you by returning the register with the relevant rows/ columns highlighted. We will endeavour to extract the records within the timeframe remaining. If the number of records is likely to exceed the timeframe remaining, we will correspond with you to agree a schedule of release of the relevant records.

Please note that if any drone imagery is requested, we will facilitate you by providing access to view the relevant records by laptop in a suitable IFI office. Currently we do not have the facility to share the data electronically due to the size of the files concerned.

We can provide you with an example of the raw SNIFFER excel assessment of a barrier, to help you ascertain if the record is what you require.

20230505_AIE-023-012-IFI_Records-HeldDownload

IFI-NBP-SNIFFER-Locations-Spring-2023Download

Fish passage at Castlecor Weir on the Upper River Inny, Co. Meath

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Inland Fisheries Ireland (IFI) is the statutory body with the responsibility for the protection, development, and management of the inland fishery resource within the state. As part of their responsibility to manage the fish stocks on the Upper River Inny at Castlecor Weir, it is proposed to hire the services of a consulting firm to prepare an options report for fish pass improvement works at the weir, considering all environmental and engineering circumstances that are present at the site upstream and downstream. IFI wishes to appoint consultants to prepare an options report, based on a number of environmental and technical surveys and using a recognised decision matrix, present a preferred option for fish pass improvement works at Castlecor Weir.

Following the approval of the preferred option, the consultants will then be required to prepare design, calculations, and drawings of the preferred option. These will be sent to the Department of Environment, Climate and Communication, and OPW for licences and approvals. The consultant will be required to prepare a planning application of the preferred option for Meath Local Authority, following the granting of planning permission, the consultant will be required to prepare construction drawings and tender documents for the hire of a construction company. The consultant will also be required to assist IFI in the tender assessment and the appointment of the successful construction company. The consultant will then be required to oversee the construction phase of the preferred option and sign off on the completed project. Please see the attached pricing schedule for more information. The design will take account of cost, constructability, maintenance, disturbance, and other structural and ecological implications. (Please see Scoping and Service Requirement document for further information)

Castlecor-Weir-Scoping-Service-RequirementDownload

Clohamon Weir, Slaney River Valley SAC

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https://slaneyrivertrust.ie/clohamon-weir-application/

https://www.independent.ie/regionals/enniscorthyguardian/news/new-project-aims-to-prevent-trapped-fish-at-clohamon-37423172.html

Weir causing problems for fishing in River Slaney, enniscorthy Guardian

EPA data on Hogg Enterprises (pig farm)

AIE to IFI: list of all barriers to fish migration removed from Irish rivers in 2021-22,and barriers planned for removal in 2023

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AIE-022-025-IFI

In 2021-22 IFI removed and replaced 4 culvert barriers to fish migration. This involved removing historic concrete pipe culverts and replacing them with clear span bridge. Facilitating unimpacted fish passage through the culvert. This was done in collaboration with the local county councils.

Example

There are 2 projects listed under barrier mitigation that were completed in 2022. They are Ballinacarrig and Owenglen. A fish pass was installed at Ballinacarrig and a fish pass was repaired on the Owenglen.


2021 Ops Dev sheet also listed one barrier mitigation project at Castlerea. While the project was completed in 2021, the barrier was actually removed in 2018.


In summary; no barriers to fish passage were recorded as removed by IFI in the Ops Development reports in 2021 or 2022

River Boyne Catchment Management Programme – Martry Weir Fish Pass planned for 2023 (rock ramp)

AIE-022-025-IFI_DecisionDownload

AIE-022-025-IFI_Schedule-of-RecordsDownload

Record-1Download
Record-2Download
Record-3Download

Bowston weir removal project

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South Cumbria Rivers Trust project to remove Bowston weir, on the River Kent at Bowston near Burneside in South Cumbria. It is funded by the European Agricultural Fund for Rural Development.

Noteworthy project due to the level of transparency on the project

Bowston weir removal

20-1053_Bowston-Weir_Final-Design-Method-Statement_v2.1_cbec_19.03.21Download
20-1053_Bowston-Weir_Final-Drawings-v1.1_cbec_18.03.21-002Download

IFI Funded Projects (2021)

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2021 funding call grants for the SSTCPF and MFF Schemes

IFI-grantsDownload

Brett’s Weir, Nore, Kilkenny

The GPS location is (653017.096, 654659.02m)

The weir is still in use with water being abstracted to generate electricity which is used to power a saw mill with the remaining power being sold to the grid. The water in the headrace is used to power a generator which I turn generates power for this sawmill.

The River Nore is an important salmon river. The weir at Brett’s causes a delay in fish moving upstream to reach their spawning grounds. This delay can have major problems for individual fish and the species population due to predation, loss of eggs, loss of available spawning gravels, and overuse of spawning gravels downstream of the weir.

Tender: Brett’s Weir – The Construction of a Rock Ramp Fish Pass at Brett’s Weir on the River Nore, Co. Kilkenny.

https://irl.eu-supply.com/ctm/Supplier/PublicPurchase/164479

Volume-A-SCOPING-DOCUMENT-FOR-BRETTS-WEIRDownload

Dawros River Catchment Management Plan

Dawros River in Letterfrack, more commonly known as the Kylemore River locally.

  • request management plan

River Deel at Askeaton

€105,000 in funding for the preparation of detailed reports and design for the removal or improvement of fish passage at four weirs on the River Deel at Askeaton. Plan will open up 40 kilometres of main river channel and 100 kilometres of tributaries for migrating fish species such as salmon, sea trout, eels and lamprey.

2021 concerns that salmon smolt are being mangled in the hydro-electric turbine run by the Kingspan Aeroboard company

Riddlestown Stream Rehabilitation (River Deel)

€10,000 to West Limerick Deel Anglers for appropriate assessment screening and detailed in-river habitat management plans. These plans help inform appropriate measures and rehabilitation for salmon and sea trout habitats, which is being proposed as part of the Riddlestown stream rehabilitation works.