Case study:Sir Maesyfed Salar 2012 (SMS 12)

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Location: 52° 16' 9.84" N, 3° 34' 19.81" W

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Project overview

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Status	In progress
Project web site	http://www.wyeuskfoundation.org/projects/sms12.php
Themes	Environmental flows and water resources, Fisheries, Habitat and biodiversity, Land use management - agriculture, Water quality
Country	Wales
Main contact forename	Stephen
Main contact surname	Marsh-Smith
Main contact user ID
Contact organisation	Wye & Usk Foundation
Contact organisation web site	http://www.wyeuskfoundation.org/
Partner organisations
Parent multi-site project
This is a parent project encompassing the following projects	No

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Project summary

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This project is a triumph of persistence - the successful bid to the European Fisheries Fund (EFF) was third time lucky. Sir Maesyfed Salar 2012 (SMS 12) will restore the habitats of tributaries in the non- convergence area of Powys and Monmouthshire, including the river Elan. The Elan presents an unusual challenge. Having been impounded for Birmingham's water supply since 1901, the river has progressively lost its supply of bedstone and gravels. Floods have washed gravel out of the river but the dams have prevented any replacement. On top of that, low compensation flows have allowed what spawning beds there are to become compacted. These two problems have confined salmon spawning to just a few remaining areas. The plan is simple: gravel will be taken from the entrance to the reservoirs upstream and placed immediately below the dam. Sites where compaction is limiting spawning will be loosened with techniques we successfully pioneered in 1994. The other aspect of the project is to restore natural salmonid habitat by fencing and repair of erosion. Work will focus on the Ithon, its tributaries and other Radnorshire streams. Fencing out Radnor's massive stock of sheep and beef cattle will mean that streams that have lost all their vegetation will again have alder stands that stabilise some of the worst erosion and bank loss. The budget is £ 470,575 and the project will last for 2 years. We anticipate completing 30km of river improvement, along with gravel replacement on the Elan.

Progress:

September 2013

The lower Rhyd Y Meirch fish easement has been completed and a barrier removed from the lower Ffrwd where it joins the Usk. The first round of habitat improvement work has been completed on the Nantmel Dulas, Blue Lins and Gwenlas (all Ithon tributaries) with further work on these due to start shortly. Work is in progress on the Farm Brook and Clywedog and consents on the Mithil, main Ithon and lower Llynfi are being obtained.

August 2013

We were awarded another £305K to complete the habitat, fish passage and water quality programme improvement programme elsewhere in our catchment. This funding will allow the places and sites that have missed out previously to be linked with sites that have already restored, as well as extending the activity within SMS12.

March 2013

Consents have been obtained. Habitat work has started on the Gwenlas, an upper Ithon tributary.

June 2014

To date, over 20km of habitat work (single bank) has been completed on the Ithon and its tributaries, including the Natmel, Clywedog, Gwenlas and Blue Lins. Three Usk tributaries have also benefitted from habitat improvement - the Bran, Yscir and Berthin (8.58km). Three barriers to fish passage have been removed within SMS12, from the Llantrisant Brook, Berthin and mouth of the Ffrwd, all lower Usk tributaries. Two other lower Usk fish passes have been modified; on the Nant Ffrwd and Rhyd-y-Meirch. A further 15km of the Ithon catchment (single bank) has been consented for habitat work later in 2014 along with approximately 6km of the Yscir. In addition, four fish easements are in the planning permission stage (3 on the upper Wye and one on the Gavenny) while another barrier will be removed from the Olway. Potential sites for the abstraction and introduction of gravel to the Elan have been assessed and we are almost ready to start work on this part of the project.

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Catchment and subcatchment Select a catchment/subcatchment Site Edit site Name WFD water body codes WFD (national) typology WFD water body name Pre-project morphology Reference morphology Desired post project morphology Heavily modified water body National/international site designation Local/regional site designations Protected species present Invasive species present Species of interest Dominant hydrology Dominant substrate River corridor land use Average bankfull channel width category Average bankfull channel width (m) Average bankfull channel depth category Average bankfull channel depth (m) Mean discharge category Mean annual discharge (m3/s) Average channel gradient category Average channel gradient Average unit stream power (W/m2) Project background Edit project background Reach length directly affected (m) Project started 2013/01/01 Works started Works completed Project completed 2016/12/31 Total cost category Total cost (k€) Benefit to cost ratio Funding sources Cost for project phases Phase cost category cost exact (k€) Lead organisation Contact forename Contact surname Investigation and design Stakeholder engagement and communication Works and works supervision Post-project management and maintenance Monitoring Reasons for river restoration Edit reasons for restoration Mitigation of a pressure Hydropower Hydromorphology Biology Physico-chemical Other reasons for the project Measures Edit Measures Structural measures Bank/bed modifications Floodplain / River corridor Planform / Channel pattern Other Non-structural measures Management interventions Social measures (incl. engagement) Other Monitoring Hydromorphological quality elements Edit Hydromorphological quality elements Element When monitored Type of monitoring Control site used Result Before measures After measures Qualitative Quantitative Biological quality elements Edit biological quality elements Element When monitored Type of monitoring Control site used Result Before measures After measures Qualitative Quantitative Physico-chemical quality elements Edit Physico-chemical quality elements Element When monitored Type of monitoring Control site used Result Before measures After measures Qualitative Quantitative Any other monitoring, e.g. social, economic Edit Other responses Element When monitored Type of monitoring Control site used Result Before measures After measures Qualitative Quantitative Monitoring documents Upload monitoring documents Additional documents and videos Upload additional documents Additional links and references Edit links and references Link Description Supplementary Information Edit Supplementary Information