Working with partners at the Wild Trout Trust, Chatsworth Estate, and Nestlé Waters, Derbyshire Wildlife Trust is managing a new project to improve water quality, enrich the ecological status of the river and re-meander a section of the river back to its original channel. This will bypass a weir at the site of the former Postern Mill in Turnditch and create a route for fish migration.
A tributary of the River Derwent, the Ecclesbourne rises near Wirksworth and flows southeast for approximately 18km to join the Derwent near Duffield. The ecological status of the river is classed as “Moderate” against the Water Framework Directive by the Environment Agency, due to pollution and physical barriers preventing fish movement throughout the watercourse.
A Wild Trout Trust habitat assessment reports that the river has a large amount of potential spawning habitats for Atlantic salmon, a priority conservation species, and other fish species found in the Derwent Catchment, but their movement is prevented by the presence of manmade structures.
The new project will bypass the weir and restore the river to its original course before it was diverted for milling in the 18th century, opening over 28km of river and tributaries for fish, and improving the ecological status of the river.
The excavation and construction of the new channel, due to start in the Autumn, will reinstate fish passage for many species, including salmon, classified as ‘vulnerable’ in Europe, and eel classified as ‘critically endangered’ globally by the International Union for Conservation of Nature. Other species to benefit include grayling, trout, lamprey, minnow, stone loach, and bullhead.
