Sir, – Early one morning last month I caught my first large wild trout locally. Since I was a boy I had wondered would I ever see fish thrive again in the the Tolka. I began teaching angling skills to my own kids on its banks last year and explain to them regularly how lucky we are to see trout thriving once again along “our” stretch of the river.
Yesterday’s large scale fish-kill (report by Olivia Kelly, July 23rd) is devastating. Measuring the impact on the fish stocks affected is easier done than measuring the impact on the community.
The Tolka will bounce back again given time and attention. Sadly, it might be too late by then to get some kids interested in angling and wildlife in their neighbourhood, rather than anti-social activities.
I hope those responsible are found and prosecuted without delay. In the meantime more general environmental awareness about the fragility of our rivers is required to prevent a recurrence. – Yours, etc,
JIM KELLEHER,
Griffith Avenue,
Dublin 9