Flooded rivers put paid to any chance of a wild salmon on New Year’s Day to herald the opening of the new season.

On the Drowes at Kinlough in Co Leitrim, proprietor Shane Gallagher said the river was extremely high and was coupled with a wet and chilling wind.

“Although a few fish were seen, angling pressure was justifiably down on previous years,” he said. The Drowes can boast a high success rate in terms of recording the first salmon and rarely a season would pass without a fish taken on opening day.

It was a similar story on the Liffey at Islandbridge. Persistent rain and rising tide exacerbated an already swollen river. However, this did little to dampen the spirit of at least 30 hardy members of Dublin Salmon and Sea Trout Anglers.

Opening day was greeted with plenty of food and chat (and perhaps the odd tipple) to brighten an otherwise dismal day. Club president Eugene McGrattan said membership was again down. “This is primarily due to the catch-and- release rule,” he said. “If only we were allowed to keep even one fish, it would make a huge difference.”

Throughout 2015, more than 1,000 salmon passed through the counter at Islandbridge, including two on opening day.

During Christmas week, Galway Bay Against Salmon Cages welcomed the announcement from Bord Iascaigh Mhara to withdraw its 15,000- tonne Galway Bay salmon farm application.

The environmental impact statement compiled by BIM was flawed from the start, according to the group, primarily because it failed to indicate from where fresh water would be sourced to treat amoebic gill disease. “There was no way that sea lice on farmed salmon, concentrated in open cages, could ever be controlled without the use of toxic pesticides, which in turn kill shrimp, prawn, lobster and crab.”

The group is concerned that under new guidelines, BIM may apply with new proposals which will destroy the marine environment, wild salmon and sea trout stocks of rivers flowing into Galway Bay.

The group wish reiterates that it will oppose with the same vigour any new salmon farm application for Galway Bay, as the open cage salmon farm industry is completely unsustainable.

“The battle for Galway has been won today because of persistent people power, however the war will continue until all salmon-rearing installations are removed from the Irish marine – its bays and estuaries.”

Following Ian Powell’s decision to close the Blackwater Lodge Fishery because of poor health, his estranged wife Glenda is starting a new fishing and guiding business and will take over the best beats, which include Upper and Lower Kilmurry, Kents, Ballyhooly and Woodstream.

Blackwater Salmon Fishing will run alongside Glenda Powell Guiding and offer tuition and guiding, rod and equipment hire, and tackle and licence sales. While Ms Powell will not run accommodation herself, she will offer clients a network of accommodation providers in the area.

Corporate outings and the provision to provide packed lunches and BBQs on the river bank will also feature in the new venture. Contact Glenda Powell, Blackwater Salmon Fishery, Lismore, Co. Waterford. Phone +353 585 3929; mobile +353 87 235 1260 or glenda@ireland-salmon- fishing.net.

The European Commission recently agreed council regulation 559 that sets out new rules for recreational bass fishing throughout northern Europe. Implementation of this regulation will require new legislation in Ireland.

In the interim, Inland Fisheries Ireland is asking anglers to fish according to the regulations to be introduced, ie to fish on a catch-and-release basis up to and including June 30th.

A one fish bag limit will apply from July 1st to December 31st. It is envisaged that the new legislation for Ireland will incorporate elements of the national bass policy and will be introduced in advance of the close season for bass angling.

This new EU regulation was introduced as an emergency measure to address declining bass stocks, as scientific advice indicates that stocks in northern Europe are in a perilous state. While there is no commercial fishing for bass in Ireland, commercial fishing elsewhere has been severely curtailed, particularly on spawning stocks. angling@irishtimes.com