River Ness low water caused by 'very dry weather' says power giant SSE
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Power giant SSE Renewables has denied responsibility for causing a sudden drop in water levels on the River Ness that endangered fish.
"The low river flows in the River Ness are directly linked to the very dry weather," said an SSE spokesman.
The SSE statement came after members of Inverness Angling Club and Ness District Salmon Fishery Board on Monday (June 19) had to mount a rescue operation to rescue fish trapped in pools at the Pringles' mill lade that normally flows into the Ness.
The club said a sudden drop in water levels on the River Ness is endangering numerous species of fish, eels, lampreys and invertebrates which had caused nursery areas like the Mill Lade to dry up.
Club president Bill Byers said he understood that the low flows in the River Ness were the result of adjustments to the sluices at the Dochfour weir. These were installed to compensate for the operations of the Foyers pump storage hydro scheme which extracts water from Loch Ness to generate power.
The fishery board has also expressed concern that hydro schemes were "storing" water.
“Adjustments to the Dochfour sluices are the responsibility of SSE,” said Mr Byers. “They need to ensure that the River Ness gets a decent level of compensation water to maintain fish stocks which are already at critically low levels.
“Monday’s efforts resulted in a good number of fish being rescued and transferred to the river. Sadly, however, we could not save all.”
SSE said: “Our hydro-electric schemes continue to support flows in the Ness catchment through the prolonged period of drought that is being experienced across the country.
"The low river flows in the River Ness are directly linked to the very dry weather.
"Our main priority is to responsibly manage our hydro operations in accordance with our environmental obligations and we continue to meet these obligations, including the provision of all the compensation flows from our storage reservoirs that are required by our operating licences.
“Operations at Dochfour Weir have been undertaken to manage changes in the flow down the River Ness that have been driven by the reducing rainfall and catchment runoff, while also maintaining Loch Ness levels to allow navigation through the Caledonian Canal."
The spokesman added: “In managing our hydro power schemes across Scotland, we take careful consideration of biodiversity to ensure we can face challenges from extended dry weather to minimise negative impacts on aquatic species and habitats.
"Crucially, our sensitive management of water during this prolonged dry spell is helping to maintain higher flows in many rivers for longer at this time than if hydro schemes weren’t in existence.
"We are committed to continuing this work with the appropriate environmental agencies to protect biodiversity in catchments we operate in for as long as the dry weather conditions persist, and beyond.”
Water levels in Loch Ness, Britain's largest lake by volume, were measured at just over 109cm (3.5ft) at the Foyers hydro scheme on May 24.
The Scottish Environment Protection Agency say this is the lowest level recorded since December1, 1990.
It comes with the UK in the midst of heatwave conditions and a prolonged period of dry weather.
