Surprise salmon in Mersey

Pollution is a threat to wild salmon stocks

The first salmon has been caught in living memory in the once-heavily polluted waters of River Mersey, environmentalists have announced.

Environment Agency scientists trapped the 90cm-long fish, which weighed 6.7 kilograms, at Woolston Weir, near Warrington, Cheshire, before releasing it back into the water.

The find coincided with the publication of the agency's latest water quality survey.

The report showed waterways in England and Wales were probably cleaner than they have been since before the Industrial Revolution.

Marine life

The survey also found that 94% of rivers were of good or fair quality in 2000, compared with less than 85% in 1990.

A spokesman for the Environment Agency said the salmon appeared to have been living in the Mersey for some time.

"It is the first time one has been caught in living memory - the Mersey has suffered from pollution over the years.

"There have been sightings recently and we wanted to ascertain whether they were true.

"It does mean, obviously, the water is becoming a little bit better."

A report earlier this year showed kingfisher sightings on the River Mersey were up by 28.5% while an octopus had also been spotted.