Investigation underway into 'serious' fish kill of up to 2,000 fish in Wicklow
Ifi From Taken Fish Dead By River Ifi The Aughrim Picture:
The State agency responsible for the protection and conservation of Ireland's freshwater fish and their habitats has commenced an investigation into the source of a "serious" fish kill in Co Wicklow in which up to 2,000 fish may have died.
Inland Fisheries Ireland (IFI) says incident occurred on the Aughrim River, near the town Aughrim, and that its staff have observed fish mortalities along a 3km stretch of the river near Coats Bridge.
The species of fish discovered dead include juvenile and adult Atlantic salmon and trout, as well as lamprey.
A spokesperson said that while IFI is not aware of the specific source of this "harmful ecological event" at this stage, water sample have been taken from the river to gather evidence.
IFI environmental officers have been at the scene on the Aughrim River since early Sunday morning, and are continuing to investigate the incident.
"Inland Fisheries Ireland first became aware of an incident over last weekend following reports from members of the public to our confidential phoneline - 0818 34 74 24," the IFI spokesperson added.
"Monitoring and assessment of the impact of the incident will continue in the coming days to try identify the origin of the fish kill."