Work to improve river will have Atlantic salmon leaping for joy

'ENDANGERED’ SPECIES HAS MORE SCOPE TO MIGRATE TO HEALTHIER WATERWAY

- By TELEGRAPH REPORTER

A TRANSFORMATIVE project to help restore the River Ecclesbourne’s natural habitat and support the return of Atlantic salmon - after a century-long absence from parts of the river - has been completed in Derbyshire.

In 2023, excavation and construction work began to re-meander a 400m section of the river back to its original channel and open up more than 28km of river and tributaries for fish migration at the site of the former Postern Mill in Turnditch.

The new channel bypasses the last remaining weir on the Ecclesbourne, located between Wirksworth and where the river joins the Derwent near Duffield, restoring the river to its original course, which was diverted in the 18th century for milling.