TWELVE miles of river will be opened up to migrating salmon and sea trout - thanks to £250,000 project.
For more than a century the 16ft-high weir on the River Clywedog in Bontuchel, near Ruthin, has been an impassable obstacle for fish, but now the Environment Agency Wales have constructed a fish pass, allowing them to breach the weir to swim further upstream.
Julian Bray, the agency's sustainable fisheries project manager, said it was not known why the weir was originally built but the design of the new pass was technically quite complex.
The agency has an Objective One funding programme to maximise productivity in rivers throughout Wales, restore natural habitats and make fisheries more accessible.
"By improving the upstream access for migratory fish, we will be making real environmental improvements which should benefit not only fish stocks but also the communities and economy of the Afon Clywedog catchment," said Mr Bray.