Debate emerges over plan to partially remove historic weir in Tipperary river

A proposal by Inland Fisheries Ireland to partially remove a weir on the River Suir near Cahir has sparked debate about how best to restore Ireland’s struggling salmon rivers.

IFI has applied to Tipperary County Council for permission to remove roughly two-thirds of Bakery Weir, a historic structure about 1.3 km northeast of Cahir along the R670 Cashel Road.

The agency says the works are designed to improve fish passage and restore more natural river conditions.

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Under the proposal, around 70 metres of the weir would be removed, mainly along the northern bank, while a smaller section beside an old mill wheel and tailrace would remain due to its heritage significance.

The plan also includes restoring approximately 250 metres of river channel, creating a low-flow channel to help fish migrate upstream, and installing structures to guide water flow through the restored section.

IFI says projects like this aim to reconnect river habitats and remove barriers that impede species such as salmon and trout moving upstream to spawn.

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However, the proposal has drawn criticism from local man Nicholas Grubb, who argues the project fails to address the deeper environmental issues affecting salmon populations.

“What angers me about the whole issue is its total irrelevance,” Grubb said.

“Petty fiddling about while our salmon crash out.”

Grubb believes the agency should focus instead on a broader ecological strategy targeting Ireland’s smaller rivers and tributaries.

“There is only one thing IFI should be doing and that’s pushing for a completely new Protocol of Good Riparian Practice,” he said.

“The vital objective of which is to let the light back into all our small streams and tributaries, where less than a meter deep.”
According to Grubb, restoring sunlight to these streams would encourage the growth of aquatic plants such as ranunculus.

“The re-establishment of the Ranunculus would have a massive effect on firstly the nitrate and phosphate issue as well as Oxygen content and secondly on the migration downstream of vast quantities of sand and silts,” he said.

“Let alone all the ecological benefits.”
Grubb also questioned why IFI has not revisited scientific recommendations from earlier decades.

“The big question to be asked is why did IFI totally disregard their own early 90s scientific advice,” he said.

The Bakery Weir structure is a protected structure, meaning planning permission is required before any alterations can be made.

IFI submitted its application earlier this year, and a decision from Tipperary County Council is expected by April 16.

IFI is using special legal powers because consent from one of the landowners was withdrawn, so they’re applying under statutory authority instead.

The proposal forms part of a wider effort across Ireland and Europe to remove or modify river barriers in order to restore natural river processes.

However, the debate around the Suir project highlights continuing disagreement over whether localized engineering works or broader catchment-scale environmental reforms will have the greatest impact on restoring salmon stocks.

The Grubb family built around seventeen mills along the River Suir system, during a time when the river developed a reputation as the premier large salmon river on the island of Ireland.

Nicholas believes they are a vital component of the ecosystem, if a river doesn’t have a lake upstream, where salmon can go doggo for a prolonged period before spawning.