Cockle season gets go ahead.Byline: ERYL CRUMP A SECOND season of licenced cockling in the Dee Estuary can go ahead this summer. Environment Agency Wales Environment Agency Wales is an Assembly Sponsored Public Body. It is that part of the Environment Agency that covers an area corresponding approximately to Wales. The Regional divisions of the Environment Agency are based on the concept of catchment management and administrative says their survey shows cockle cockle, common name applied to the heart-shaped, jumping or leaping marine bivalve mollusks, belonging to the order Eulamellibranchia. The brittle shells are of uniform size, are obliquely spherical, and possess distinct radiating ridges, or ribs, which aid the numbers remained steady following the first ever licensed season. More than 9,000 tonnes of cockles are on the beds, similar to the amount there before the last season, which ran from September to December. Unregulated cockling had led to overfishing and dangerous practices. A spokesman said: "We are however investigating an unusual infestation infestation /in·fes·ta·tion/ (-fes-ta´shun) parasitic attack or subsistence on the skin and/or its appendages, as by insects, mites, or ticks; sometimes used to denote parasitic invasion of the organs and tissues, as by helminths. of barnacles on parts of the beds which, combined with the warm temperatures, is causing some die-off of cockles. We are monitoring the situation closely and will let the fishermen know the outcome of our investigations." The new regulating order provides a sustainable livelihood for 50 fishermen and leaves enough cockles on the beds to feed the area's important bird life and to re-generate the crop for future years. Environment Agency Wales is also looking to introduce 2 additional temporary licences for this year to take advantage of the harvest when the season opens. These will be allocated to the people who are closest to the top of the waiting list for licences. The criteria for qualifying for a licence is based on being a commercial fisherman with evidence of a history of fishing the estuary. |
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