Tweed fishing reels in ?18m for economy

FISHING on the River Tweed now brings in ?18 million a year to the Borders economy.
Angling in the region directly supports 487 jobs and the quality of salmon fishing on the Tweed is given as the reason why some people chose to live in the region, or relocate their business here.
Ten years ago a similar study was carried out and this latest study indicates that the River Tweed is even more important to the economy of the region than it was a decade ago.
This latest report, "Economic impact from angling in the Tweed river system", was commissioned by the River Tweed Commission and conducted by leading financial consultants SQW Ltd.
The detail of the report is based on in-depth research by SQW and on the responses to two questionnaires directed at the owners of the fishings and the anglers themselves.
Annually there are 35,876 rod days of fishing are let annually. 75 per cent of salmon anglers travel from outside Scotland, each spending on average ?189 per day in the Borders compared to an average spend of just ?56 by other (non-fishing) visitors to the area.
The loyalty of visiting salmon anglers is described by the Tweed Commissioners as "remarkable"; 79 per cent make trips to fish the Tweed system "typically more than once a year" and only one per cent visit less frequently than once a year.
The need for good management of the river is emphasised by the fact that if there were no salmon or sea-trout because of disease then 71 per cent of the anglers visiting the region would not come at all.
Nick Yonge, clerk to the River Tweed Commission, commented: "This major report highlights just how valuable Tweed angling, particularly salmon fishing, is to the Borders.

continues....

"The benefits in terms of economic activity and jobs fully justify the tremendous efforts and investment made by the Commission and the Tweed Foundation in the last two decades to improve the fishery.
"This has included opening up or improving access to over 450 miles of tributaries and the buy-out of the great majority of the north-east drift nets in 2003, to which Tweed proprietors contributed ?450,000, representing a huge act of faith."
Mr Yonge continued: "Rod catches of salmon are now running at their highest levels since continuous records began in 1952. Each year we are seeing more anglers coming to the Tweed and this is reflected in a marked increase in the number of weeks let.
"The challenge for us now is to maintain and hopefully further enhance our stocks of salmon and sea-trout ? thus ensuring that we continue to play a pivotal role in the Borders economy."
The report has also identified an additional indirect benefit, which stems from the quality of salmon angling on the Tweed.
For many individuals and some companies it is the reason that they choose to live or be based in the Borders. In 1997 the fledgling Prostrakan company relocated from Hampshire to Galashiels.
It is now one of Europe's leading speciality pharmaceutical companies employing 77 in Galashiels with a salary bill of over ?4 million, representing a very significant injection into the local economy.
Prostrakan Group plc's co-founder and non-executive chairman Harry Stratford commented: "The critical factor in my decision to locate the company in the Borders was the excellence of the fishing on Tweed; we would have located Prostrakan somewhere else if the fishing had not been so good here in the Borders."
In addition the report emphasises that the income from fishing visitors underpins much of the area's tourist employment. Some hotels derive up to 70 per cent of their income from fishermen and the overall viability of many accommodation establishments is dependent on the influx of such visitors, much of which accrues in the autumn when the general tourist trade is quiet.
Alan Elliott, tourism manager at Scottish Enterprise Borders, commented: "The increase in rod catches is partly due to the substantial investment by Scottish Enterprise Borders, the Tweed Commission and others several years ago to improve the habitat for fish.
"At the time some were sceptical about the value of this investment. But this new study confirms the benefits of that work and shows that the associated improvements in tourism-related facilities have had a direct impact in terms of visitors, spending and jobs in the area."