How can we be sure of salmon stocks if we don’t have a salmon counter?

I have managed a fishery in Ballyduff Upper on the Blackwater River for the past 10 years. My records show a dramatic decline in salmon returning to the system — in fact a 60% drop in the last five years.

Yet Inland Fisheries Ireland (IFI) officials tell us there are three times more fish returning than is necessary to maintain a healthy population. However, as there is no longer a salmon counter on the Blackwater, this must be guesswork.

I have never seen an IFI official on the river and agree with your corespondent from Kanturk (Letters, July 6) that IFI officials are not doing enough to preserve salmon stocks.