Members of the International Centre for Ecohydraulics Research (ICER) at the University of Southampton started the first trials for the barrier assessment methodologies in Monk’s Brook near Southampton, United Kingdom.

Located in the English county of Hampshire Monk’s Brook drains a catchment of roughly 50 square kilometres. It is classed as a main river and managed by the Environment Agency. Over time it has been heavily modified. It is home to several fish species, including the migratory sea trout (Salmo trutta) for which Monk’s brook is an important spawning habitat.

With migratory fish species living in the river, passability of barriers in the river is important for them to reach specific habitats. This passability of barriers can be assessed by using different protocols, for instance SNIFFER, ICE or ICF. In order to compare the differences between various protocols, the upstream passability scores of the Monk’s Brook ford (a wadable crossing in the river) on Doncaster Drove in Eastleigh were assessed by members from ICER at the University of Southampton.

Preliminary results on the overview of barrier assessment protocols used in European countries will soon become available. Follow AMBER on Twitter and Facebook or sign up for the newsletter to stay up to date!

You can watch some of their work in the video below!