ANGLERS on the River Wye are being encouraged to return salmon alive to boost stocks and encourage tourism.

Numbers of the migratory fish caught in the Wye. pictured, have nosedived from 6,500 in 1988. The Wye and Usk Foundation fears the figure this year could be just 450.

Dr Stephen Marsh-Smith, director of the foundation, said the increase in sheep farming had caused a rise in chemicals draining into the river.

These toxins, combined with other environmental problems, had led to a decrease in salmon stock.

Now Dr Marsh-Smith is in negotiations to stop people killing fish on the Wye. He said: "We want everybody to put fish back for the next few years so that we have adult fish for spawning."

He said that the foundation were doing all they could to solve the problems with salmon stock and at the same time encourage visitors back to the area.

"Visitors now go to other places for salmon fishing and as a result of that hotels and pubs are losing out on trade. We want to improve this situation by increasing the salmon," he said.

Salmon fishing is big business. Anglers from across the UK are prepared to pay hundreds of pounds to fish a stretch or 'beat' on a good salmon river in the hope of catching the 'king of fish'.

Councillor Pam Birchall, cabinet member for economic development and tourism, said: "Tourism is Monmouthshire's biggest industry and anything we can do that will increase tourism has got my vote.

"But we must find the cause of these falling salmon numbers and tackle that."

Chris Major, of Tintern, who fishes on the Wye every week, said: "The amount of salmon in the river has gone down noticeably, but other fish like trout and pike in the river still seem to be there and doing well."

A spokesman for the Environment Agency said they would be doing everything they could to stop the decline in salmon stocks.

Doctor Marsh-Smith said many problems with the salmon were caused in the extremities of the river.

He said: "The River Wye was actually helped by the closure of Llanwern as sulphur used in industrial plants gets into the uplands and then turns into acid in the river and then kills off a proportion of the River Wye."