AN expert from Spain has been brought in to help fish make their way along the waterways of County Durham.

Pao Fernández Garrido, an engineer and expert in the design of fish passes, is to work on three tributaries which flow into the River Wear to improve access for species including trout, salmon, eels, stone loach and bullhead.

The Wear Rivers Trust plans to remove a culvert on Newhouse Burn near Lanchester, create a diversion channel on Croxdale Burn, near Durham City and remove a double culvert on the River Deerness, near Esh Winning.

She said: "Dams and weirs which remain in place can prevent the natural movement of fish along the river and into its tributaries where they spawn.

"If fish cannot get to their breeding grounds, spawning will fail and fish populations will decline, if this chain is broken, then the whole of the river’s biodiversity will suffer.

"It’s as if the river system is the veins of the landscape, if the river is not working properly then the health of the wider catchment area will be affected."