The Environment Agency has seen an increase in the amount of illegal fishing devices found along East Anglian river banks, with 52 retrieved between March and December 2020.
Of the 52 retrieved:
This is an increase compared to 2019 where 30 traps were seized across East Anglia over the full year.
The illegal instruments are a significant risk to wildlife and fish stocks, and trap:
To trap or fish those types of wildlife and fish stock an Environment Agency licence is required.
Ian Hirst, Fisheries Team Leader for Cambridgeshire and Bedfordshire, said: "We urge the public to report all sightings of these instruments to our incident hotline number so we can investigate".
Lesley Robertson, Enforcement Team Leader for Essex, Norfolk and Suffolk, said: "We are very grateful to those who report these illegal traps. Without that information, illegal traps and nets might still be there causing damage to wildlife".
"Our officers are regularly out patrolling the river banks and will not hesitate to take enforcement action".
All sightings of illegal nets or traps need to be reported to 0800 807060 so the Environment Agency can investigate.
