SALMON will be swimming in old waters this season thanks to a conservation project to protect a safe haven for wild fish.

Work was completed on the old mill pond on the Ings Beck between Downham and Rimington villages this Easter in a bid to enhance the breeding grounds for wild salmon and sea trout.

The number of wild salmon has been decreasing for several years and is now at its lowest ever recorded level, inspiring a central government initiative to turn the breeding numbers around.

And now thanks to a 5ft high dry stone wall which has been built above the old weir in Twiston Lane, where the stream had washed the banking away, wild salmon will be able to spawn locally again.

Brains behind the project and landowner Ralph Assheton said: "We are very happy to have the old pond restored to its former glory. The project has been delayed for some time because of bad weather conditions and foot and mouth restrictions which have only recently been removed from my land.

"On an environmental level, the project mirrors the environment agency initiative to boost breeding and improve natural habitats.

"But the renovation project was also important on an historical level. The pond has been there for more than 100 years and it is a shame to let the stream wash it away."

The wall -- donated and built by Ribble-based Castle Cement -- will be fully landscaped by next season, with plants and shrubs concealing the wall.

And Sam Alston, technical adviser to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs in the North West said: "Mill workers in the past would be more sympathetic to the salmon's lifestyle, building fish steps and preserving ponds.

"Salmon return to their original habitats thanks to an amazing homing instinct, having spent years feeding in the Atlantic.

"Nowadays it is essential for local communities to reverse the trends of neglect that we have seen since the industrial revolution."

Keith Hall, quarry manager for Castle Cement, said: "We are delighted to support this sort of project and useful local initiative.

"We always keep big stones to one side for this purpose. It may only be a small contribution to a huge problem but every little bit helps."

Populations of wild salmon are at their lowest point in recorded history in the UK

The government introduced new legislation in 1999 ruling that all salmon caught before June 1 each year for the next ten years must be put back.

The ban also prevents anglers from using baits in spring. Only artificial flies are allowed.

In the Baltic, of the 120 rivers supporting salmon a century ago, only 37 have naturally spawned salmon.

Salmon return to their birthplace when they reach around 20lbs in weight from feeding in the Atlantic.

In Norway 20 years ago there was one farmed salmon for every 100 wild. Today the figures are the opposite.

In North America, 25 years ago, 800,000 large salmon returned every year to spawn. Today only 80,000 do.

In mainland Europe millions of Euro are being spent to reintroduce salmon in the Rhine River.

In Scotland and Ireland catches of salmon are roughly 25 per cent what they were 30 years ago.