A salmon fishery board has called for a temporary halt on any further pumped storage hydro-electric schemes on Scottish lochs.

Ness District has raised a petition with the Scottish Parliament requesting a moratorium until the impact on wild salmon populations is properly understood.

The schemes draw water from lochs to reservoirs before releasing the water back to generate power at peak times, but the board warns that changing water levels could disrupt shoreline habitats and fish migrations.

The Scottish government said it could not comment because the issue involved a live planning application.

Ness District Salmon Fishery Board’s petition follows concerns it raised last year about levels on Loch Ness.

The board said it was not opposed to hydro-electric schemes, but wanted a greater understanding of how they might affect fish and other wildlife. It said young salmon used natural currents to migrate downstream, and warned that fluctuating water levels could affect water temperatures.

Director Brian Shaw said artificial changes to lochs posed risks.

“Raising the level of Loch Ness by one metre would have devastating and irreversible ecological consequences,” he said. “Furthermore, restricting levels in the River Ness to a ‘compensation flow’ regime would mean that the river would lose all semblance of being a natural river.

“Scotland’s and arguably Europe’s most iconic loch, the River Ness and the surrounding ecosystem are at risk.”

READ MORE: BBC