The royal opening of a new hydropower scheme and fish pass on the River Monnow last week marked the end of a journey and the fulfilment of a dream for retired baker Ronald Kear.

For nearly 300 years, Osbaston Weir had been totally impassable for migratory fish due to its height and to an associated abstraction; by opening up 200km of the river, salmon would be able to to enter and spawn in the Monnow once more.

The total cost of the project was £600,000, with funding provided through the FIFG (Financial Instrument for Fisheries Guidance), allocated by the Welsh European Funding Office.