FISHERMEN have stunned and moved thousands of fish in a bid to restore a lost route from London to the sea.

Some 3,000 members and volunteers from The Wey and Arun Canal Trust are trying to clear a two-century old Sussex waterway and open up a disused path from the capital to the Channel.

Before dredging a section of the canal by Drungewick, north of Billingshurst, the trust called on specialist environmental company Aquamaintain last month to move all the fish.

They used a technique called electrofishing, which involves passing an electric current through the canal to stun and then net the fish.

Fisheries consultant Dave Hellard was in the water. He said: “We were there for two days with a couple of anodes, towing a boat fitted with a cathode behind.

“The fish swim towards the positive charge and become momentarily stunned.

“We then net them out as quickly as possible and put them in an aerated bucket so they can be moved.

“The team in the water carefully monitor the voltage and go back and forward over the area to be sure that as many of the fish as possible are caught.

“We counted more than 7,000 fish in total, including roach, rudd, bream, eels, carp and tench.”

The technique is approved by the Environment Agency, and Dave said it was the most humane way to move the fish. He said: “The electronic current is mild and the fish recover fast. Once in the oxygenated water tanks, they quickly become pretty lively again.

“We don’t catch mammals in the water, they just get out of the way when they feel a tinge of electricity. And to protect ourselves, we wear non-conductive dry suits. Plus we obviously don’t touch any of the dangerous stuff.

“Overall, it’s been pretty successful. We’ve moved a lot of fish.”

Dave has done this job for years. Every so often, the water throws up surprises.

He said: “We see a lot of non-native species like zander, catfish and grass carp. And we also see a lot of lost pet goldfish.

“They can be a real danger: they breed with native carp and compromise the strength of their genome.”

But the team was impressed with the health of the fish in the Arun and Wey.

When they are transferred to the oxygenated tank on the towpath, the fish can be inspected for diseases before being released into another part of the canal.

So far, the project to restore the Wey and Arun canal has seen 22 bridges and two aqueducts reconstructed, 11 locks restored, and many miles of canal bed cleared and dredged.