SIX new carp fish have been released into Steam Mills Lake – despite work on the spine road at Cinderford Northern Quarter starting.

But fisheries management officer John Beddis says its landlords, the Forestry Commission, has reassured them that they will retain their fishing rights and no building work will take place within 10 metres of the lake.

He said: “The carping syndicate wanted some decent fish in the lake, and so during our Forest Angling Club committee meeting we decided to invest in them. Once the fish are in the water they technically then belong to the Forestry.

“We last stocked the lake five years ago with bream. I remember at the time we were in doubt about buying them as we were unsure how the proposals for the Cinderford Northern Quarter would affect the lake.”

The arrival of the special stock of genetically-selected carp, which weigh around 14 and 15 pounds, come ahead of schedule due to an order cancellation. John says the stock of carp wasn’t due until next year but says the chances of catching them will be slim.

He said: “The fish need time to acclimatise and settle in. I don’t expect people to catch them until at least next spring. I was originally looking for four lots of 20 pounders but settled for six that weighed around five pound less.”

It’s believed that in the next 10 years the fish could reach a weight of at least 40lb.

“This is good news for keen carp fishermen as that’s a decent weight; the only thing is they will have to wait eight to nine years to catch them at that weight.”

The Forest angling club says they have seen a sharp decline in juniors taking up the sport.

John, who is also the junior match secretary, added: “I don’t have anybody taking part in matches in the junior team next year which is a worry. It seems nowadays all youngsters care about is computer games and the television. I would like to appeal to people interested in fishing to get in touch on 07714956395.”

Work to clear the land for a spine road, just off Newtown Road, started earlier this month, and work on the first phase of the access road is expected to start in early 2016.