What steps have been taken to monitor the otter population in the Conwy River during the last three financial years?
The Conwy catchment was surveyed in 2018/19 as part of the Otter Survey of Wales which is undertaken at 7 year intervals. The survey and published report was jointly coordinated by Natural Resources Wales (NRW) and Cardiff University. https://cdn.cyfoethnaturiol.cymru/media/694539/osw-6th-report-final.pdf
In response to the decline observed, a repeat survey of the Conwy catchment was undertaken in 2021. The results were comparable to the 2018/19 survey.
A similar decline has been noted within a number of catchments across Wales and a working group of otter experts has been established by NRW to explore possible reasons and resolutions.