New Lakes.

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New Lakes : Updated Sunday July 20th 2008

Q   Do I need planning permission for a new lake ?
A In most cases the local planning department will do their best to extract a fee, drawings and a full planning application. There are exceptions such as 'agricultural pond' status but in general permission is required. Do not be too alarmed however as we can provide all you need and guide you through the process. From lake design to excavation usually takes around 4 months assuming that the planning office are reasonably compliant. A successful application depends on many factors such as proposed use, vehicle access where appropriate, local authority guidelines etc. Most applications will go through if approached correctly.
Q   How long will it be before fish can be introduced into a new lake?
A There are many factors to be considered here and, left to its own devices, a lake can take up to two years to mature. We can accelerate the process considerably bringing the time down to just a few months, naturally and without the use of chemicals. An income plus recovery of excavation costs etc can usually be achieved within 12 to 18 months. When starting from scratch it is vitally important that all options of potential income are closely examined in order to design the lake for a specific purpose as most problems such as predation can be virtually eradicated with careful planning. This will save a great deal of unnecessary expenditure later on and significantly reduce potential losses.
Q   Can I earn an income from a small pond ?
A Certainly. Profits do not have to come from fish alone as there are many other options including rare plants and lilies. Obviously the more water you have available the more you can potentially earn, it depends on the project and the amount you can allocate for stock in general. As a rough guide we have a minimum target of £10,000 profit per acre under water and, in most cases, a considerably higher figure can be achieved.
Q   I have no experience in this industry. Can I still take a new project on ?
A To be frank there are literally hundreds of failed or badly run projects. Digging a hole in the ground and filling it with fish is fraught with danger and will never be as successful as a co-ordinated well informed approach. We can provide any level of assistance you require from basic advice to our full 24hr management packages. We are more expensive than any other consultancy but we often tailor our contracts on a percentage of profit which illustrates our confidence that you will achieve more with us than any other company. You will get honest straightforward advice, some you will like and some you will not. We will tell you where the potential pitfalls are and do our best to deter you from making costly mistakes. Put simply, if you earn money then so do we. As your expertise increases you can reduce the amount of support you need from us or simply leave us to run the whole thing for you. It's your choice.
Q   I am thinking of buying an existing lake. Should I have it surveyed ?
A   Whether buying or selling, a survey will provide detailed and vital information quickly, efficiently and without the need to drain the lake . We know of many instances when money has been lost due to false or exaggerated claims made by vendors. Our advice is ' be careful '! A basic survey is relatively cheap and worth every penny. Apart from valuing the existing stock a survey will reveal any other problems such as contamination, bio-mass saturation and so on. We also examine local records to establish the history of the venue. We recently advised a client to withdraw from a purchase of a quite well known fishery despite its apparent desirability and their enthusiasm to purchase. Thankfully they took our advice as it has now come to out attention that, due to the size and poor condition of the venue, the new buyer faces rehabilitation expenses in excess of £200,000. A dream can easily become a nightmare so get some expert advice before it's too late.