Biosecurity - Your future sport depends on it!

What troubled times we fish in!  There are invaders on the march that threaten our sport. From the constant threat of the introduction of Gyrodactylus salaris which could destroy our salmon (and other salmonoid) populations now we have the killer shrimp Dikerogammarus villosus that threatens our freshwater ecosystems.  It appears that Dikerogammarus was first recorded at Grafham Water in Cambridgeshire in September this year and already it has spread rapidly and has now been found at two sites in Wales (Cardiff Bay and Eglwys Nunydd Reservoir in Port Talbot).

Gyrodactylus salaris

This is a call to arms - we must be aware of what these invaders can do - quite simply decimate our sport either by widespread destruction of the species we target or by destruction of the ecosystem that they depend on.
There is a simple thing we can do - make sure that we, as anglers do not spread them.  This means that we must disinfect our tackle immediately after we return from a fishing trip abroad.  By tackle we mean everything from rods, reels, lines & nets down to our waders, wellies, nylon, leaders and even our flies.  A bottle of bleach and a your bath filled with hot water is all you need.  Then you should make sure that the tackle is bone-dry before using it again.  This should prevent any further introduction of nasty alien species by fishermen returning from abroad.
What can we do when fishing at home - well if you have the time you should disinfect every time you have been fishing.  Yes, I admit this is unlikely but what we should do at the very least is properly dry out all of our tackle before using it again, and certainly before using it at a different venue to the one you got it wet at!
Fishery owners, well the good ones, often provide a disinfectant dip tank to be used for nets etc before fishing commences - USE THEM before starting and when you have finished, and not just for your nets - dip your boots/waders and also dip your rod and reel.
If you care about the future of your sport then please think of biosecurity - it may be the difference between a bright future and unused tackle with only memories of what it was like in the 'good old days'.