The Office of Public Works has begun meeting anglers and local authority representatives in Kilkenny to review problems at the Lacken weir on the Nore river.
The anglers claim that engineering works on the weir two years ago during a €48 million flood-relief project are hampering the passage of migrating salmon and other fish.
Kilkenny Anglers' Association president Luke Boyle said he was pleased that "after over a year of being ignored, local people's views are finally being listened to".
The anglers want a Denil pass, designed by engineers at the Department of the Marine, replaced with a "rock ramp" pass.
The association reiterated its intention to take legal action against the OPW "by the end of this month" unless a satisfactory solution is agreed.
An OPW spokesman said that it has received 11 submissions and that "a team consisting of representatives of the OPW, the Department of the Marine and the Southern Regional Fisheries Board is currently evaluating the submissions".
The spokesman added that the OPW, which has already implemented a number of temporary measures at Lacken weir, is "looking to concentrate on a permanent solution" and hoped to start working on the Nore by early summer.
