Restructuring of lobster fishery to avert stock collapse

Proposed changes in managing access to the Irish lobster fishery if accepted by the industry will see the Irish coast divided into eight units. All authorised vessels under or equal to 12m in length will be licensed to fish for lobster; however vessels over 12m will be only be authorised on the basis of established track record.

Managing Access to the Irish Lobster Fishery, which was prepared by BIM in consultation with the Lobster Species Advisory Group, follows on from an analysis of lobster stocks that revealed over-exploitation in many areas around the coast.

Pic: Lobster fishermen in the Roundstone area will primarily fish out of Management Unit 5b. Photo G Mills

Total capacity of vessels authorised to fish lobster will be stabilised once initial authorisations are issued, and further increases will be conditional upon improvement in catches and as agreed by industry.

Building a bridge between you and the EU

The European Commission Representation in Ireland is part of a network of representative offices throughout the Member States of the European Union. It is the Commission’s voice in Ireland, and aims to communicate EU affairs at national and local level. 

Inshore Ireland asked the Dublin Office about its role specifically relating to fisheries, aquaculture and maritime affairs:

The Commission’s role is framed by the Common Fisheries Policy (CFP). It proposes legislation at EC level; manages EC funds earmarked under the CFP, and monitors the application of EC law. In some specific cases, the Commission also adopts detailed technical rules.

High speed props, hydrofoil stabilising rams and the asymmetric hull combine to create a highly technical craft. Photo Gillian Mills/Inshore Ireland

Unique design to aid Ireland’s seabed mapping capabilities?

Running before dark skies that were building in the Irish Sea, a silver shimmer appeared on the horizon off Bray Head. It was the RV Keary – a purpose built, aluminium catamaran whose journey had begun 7,000 miles away in a boatyard in Cape Town almost two years ago.

High speed props, hydrofoil stabilising rams and the asymmetric hull combine to create a highly technical craft. Photo Gillian Mills/Inshore Ireland

High speed props, hydrofoil stabilising rams and the asymmetric hull combine to create a highly technical craft. Photo Gillian Mills/Inshore Ireland

The vessel is named after the late Ray Keary of the Geological Survey of Ireland who for years had quietly championed the value of Ireland’s marine resource. Finally his message was heard when the GSI received approval from government in 1999 to commence mapping Ireland’s seabed territory, an area that is nine times the size of its landmass.

Ketchikan: canned salmon centre of the world

As the sign says: ‘Welcome to the capital of salmon’. Everything about Ketchikan resonates of this king of fish - from the signage to the clothing to the very street talk. So I discovered on a trip to this Alaskan town as a guest of John West Seafoods.
50ft fishing boat at Kilrush boatyard. Photo Darina Tully

Clare Traditional Boat and Currach Study 2008

Darina Tully

In the summer of 2008, an audit of the traditional boats and currachs of Co Clare was undertaken by the author. A steering group of interested parties was set up under the direction of Congella McGuire, Clare Heritage officer and Tomas Mac Conmara, Heritage Project officer. The project produced an inventory of traditional boats and currachs that established a priority list for their future conservation. The study also examined the local variations in traditional boat and currach building, associated customs, usage and typology.

50ft fishing boat at Kilrush boatyard. Photo Darina Tully

 

50ft fishing boat at Kilrush boatyard. Photo Darina Tully

Vessels over 25 years

The audit was confined to boats deemed to be ‘heritage boats’. In keeping with the definition of heritage under The Heritage Act 1995, heritage boats were defined, for the purposes of this study, as vessels over 25 years old.

The project found that Co Clare has three distinctive areas of water-based transport: the dynamic West Coast, the Shannon Estuary and the relatively calm waters of Lough Derg. Thirty classes of boats were identified in use within the county. Currachs and gandelows make up more than half of the 220 heritage boats now on the inventory.

Peadar McArdle

A snapshot of Ireland’s earth science agency

As director of the Geological Survey of Ireland for the last seventeen years, Dr Peadar McArdle has managed to steer the agency on a course that has given the public a wider awareness of the potential economic benefits of the marine environment.

After a primary degree in geology from UCD in the early 70s, McArdle continued with postgraduate research before heading to Africa where he gained invaluable experience as a young geologist with the national survey of Malawi. 

Peadar McArdle

On his return to Ireland he spent a short time in the private sector with Silvermines before joining the Geological Survey in 1975 where he was involved in the minerals area.

Shannon Gandalows1

Long-term lobster storage: fact file

Long-term lobster storage: fact file
Shannon Gandalows1

‘Star Trek’ technology for coastal surveys

Armed with a sophisticated hand-held Global Positioning System (dGPS) enabled data logger on board a rigid inflatable boat (RIB) in Cork Harbour, researchers in CMRC (the Coastal and Marine Resources Centre, UCC), have demonstrated that conducting detailed coastline surveys from the water is a cost effective alternative to traditional terrestrial surveys, reports Vicki O’Donnell, CMRC

Working with scientists from the Virginia Institute of Marine Science (VIMS), with whom UCC signed a Memorandum of Understanding in 2003, the Geographical Information System (GIS) Group has developed tools to create a comprehensive database of shoreline features.

Shannon Gandalows1

The gandelows of the Shannon Estuary

Darina Tully

The indigenous wooden boat of the Shannon Estuary is a dory-style boat known locally as a ‘gandelow’. The boats have a flat bottom and are clinker-planked although there is also a yawl type that is carvel built.Shannon Gandalows1

The gandalows could have evolved locally, as the boat's shape enables fishermen and farmers to expolot the tidal areas of the estuary. Photo Darina Tully

Just like a dory, there is considerable sheer in the bow. Different styles of gandelow can be found within the Shannon Estuary. Boats found in the Cashen, Clarecastle, Killadysert, Bunratty and Limerick City areas all display regional differences, mainly in the shape of the stern.