Eamon Ryan (Dublin South, Green Party)

I am very glad to be here to reply to the various contributions made and acknowledge the very good work done by our public servants in this area. As Senator Mullen said, too often we concentrate on the negative and do not recognise the things we do that are innovative and progressive. In this area what we are doing is world-class and worthy of recognition. On 6 and 7 October at an international conference in Dublin Seabed 100, the programme of Irish seabed mapping begun in 1999, was reviewed, had its results showcased and achievements lauded. Mapping of deeper waters was completed in 2005 under the direction of the Geological Survey of Ireland, GSI. Since 2006 an effective partnership between the GSI and the Marine Institute has been tackling the near-shore seabed under the INFOMAR project. In speaking to Senators today I am keen to outline the results of this effort to date and the benefits which have accrued, both in terms of the increased skills base and the added value for specific sectors.

Before examining the detail of how the project has operated and what it is delivering, it would be good to examine its fiscal costs and benefits. An undertaking of this scale is not cheap. Expenditure on the Irish national seabed survey totalled €32 million, while the budget for the INFOMAR programme is €4million per annum. It is imperative, therefore, that such a programme be examined to see if it represents value for money. In 2008 an independent financial review of the programme was completed. The review, carried out by consultants PricewaterhouseCoopers, examined, under Department of Finance rules, the options and costs to completion of the current work. The study calculated in a prudent way the estimated benefits accruing from the work across a range of sectors. In the commercial sector the areas examined were fishing, aquaculture, biodiversity, renewable energy, energy exploration and aggregates, while impacts on the knowledge economy and research and legislative savings through the avoidance of non-compliance fines were also calculated. The study examined four options, from the cessation of activity through to the acceleration of the programme. A large number of non-quantifiable benefits were identified, particularly relating to the environment. The study did not put a monetary value on some of the speculative benefits such as a hydrocarbon find, a major biotechnology discovery or the avoidance of major costs such as clean-up costs arising from an oil spill. Although the study recommended a ramping-up of the programme, if possible, the option chosen was to continue the current level of funding with an estimated net present value of benefits of €275 million and a benefit to cost ratio of 4.4.

I wish to cover the mechanism for mapping Ireland's seabed in which we are engaged. Ireland is a relatively small island on the west European seaboard and isolated on the Continental Shelf of the north-east Atlantic. In order to define the limits of our underwater territory beyond the traditional territorial waters and understand what it may contain, the seabed must be mapped. The first significant seabed surveys, part of the national preparation of a submission to the United Nations Commission on the Limits of the Continental Shelf, took place in 1995 and 1996. The results supported the extension of our seabed area to more than 1,000 km off the west coast. This was a considerable resource in which the Government was prepared to invest. Marine science and geo-science have since become priority themes in Ireland's science and technology landscape.

The Irish national seabed survey, INSS, funded by the Government, was designed to produce comprehensive information on all aspects of the seabed as a basis for its sustainable management. From 1999 to 2005 the survey successfully mapped all waters deeper than 200 m, in addition to considerable areas of shallow water. The project completed not only the depth mapping or bathymetry but also provided a groundbreaking set of multibeam backscatter - used for resolving seabed type - magnetic, gravity and ancillary data. Deep seismic surveys examined specific regions and video and physical samples provided ground truthing of interpretations.

The Canadian Centre for Marine Communications was engaged from 1999 to 2000 to assist with project planning, design and specifications. Stakeholder feedback has been involved in all aspects of managing the programme to ensure it meets the needs of society. At an early stage changes were implemented to maximise the value, including a shift from paper-based to digital technologies, making mid-depth surveys with deep water surveys and concentrating on the needs of customers.

Many ships have been used. The Irish company Global Ocean Technology Limited, GOTECH, won a contract from 2000 to 2002 to undertake the deep water mapping and used the SV Bligh and the SV Siren, the former in deeper waters and the latter in relatively shallow waters of 200 m to 1,000 m in depth off the south west. The Marine Institute's RV Celtic Voyager and latterly RV Celtic Explorer have been the mainstay of the INFOMAR programme. Additional work on the Rockall bank used the Granuaile, a vessel of the Commissioners of Irish Lights.

The INFOMAR programme is being jointly undertaken by the GSI, under the Department of Communications, Energy and Natural Resources, and the Marine Institute, now an agency of the Department of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food. Since 2006 INFOMAR has been dedicated to mapping the more challenging inshore and coastal waters. The first phase focuses on 26 priority bays and three priority areas, the second on completing all remaining areas unmapped. The initial approval for INFOMAR covered three years from 2006 to 2008 and, following a positive financial review in 2008, the project has been approved to at least the end of the current national development programme in 2013.

The INFOMAR programme, focused as it is on shallow waters, has needed other platforms for acquiring data. Following a successful trial in 2002, coastal airborne surveys using laser mapping have been a regular part of INFOMAR, particularly in the clearer waters off the west coast in waters up to 30 m deep. The Celtic Explorer has worked in coastal and inlet waters as shallow as 50 m and the Celtic Voyager to 20 m. Biological and geological sampling, as well as video surveys, are undertaken from these various ships, as well as from a small rigid inflatable boat. The final most shallow area in the inshore is now being mapped using the most recent addition to the national fleet of research vessels, the RV Keary, a 15 m aluminium catamaran built and equipped specifically to carry out shallow water mapping.

The INFOMAR project is carefully managed under a cross-departmental project board, reports to a technical advisory committee of stakeholders and undergoes detailed NDP monitoring. I am delighted to advise that the project is on track, meeting both financial and technical targets. To date, the priority area off the south west has been completed, with the priority bays of Galway, Bantry, Dunmanus, Tralee, Donegal and Sligo. Dublin Bay will be completed this year and work has commenced on the rest. Under the current Government decision, the project will again be reviewed in 2012.

What has come from all this and what are the project outputs? Data are processed, interpreted and customised to meet the needs of a wide range of customers and stakeholders. Starting with energy, suitable anchoring sites must be identified for offshore renewable energy extraction from wind or wave energy projects and seabed classification maps provide accurate information on site conditions. Similar information is required for site selection for drilling rigs for oil and gas exploration and production. Exploration relies on the interpretation of seismic, magnetic, gravity and geological information. The PricewaterhouseCoopers study valued the benefits to the energy exploration sector at over €49 million, with a further €40 million of benefits for the renewable energy sector.

In terms of fisheries, marine life is not uniformly distributed throughout the oceans and the occurrence of many species is strongly influenced by the nature of the sea floor. Some favour a rocky habitat, others a muddy one. Reliable fish habitat maps are equally valuable to trawler owners as to national fishery regulators and environmental agencies. Fish habitat maps will promote efficient harvesting while minimising the environmental damage caused to the sea floor by excessive trawling and contribute to national and EU fishery regulations and policies. The study valued the benefits to this sector at some €95 million.

In terms of environmental protection, the Irish have traditionally associated coral reefs with the warmer climates of places such as Queensland in Australia. In recent years they have become familiar with the wealth of similar reefs on the edge of our continental shelf. In particular, cold water carbonate mounds extend from south of Ireland along the Atlantic fringes as far north as Norway. They nurture juvenile fish, but equally they require satisfactory protection as valuable marine heritage. In 2007 Ireland became one of the first countries worldwide to protect such environments with the designation of four special areas of conservation. Benefits accruing from the legislative area were estimated at over €7 million.

In terms of aggregates, the vibrant economy of the past decade saw an unprecedented level of construction of national infrastructure. The considerable resulting pressure on land-based aggregate resources means there is increasing interest in potential offshore resources. Seabed surveys designed to test for offshore aggregates have recently been undertaken. The mounds and ridges, often glacial, are valued both as fish breeding grounds and as sites for renewable energy installations. The seabed surveys' results can inform prudent decision making in dealing with such conflicting interests. The benefits in this sector are estimated at some €85 million.

Regarding marine safety, hydrographic charts around the coastline have, until recently and apart from minor updates, dated from the late 19th century. Some are now obsolete owing to shifting sediment patterns in the intervening period. The changing demands of shipping have placed additional and different pressures on busy sea lanes. Coastal seabed surveys have been undertaken to characterise modern shipping lanes, ensure safe passage to ports and provide modern charts.

Heritage is an important aspect of seabed management. Detailed mapping is essential to support the delineation of special areas of conservation. Shipwrecks on the sea floor have been mapped with remarkable clarity, often illustrating the way the ships sank and came to rest on the seabed. Many are national monuments and may represent heritage extending back as far as the Spanish Armada.

In terms of marine research, a key use of the data produced is as an enabler for leading edge research. More than 200 projects to date have benefited from data, advice or funding, including a project to deploy instruments that will monitor a range of environmental parameters in Galway Bay involving both INTEL and IBM. In another, NUI Galway, funded by the Griffith Geoscience Research Awards, will investigate groundwater-sea water interactions affecting drinking water supply on the Clare side of Galway Bay. A conservative value of €10 million has been estimated for benefits arising from research.

In terms of delivering the data, early on it became clear that the programme would fail if it focused exclusively on data acquisition. From interaction with stakeholders, a digital environment, including web delivery and geographic information systems, GIS, was seen to be the way forward. Duplication and backup are employed for data security. Web mapping allows users direct access to their target data sets using GIS. The most recent interactive web data delivery system which allows users high speed web download is the first such fully interactive system of its kind in the northern hemisphere. Every effort has been made to facilitate data usage. A policy of free access to data sets for all users was introduced in 2007.

The results of seabed mapping have become a key component of Ireland's emerging knowledge economy. The mapping has been the foundation for a state-of-the-art information management system. The level of activity sustains a significant skills base and will ensure Ireland has a healthy foundation in both geo-science and marine science in the future. The seabed mapping has also built an unprecedented level of co-operation among agencies.

Public awareness of seabed mapping has increased gradually in recent years. Popular images like shipwrecks and coral reefs have delighted an audience that is increasingly attuned to the enterprise and career opportunities of science and technology. These audiences, even those with limited formal scientific knowledge, visit the relevant websites with increasing frequency and download appreciable levels of information. The policy of free access for all users has encouraged this process and many commercial users regularly return to the websites for updates.

At Government level, I am pleased that there is recognition that geo-science programmes such as seabed mapping can provide an accessible avenue for students who may eventually study varied aspects of science. This helps Ireland to reach its science and technology targets in building its knowledge economies. Collaborative seabed mapping has also advanced the co-operation between the Governments of Ireland and the United Kingdom.

Ireland's continued investment in seabed mapping is essential to complete a task, started in deep waters in 1999, that will only be finished when all coastal waters have been surveyed. Seabed mapping is set to deliver a remarkable range of data sets which will underpin Ireland's policies and regulation for many decades. They will provide an excellent foundation for research and services and comprise a unique teaching and outreach resource. Many industrial and research sectors have gained benefit according as the national pool of expertise has increased. Ireland is establishing a marine data infrastructure consistent with state-of-the-art technologies and methodologies. Seabed mapping has enhanced the international profile for Irish marine expertise. It is a reflection of the Government's commitment to science and technology in general and specifically to geo-science and marine science and a statement that Ireland is a forward-looking nation which is science-friendly and eager to support enterprise based on world-class endeavour.