Mr. Tony Barrett:

I beg the Senator's pardon.
The book is written by Jim Morrissey, Dr. Stefan Kraan and Professor Michael D. Guiry of the Martin Ryan Marine Science Institute at NUI, Galway and published by An Bord Iascaigh Mhara. It states the Irish seaweed industry is almost unique in its sustainable exploitation of Ireland's natural resources, and that the use of sustainable harvesting practices which use a cutting frequency of three to four years to allow the target species, such as ascophyllum nodosum, to regenerate has endured this. It states that for a resource which has been exploited for many centuries, and particularly intensively in the past century, Ireland's seaweed resources could accurately be described as well maintained with considerable potential for further sustainable development.
The book also states ascophyllum nodosum grows apically, in other words, the tips actively grow with the plant progressively becoming older towards its base. As I mentioned, the growth cycle takes between three to five years, depending on the area. The book states the adoption of sustainable harvesting practices for exploitation of this resource since the start of large-scale exploitation of ascophyllum nodosum by Arramara Teoranta in the 1960s has successfully maintained and even enhanced the natural resources of ascophyllum nodosum. It states sustainable harvesting means allowing regeneration of the resource between harvests and to this end a number of guidelines have been adopted over the years by hand harvesters applying to Arramara Teoranta. These are listed and include that when cutting seaweed at least 15 cm to 25 cm above the base of the plant should be left attached, which serves to speed up the regeneration process greatly, as if the entire plant is ripped out the resultant space would be quickly colonised by other seaweeds, such as fucus spiralis, and considerable time would elapse before ascophyllum could recolonise the site.
Another guideline listed is that an area should not be completely harvested until bare and rather, a proportion of the biomass, preferably 50%, should be left to maintain a canopy to minimise the impact to the other plants and animals living there. This measure helps minimise the displacement of many fish and other animals living among ascophyllum beds. The fronds generally take between three to five years to regenerate fully following harvesting but the exact period depends on the area and the time of harvesting. Sustainable harvesting requires that such a period of time is allowed to pass before the next harvest occurs. Fallowing of harvested areas between cuts should therefore be carefully observed. It has been found that regular harvesting of ascophyllum nodosum allows greater production.
I will refer to the national seaweed forum report published in 2001. The forum was established by the Minister with responsibility for the marine to develop the seaweed industry in Ireland. Údarás na Gaeltachta had a member on the forum. The report states:

The coast of Ireland has a myriad of different algal species. This forms a potentially very valuable resource. Tapping into this resource is completely sustainable due to a combination of the renewable resource and the good husbandry practices that are employed in its harvesting. The main seaweed crop used in Ireland today (Ascophyllum nodosum) requires a recovery time of only 3-4 years and so the fallow period of 4-5 years employed in Ireland is quite sufficient for sustainability. The fact that the cutters used by the largest company in Ireland (Arramara Teoranta) have been cutting seaweed in the same areas over and over again for more than fifty years provides the practical evidence to support this.

The report also states, "The establishment of processing in Ireland will not only reduce foreign dependence but will increase dramatically the overall contribution of the industry to GNP by capitalising on the value-added end of the market".
The report makes special reference to the Canadian seaweed industry at the time:

Due to the nature of the data available from Canada it is quite difficult to narrow down the differences seen to a particular crop but an overall decline of the Industry is evident. At present the largest seaweed company in the Maritime Provinces (Acadian Seaplants Ltd.) employs 220 people full-time and 870 people seasonally (May to October). Traditionally Ascophyllum was cut using hand-held knives or sickles at low tide or from boats with a toothed rake with a long wooden pole. In the late 1980s the Norwegian suction cutter machine was introduced to Canada. These machines have very high efficiency and quickly put Canada second in the world (after Norway) for Ascophyllum production. Lack of effective management and competition between companies led to over-harvesting of the stocks, putting the sustainability of the resource in jeopardy.

Acadian Seaplants Limited wants to take the traditional rights of the seaweed harvesters in Ireland and claim them for itself, thereby giving it sole control of this vital native Irish resource. What is the real reason for the sensitivity of Arramara Teoranta to the need for harvesters to hold a licence under the 1933 Act now, when in its 67 year history it was quite satisfied to deal with the harvesters who had no licence but held traditional harvesting rights? I contend this newfound self-righteousness is an attempt by a foreign company to gain exclusive control of the seaweed harvesting rights on the Irish coast so it can dictate to all its own terms and can kill off any perceived commercial competition from indigenous companies succeeding in taking some of its market share internationally.
The Foreshore Act 1933 states the State owns all beach material between the high and low water mark and anyone harvesting beach material should have permission in the form of a licence issued by the State. Given that seaweed harvesting has been carried out along Ireland's Atlantic coast for centuries, landlords included seaweed rights in deeds for tenants. These seaweed rights still exist today, which is why licensing has not been in vogue before for those who have traditionally had the right to harvest seaweed. The seaweed rights should be the automatic criterion for the granting of a harvesting licence to the present individual seaweed harvesters. Such a licence should not be granted to any single commercial entity, whatever its origin. If the State's law dictates a licence is required then I am not opposed to the law, but I am strongly opposed to any commercial entity obtaining the exclusive licence for harvesting seaweed along sections of our coast. A licence to harvest seaweed should be preserved only for those who actually harvest the seaweed and not a commercial entity with a vested interest.
I wish Acadian Seaplants Limited every success in its acquisition of Arramara Teoranta.