Jennifer Whitmore (Wicklow, Social Democrats) | Oireachtas source

Turning to the area of the marine, it was welcome that the Minister mentioned it earlier and that it has been incorporated into the climate action plan. It is one area on which we have not focused enough when it comes to climate action and general environmental health. One of the main areas where the marine can assist with climate action relates to acting as a carbon store, but it is clear that fishing activities such as bottom trawling interrupt that and cause significant problems when it comes to carbon storage. It has been estimated that 1 gigatonne of carbon per year is released globally along the seabed from bottom trawling, which is where nets are dragged along the seabed, especially where people are fishing in Irish waters for species such as cod, haddock and so on.

As the Minister will be aware, I used to work for the Marine Institute and did a lot of fishing. I was part of surveys where we placed cameras on the seabed to look at nephrops and their habitat. It was clear it was like a moonscape, with the sediment that was there. We could really reflect on bottom trawling and how it would impact on and scrape up that sediment and cause difficulties.

A leaked report from the EU in recent weeks indicated the EU was going to propose a ban on bottom trawling in marine protected areas, and it is a Government commitment that marine protected areas will cover 30% of our maritime territory by 2030. Will the Minister support a ban on bottom trawling in marine protected areas in Ireland?