Mr. Michael Desmond:

Climate experts say we are experiencing a climate crisis because we have lost our connectedness to nature. The people who still have the connection are inshore fisherman. Yet, it is us who are being sacrificed in the name of it. Several politicians have called for the decarbonisation of the fishing fleet even though we have the lowest carbon footprint of all food producers.

There are hundreds of small open fishing vessels using between 1 and 2 litres of fuel per hour while alongside us at sea ecotourism boats seeking basking sharks, dolphins and other marine mammals are equipped with twin 300, 400 and 500 hp engines, emitting 100 times more carbon than us. If decarbonisation is to occur in the marine sphere, would it not make sense that it would start with the ecoboats rather than primary producers of healthy food? There are dozens of nuclear submarines roaming the world’s oceans, but the three of us here are deemed to be the danger to the planet while, in actual fact, the inshore fishing sector could be part of the solution with small scale, sustainable, wild-caught, fresh organic food improving invigorating and sustaining employment and population in Ireland’s coastal communities into the future if the political will to help was there. I hope this committee will be an example of that will.