Eamon Ryan (Dublin South, Green Party)

I wish the Ceann Comhairle, the Minister and his officials a happy, quiet and peaceful Christmas.

This Bill is an example of North-South co-operation and mirrors the example currently being set by the Green Party with its new all-Ireland basis and innovative new North-South structures. The case for integrated management of our rivers and estuaries is proven time and again. I today received correspondence relating to the Ballinahinch River from the Save Our Sea Trout campaign. The organisation has been engaged for many years in the debate regarding the risk to wild sea trout and salmon stocks from certain aquaculture policies. Coincidentally, I am currently reading the biography of John Moriarty and it contains much information on the wonder of the Ballinahinch River near which he lived for many years. The river was a famous sea trout fishery, but the catch on it had slumped to 200 to 300 trout per year. Two years ago, the salmon farm in the bay, through which all the sea trout and salmon had to travel and where they risked picking up lice, was closed and reopened as a cod aquaculture facility. Lo and behold, the sea trout catch on the river rose to 1,000 last year, albeit with smaller fish. That figure rose to 1,200 this year and larger sea trout are returning to the river. The salmon run last year increased to approximately 1,600. This is a famous sea trout and salmon river and gives employment to hundreds of people in the area. It is great to see it recovering.

Management of aquaculture and other resources in our rivers and estuaries is crucial. It is important that we conduct the management and licensing of the rivers and estuaries, in this case Lough Foyle and Carlingford Lough, on a sustainable basis. In 1997, the Government published a report by Brady Shipman Martin on the issue of coastal zone management. The Minister for Communications, Marine and Natural Resources, Deputy Noel Dempsey, was the Minister for the Environment and Local Government at that time. Responding to the report he said: "We must preserve the intrinsic value of the coastal zone while simultaneously availing of the advantages it bestows in the interests of local communities and the wider economy. Our rate of success will be dictated by the extent to which the principles of sustainable development inform management policy formulation and its delivery at local level." I am concerned that nothing has happened since those early days of the Government as regards proper and sustainable development in our estuaries and proper coastal zone management. The Government's legislative programme in 2002 said that legislation to develop coastal zone management would be published in 2003. As Deputy Broughan said, nothing much has happened since then.

I am concerned and slightly disappointed that this opportunity has been missed. While I know this is a more complicated and difficult Bill because it must be done in conjunction with either the Assembly or Westminster, I am disappointed that we seem to be continuing a tradition of narrowly defining how we manage our fisheries. While the principles setting out the aquaculture projects, appeals boards and fines etc, are welcome, I regret that the opportunity to go further and adopt proper coastal zone management was not taken.

The best example seems to be the conflict that will potentially still exist between the rights and interests of people collecting wild, natural oysters, which has been done for a significant period, and those introducing commercial applications, such as mussel farms. I commend the Save the Swilly campaign group, which operates on a neighbouring lough to Lough Foyle, for the work it has done in raising estuary management issues. I am concerned that this Bill does not explain how we intend managing wild oyster beds.

A number of concerns were raised at our committee meeting yesterday where the Minister of State, Deputy Browne, presented some of the new wild salmon management procedures. The cost of licences for drift netting and other salmon fishing methods will, in some instances, be higher than the fines that apply for poaching. We face a serious problem in managing this area. The Government's delay in establishing a new fisheries board structure shows that it has not given this area the priority it deserves.

It is interesting that the fines in this Bill are significantly higher than in existing legislation. The Minister of State at the Department of Communications, Marine and Natural Resources, Deputy Browne, told the Joint Committee on Communications, Marine and Natural Resources yesterday that a review of legislation was required but that the Government had not been able to carry it out within the tight timeframe of the legislative programme. As many Members said this morning, given that we had to suspend the Dáil three times because of insufficient business, it is difficult to understand how we were not able to progress broader legislation in aquaculture and fisheries management, which we desperately need if we are to develop and protect this most valuable resource in a sustainable way. Some 60% of Irish people live within the coastal zone management areas and we have a huge economic, environmental and social interest in getting it right.

I commend this Bill and I am happy to support it on behalf of my party, but I cannot commend the Government for its management of this area in the four and a half years I have been in the House. It is an area which seems to have been forgotten.

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