Martin Heydon (Kildare South, Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

I thank Deputy Bacik for raising this important issue. It is important to state from the outset that mussel seed is an essential raw material for the bottom growing mussel aquaculture industry. Mussel farmers fish for wild mussel seed for transplantation onto their licensed aquaculture sites for ongoing and later harvesting over a two-year growth cycle. The fished seed is grown to maturity on the sea floor, as distinct from what happens with rope grown mussels.

The dredge-and-relay aspect is a unique feature of the fishery, whereby the mussel seed biomass is not removed from the ecosystem but is, in fact, retained at more sheltered locations where it typically spawns three or four times during the cycle thereby creating an additional spawning biomass. The fish-and-relay process can, therefore, enhance spawning output by increasing the survival of mussel seed transferred to sheltered sites. The mussel seed fishery sector is managed on an all-island basis in conjunction with the Department of Agriculture, Environment and Rural Affairs in Northern Ireland and the cross-Border Loughs Agency.

The recommendations of the 2008 expert group report, the rising tide, on the bottom mussel industry on the island of Ireland forms the policy basis for managing the mussel seed fishery and bottom mussel culture. A fishery Natura plan for the Irish Sea mussel fisheries was adopted in 2018 following an appropriate assessment. The plan covers five years, from 2018 to 2022, inclusive, and follows on from the previous five-year plan. Fishing for mussel seed in the Irish Sea is restricted under Fisheries Natura Declaration No. 3 of 2018 (Mussel Fishing). This declaration prohibits fishing for mussels in the intertidal zone. It also prohibits fishing for mussels in a number of specific Natura 2000 sites around the Irish coast.

This declaration was amended by Fisheries Natura Declaration No. 2 of 2019 (Mussel Fishing), which modifies the boundary of an area off the Irish coast where fishing for mussels is prohibited. It is important to note that any recommendations to the Minister requesting that fishing be allowed on suggested dates is subject to the availability of adequate amounts of mussel seed being identified by surveys of mussel seed beds.

SI 461/2021 was made under section 15 of the Sea-Fisheries and Maritime Jurisdiction Act 2006. It allows fishing of mussel seed in the exclusive fishery limits of the State from 14 September to 16 December 2021, inclusive, as Deputy Bacik outlined, on suitable tides except for Natura areas closed under fisheries Natura declarations. The fisheries management measures in place for the fishery include restricted access to the fishery and seasonal controls on the periods during which fishing is permitted.

The decision to open the fishery was based on information from various sources, including Bord lascaigh Mhara, BIM, surveys, Marine Institute scientific advice and Sea-Fisheries Protection Authority advice on enforcement. Between May and August 2021, BIM carried out eight seed surveys, including some preliminary surveys, in a number of locations in the Irish Sea, including off Rosslare and Wexford, at Long Bank; off Cahore Point, Rusk Channel; off South Wicklow Head; in the Dublin Bay area; and at Glassgorman Banks.

On the basis of these surveys, BIM identified an estimated 9,293 tonnes of mussel seed in the Irish Sea. The Marine Institute provided the Department with scientific advice for the proposed 2021 mussel seed fishery. The advice notes that survey estimates for the period 2016 to 2021 varied from 3,500 tonnes to 9,293 tonnes. These estimates are substantially lower than previous highs of over 25,000 tonnes reported in catches. At 9,293 tonnes, however, the 2021 estimates are the highest in recent years.

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