Gabrielle McFadden (Longford-Westmeath, Fine Gael)
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204. To ask the Minister for Communications, Energy and Natural Resources the status of the Asian clam sample extracted from the River Shannon at Lanesborough in County Longford in June 2015 by Inland Fisheries Ireland; if that sample is still living; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [39964/15]

Joe McHugh (Donegal North East, Fine Gael)
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The 2.5 tonnes of sample material referred to by the Deputy was removed by Waterways Ireland. As the Deputy will appreciate the Asian Clam is an invasive species and indications, thus far, are that it is resilient and durable in the environment. I am advised that the expected life span out of water, as it is currently understood and estimated, has since been exceeded and therefore the likelihood is that all of these clams are dead. However, it is not possible to definitively verify that each and every individual within the sample material is non-viable without a detailed and expensive analytical examination down to the level of each individual.

IFI confirm that the material is in storage at its facility in Longford, isolated from other materials, to ensure as a priority that no bio-security risk is posed from this material while disposal advise is awaited from the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA).

While IFI has no statutory remit in relation to invasive species, I would be happy to facilitate a detailed briefing for the Deputy from IFI on interventions to date as they relate to matters within their remit.