Mick Wallace (Wexford, Independent)
Link to this: Individually | In context | Oireachtas source

465. To ask the Minister for Communications, Climate Action and Environment his plans to protect and promote small coastal fishing communities, in particular those fishermen who did not avail of the salmon hardship scheme in 2007 and instead waited for salmon stocks to recover so that they could return to fishing; if he has given consideration to subsidies for polyvalent licences for these fishermen; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [49050/17]

Seán Kyne (Galway West, Fine Gael)
Link to this: Individually | In context | Oireachtas source

The substantive elements of the Deputy's question, relating to licences in the polyvalent segment of the Irish fishing fleet and the protection and promotion of coastal fishing communities, are within the remit of the Department of Agriculture Food and the Marine and its Agency, Board Iascaigh Mhara (BIM).

The remit of my Department is largely confined to the management of salmon stocks both inland and at sea. Management of salmon stocks is carried out by Inland Fisheries Ireland (IFI) and is supported by scientific advice from the International Council for the Exploration of the Sea (ICES) and Ireland’s independent Standing Scientific Committee. Salmon research in coastal areas and in the marine environment concentrates on increasing knowledge of migratory patterns, marine based mortality and return rates to home rivers. Stock assessments are carried out on the individual genetic stock in each of Ireland's 147 salmon rivers, river sections and estuaries 

The Atlantic salmon is a protected species under the EU Habitats Directive with which Ireland’s current salmon management regime complies. In order to align fully with the Directive and the North Atlantic Salmon Conservation Organisation (NASCO) principles, the Irish Government closed mixed stock salmon fisheries in 2007 including coastal and offshore fishing. Harvest fisheries are now only allowed on individual river stocks which are shown to have a surplus of fish over their individual conservation limit and in estuaries where the stocks from individual rivers entering the estuaries are each meeting their individual conservation limits.

The Salmon Hardship Scheme was introduced in 2007 under which fishermen active in the commercial salmon fishery could opt to voluntarily cease fishing and undertake not to seek a licence in the future. In excess of €25 million was allocated to the scheme to facilitate payments to fishermen, with a further €5 million provided for community development projects.  The scheme closed for applications on 31 December 2007 and ceased in 2008. It is considered that individual river stocks would be in a far more perilous state if the closure of mixed stock fisheries had not been implemented.