Catherine Connolly (Galway West, Independent)
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607. To ask the Minister for Housing, Planning, and Local Government the number and status of outstanding licence applications for seaweed harvesting; the number of licences granted in each of the past five years; the location, licencee, fees attached and term of the licence; the number in operation; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [8499/18]

Damien English (Meath West, Fine Gael)
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There are some 17 applications to harvest seaweed on hands in my Department that have yet to be determined.  During the course of assessing the applications it became clear that certain rights to harvest seaweed exist.  My Department is in the process of ascertaining, with the assistance of the Attorney General, the legal interface and relationship between these traditional harvesting rights and the current applications. 

These applications, most of which are by companies, are effectively on hold until such time as my Department is in a position to bring clarity to the regulatory regime applying to the harvesting of wild seaweed.  At that point the applications on hand will come before me for determination.  Work on this complex legal issue is continuing and I hope to have made substantial progress on the matter in the second quarter of this year. 

Two licences have been issued since 2013, details of which can be found at the following links: 

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