Mairéad Farrell (Galway West, Sinn Fein)
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178. To ask the Minister for Environment, Community and Local Government the reason no appropriate assessment screening and/or Natura impact statement was published for the current public consultation on the Wild Salmon and Sea Trout Tagging Scheme (Amendment) Regulations 2025 and Conservation Measures for the 2026 season, considering that this documentation is vital for inspection by affected stakeholders prior to making submissions; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [68971/25]

Timmy Dooley (Clare, Fianna Fail)
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Section 69(8)(a) and (b) of the Inland Fisheries Act 2010 sets out the requirements for the making of a notice in respect of the Wild Salmon and Sea Trout Tagging Scheme Regulations and the Department and I are undertaking this public consultation in accordance with those requirements.

The Technical Expert Group on Salmon (TEGOS) present the salmon advice regarding the scientific assessment of salmon stocks in Irish rivers annually to Inland Fisheries Ireland (IFI) for a forthcoming season as soon as the advice becomes available. The earliest possible date this occurs is generally the first or second week of November as the advice is dependent on average catch data taken from the most recent five years of catch data and fish counters' data. As the season runs to 30 September for the majority of the rivers, the salmon advice is generated by TEGOS in October before being presented to IFI.

IFI then review and forward their recommendations on the catch options for the forthcoming season after receipt of the TEGOS advice. When the IFI recommendations are received in the Department, this initiates the start of the 30-day statutory public consultation process for the draft Regulations. The generation of the Appropriate Assessment Screening (AAS) is dependent on the TEGOS Advice and the IFI Salmon Catch Advice as this scientific data forms the basis of the AAS. The AAS is prepared independently of IFI and once generated is sent for review to an independent external consultant.

The AAS can take several weeks to generate after TEGOS advice and IFI recommendations are finalised, therefore it is not possible, given time constraints, to publish the AAS along with the draft Wild Salmon and Sea Trout Tagging Scheme (Amendment) Regulations. To do so would delay the statutory public consultation process which would jeopardise the completion of Regulations in advance of the opening of the season on 1 January each year.

Mairéad Farrell (Galway West, Sinn Fein)
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179. To ask the Minister for Environment, Community and Local Government the reason Lough Corrib SAC is moving from having a harvestable quota of wild salmon in 2025 to full 'catch and release' angling for the 2026 season, considering his comments on 9 October 2025 stating that the Corrib catchment has a sizeable stock of wild salmon to meet its natural reproductive capacity and does not require supplementation with Cong hatchery stock; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [68972/25]

Mairéad Farrell (Galway West, Sinn Fein)
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180. To ask the Minister for Environment, Community and Local Government whether Lough Corrib anglers can be prosecuted for removing invasive pink salmon (oncorhynchus gorbuscha) without gill tagging from the lake in 2026, considering that no blue gill tags will be distributed with the 2026 Galway district salmon licence under current draft proposals; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [68973/25]

Timmy Dooley (Clare, Fianna Fail)
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There is no requirement under the proposed Wild Salmon and Sea Trout Tagging Scheme Regulations for anglers or commercial fishers to tag or report the capture of Pink salmon (Oncorhynchus gorbuscha). Accordingly, the removal of such fish without tagging would not give rise to an offence under those Regulations.

The policy of the Department, and the position of Inland Fisheries Ireland (IFI), is that pink salmon are an invasive alien species. Anglers, fishers and members of the public are therefore requested to retain any pink salmon encountered and present these fish to IFI for scientific analysis.

Mairéad Farrell (Galway West, Sinn Fein)
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181. To ask the Minister for Environment, Community and Local Government the reason Lough Corrib and its tributaries will be exempt from the 'salmon angling bye-law' for the forthcoming season, as referenced in an information note published alongside the draft 2026 wild salmon and sea trout tagging scheme regulations; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [68974/25]

Mairéad Farrell (Galway West, Sinn Fein)
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182. To ask the Minister for Environment, Community and Local Government if the use of minnow (phoxinus phoxinus) is deemed to be a permissible dead bait under the Waterford Fisheries District (River Barrow) Angling Limitations during Salmon Spawning Run Bye-law (No. 1011) 2024; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [68977/25]