Vol. 416 No. 3
77 Mrs. Barnes asked the Minister for the Marine if he will give details of the research, if any, which is being undertaken at present to discover the fish stocks and species which are in reality available in our fishing waters with particular regard to non-quota species; if our fishing fleets are appropriate and equipped for the fishing of such non-quota species; and if he will make a statement on the matter.
Ireland is carrying out a major programme of research and exploratory fishing to assist diversification into new species and new fisheries and the opening up of new grounds.
To this end, the fisheries research centre of my Department are carrying out a programme of research into all the key food species, such as herring, mackerel, cod, haddock, whiting, hake, sole, plaice and nephrops with a view to maintaining and expanding our data base so that accurate assessments of the realities of the stock situation can be made. In addition, specific investigations are carried out into a wide range of non-quota species like blue whiting, argentine, horse mackerel, spurdog, ray and tuna, often in collaboration with BIM.
Complementing the primary research of Roinn na Mara's fisheries research centre, Ireland's exploratory fishing programme is directed by BIM and avails fully of the grants available for this purpose from the Community's Structural Funds. Eight projects have already been carried out successfully, providing important information on non-quota pelagic and demersal species such as blue whiting, argentine, ling and tusk, as well as some more exotic species, at least in an Irish context, such as tuna and swordfish.
A submission has also been made very recently to the European Commission for an investigation into the extent of deepwater non-quota whitefish species on the edge of the Continental Shelf. Other voyages envisaged for the near future include further research into the species of ling and tusk, roundnose grenadier, black scabbard, rays bream and spotted dogfish, all non-quota species combining marketability with availability.
A part of the fleet already has the capability and equipment to fish various non-quota species. This is evidenced by the increasing catches of some of these species, such as horse mackerel, in recent years. A key objective of the research and exploratory programmes is to identify the boats and types of gear most suited to these fisheries.
