Vol. 481 No. 7
223 Mr. Browne (Carlow-Kilkenny) asked the Minister for Arts, Heritage, Gaeltacht and the Islands the reason the river Barrow and canal are the only waterways with the Office of Public Works regulation banning shooting; and if she will withdraw the regulation. [16809/97]
The Barrow navigation — river and lateral canals — is part of the canal system including the Barrow Line, the Grand Canal and the Royal Canal which were transferred to my Department from the Office of Public Works in March 1996. The legislation governing these waterways is the Canals Act, 1986. Under this Act, by-laws were brought into force in 1998 (S. I. No. 247 of 1988) prohibiting, inter alia, any person to “throw, shoot or otherwise propel any stone, shot, bullet or other missile from, into or over any boat, or the canal property”. [by-law 38(r)]. Accordingly, the prohibition on shooting over canal property applies throughtout the canal system.
The question of shooting along the Barrow navigation came to the fore last year when the National Association of Regional Game Councils made representations on behalf of local gun clubs in the Carlow-Kilkenny areas. They indicated, inter alia, that the prohibition stated in by-law 38(r) prevented these clubs from exercising their “traditional shooting rights” along the Barrow. The matter was referred to my predecessor who instructed that the Waterways Service carry out an extensive consultation, seeking the views of a large number of interested groups on whether the prohibition on shooting along the Barrow should, or should not, be lifted. This consultation indicated that a clear majority of the respondents wished to retain the shooting ban along the waterway. Accordingly, having taken all views into consideration, I decided recently that the prohibition on shooting over canal property should be retained.
