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Dáil Éireann debate -
Tuesday, 6 Nov 2001

Vol. 543 No. 2

Written Answers. - Salmon Farming.

Michael Bell

Question:

167 Mr. Bell asked the Minister for the Marine and Natural Resources if his attention has been drawn to breaches of the terms of aquaculture licences issued to a company (details supplied) at Killary and Portside regarding the levels of sea lice; the level of funding from his Department for this venture; if he has taken action, or proposes to take action on this matter; if so, when; the reason he permitted fish to remain in cages until July 2000; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [26263/01]

I presume the Deputy is referring to a salmon farming operation in Killary Harbour and a former salmon farming operation at Portside, Inver Bay, County Donegal.

All marine salmon farming operations are subject to regular inspection under the national sea lice monitoring programme which is overseen by the Marine Institute. Sea lice levels are set with the objective of maintaining levels as close to zero as practicable. The levels determine the use of approved targeted treatment regimes. Irish lice control parameters are the most stringent of all salmon producing countries.

Licence conditions pertaining to the Killary operation set down specific thresholds for average levels of egg bearing lice. These limits are more stringent than those set down under the national monitoring programme. In the case of the Killary operation, the Department notes that the lice threshold was exceeded by the company in early March 2000 primarily because of delays in the availability of a new sea lice treatment, due to reasons beyond the company's control. The Department is satisfied that the company took immediate and effective corrective action to reduce lice levels below the threshold laid down in the aquaculture licence and that lice levels at the farm have since that time remained below that threshold. The Department continues to keep sea lice limits at salmon farms under general review and to closely monitor the levels on all farms.

Under regional programmes of the National Development Plan 2000-2006 £25 million in EU and Exchequer funding has been allocated to aquaculture development. Grant aid in the amount of approximately £750,000 was recently approved for the Killary operation.

The decision by the Minister of State to grant a ten year aquaculture licence for the Portside operation in February 1999 followed consideration of an application which was supported by a comprehensive Environmental Impact Statement which was published. That decision was appealed by third parties to the independent statutory Aquaculture Licences Appeals Board. The operation's short-term trial licence for salmon cultivation, which was granted in March 1999, expired in February 2000. In March 2000, ALAB decided to uphold the appeals against the grant of an aquaculture licence for the Portside operation. The operator indicated to the Department that he was considering making an application to the High Court for a judicial review of ALAB's decision, as he was specifically entitled to do under the Fisheries (Amendment) Act, 1997. The time limit for doing so ran out in June 2000. In the event, however, the operator did not pursue the option of judicial review and advised the Department that he would harvest the fish within weeks as soon as they would be ready for harvesting. Harvesting was completed in July 2000. It will be appreciated that harvesting of farmed fish generally takes some weeks to complete, being influenced by key factors such as market availability, weather, labour, equipment and processing availability, etc.
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