Dáil Éireann Debate, Tuesday - 14 July 2015
414. Deputy Clare Daly asked the Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine given that the scaling recommendations for offshore salmon farms do not differentiate between sites in deep water and sites close to the shore, his plans to suspend his Department's consideration of Marine Harvest Ireland's application for Shot Head, until appropriate scaling recommendations can be prepared for sites close to the shore. [29125/15]
View answerThe application from Marine Harvest Ireland for an aquaculture licence for the cultivation of finfish at Shot Head, Bantry Bay is being considered by my Department under the provisions of the Fisheries (Amendment) Act 1997 and the Foreshore Act 1933.
As the application is under active consideration as part of the statutory process it would not be appropriate for me to comment further in relation to this application at this time.
As the Deputy is aware, the National Strategic Plan for Sustainable Aquaculture Development has been published by my Department and is currently the subject of public consultation. It would not be appropriate for anyone to seek to prejudge the outcome of the consultation process or any actions, legislative or otherwise, that might follow on from that process.
In the meantime, and in the normal way, applications on hand and all new applications will continue to be assessed under the provisions of the existing legislation and licence determinations made in accordance with the legislation.
