Dáil Éireann Debate, Wednesday - 1 May 2024
213. Deputy Pádraig Mac Lochlainn asked the Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine if he is aware that the pollack ICES benchmark report listed a significant number of issues with the data used to base the closure decision; and the steps being taken to address these shortcomings at a national level. [19692/24]
View answer214. Deputy Pádraig Mac Lochlainn asked the Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine if he is aware that there is a risk that a future ICES pollack benchmark without appropriate representative inshore survey data being collected will result in prolonged closures with significant social impacts; and the steps being taken to address this. [19693/24]
View answerI propose to take Questions Nos. 213 and 214 together.
The advice on fish stocks published by the International Council for the Exploration of the Sea (ICES) forms the basis of the scientific advice used by the European Commission in proposing Total Allowable Catches (TACs).
I am advised that the ICES stock assessment for Pollack has been thoroughly evaluated and there is no indication that there is a problem with the data. I am further advised that the process leading to the advice for Pollack was as accurate as possible, within the process that was established for assessing Pollack.
The analytical model used in 2023 allows for a better assessment of stock status, based on more complete data, than the previous method which relied on landings data only. In addition to the assessment model outputs, there are a number of independent indicators that support the perception of a declining trend in the stock size, including length-based indicators.
The assessment method on which this advice is based was updated in 2023 following an ICES benchmark process. A "benchmark" is an ICES process which reviews data, establishes an agreed methodology to assess the stock and defines the reference points for management. As part of this process, the new analysis was independently peer-reviewed to ensure the best available science is applied.
The benchmark process is fully transparent and open to participation by stakeholders. The agreed assessment method is the approach that is most robust to remaining uncertainties around the data while providing advice that is based on maximum sustainable yield (MSY) in the long term.
Ireland is actively involved with the scientific research to improve the understanding of Pollack. The Marine Institute is taking a leading role in the next ICES benchmark process for this stock, which will be completed in the spring of 2025. An alternative assessment model, one which uses additional sources of data, will be evaluated as part of this process.
While the preliminary results indicate that this extra information does not change the perception of the stock, the new model will give a more precise estimate of the state of the stock and improve short-term forecasts that determine when the target fishery could re-open.
In addition, the Marine Institute is actively working with scientists from the UK and France on a number of fronts, including genetic analysis of Pollack stock structure and analysing historic data from commercial fisheries, recreational fisheries and scientific surveys.
