Léim ar aghaidh chuig an bpríomhábhar
Gnáthamharc

Dáil Éireann díospóireacht -
Tuesday, 14 Nov 1989

Vol. 393 No. 1

Written Answers. - Inter-Governmental Conference on the Irish Sea.

47.

asked the Minister for the Environment the action he proposes to take to open up discussions with his counterparts in Northern Ireland, the Isle of Man and Great Britain with a view to convening the Inter-Governmental Conference on the Irish Sea to discuss problems of pollution, environmental contamination and related issues; and if he will make a statement on the matter.

For some time past, environmental considerations in relation to the Irish Sea have been raised at both ministerial and official levels with the United Kingdom authorities. Co-operation between the two sides and joint action within the International Council for the Exploration of the Sea (ICES) has led to the publication of a report on "The Status of Current Knowledge on Authropogenic Influences in the Irish Sea" as part of the ICES co-operative research series. In addition, Irish Sea issues were discussed in considerable detail at a meeting in May of this year attended by Irish, United Kingdom, Northern Ireland and Isle of Man officials. Agreement in principle was reached on the development of co-ordinated monitoring arrangements and details in this regard are to be the subject of further discussions. In addition, there was agreement that general discussions of this kind might usefully be held at intervals of about a year.

I believe that arrangements such as these can lead to effective co-operation in relation to the environmental management and protection of the Irish Sea. The initiatives taken will provide the scientific data on conditions and trends which are essential to a fuller understanding of the marine environment and to the implementation of effective management strategies.

Barr
Roinn