Vol. 438 No. 6
89 Mr. Sargent asked the Minister for the Marine the licensing mechanism he intends utilising in relation to the application by a company (details supplied) for a site to produce up to 1,000 tonnes of farmed salmon at Doonamore, Portsalon, Lough Swilly; and the reason for his views that this is the most suitable mechanism.
Decisions to license a proposed site in Lough Swilly, to allow for the implementation of an integrated fallowing strategy by the company in question, will be taken under the Fisheries and Foreshore Acts. These are the legal mechanisms used in the licensing of all marine fish farm operations including fallowing proposals.
90 Mr. Sargent asked the Minister for the Marine his views on whether it is appropriate to utilise section 14 of the Fisheries (Consolidation) Act, 1959, to licence the commercial production of large quantities of farmed salmon when the intention is not artificial propagation, transplantation, the stocking, restocking or improvement of any fishery or any scientific purpose.
Temporary permissions under Section 14 of the Fisheries (Consolidation) Act, 1959 and the Foreshore Act have been granted from time to time for experimental purposes to allow the effects of separation of year classes of fish at existing salmon production units to be assessed.
The resultant benefits of such fallowing strategies in fish husbandry and environmental terms are well recognised at this stage and have been confirmed in all such trials to date.
91 Mr. Sargent asked the Minister for the Marine the licensing mechanism and conditions for fish farms to which the Council Directive on the assessment of the effects of certain public and private projects on the environment (85/337/EEC) applies; and the requirements, if any, that he attaches to the bodies required to implement the directive.
My statutory powers in relation to the licensing of fish farming derive from the Fisheries Acts 1959 and 1980 and the Foreshore Act 1933.
The preparation and publication of comprehensive Environmental Impact Statements is mandatory for all licence applications for marine salmonid farms with a proposed annual output of over 100 tonnes and for freshwater salmonid installations.
The threshold limits, consultation procedures and data requirements, which are very strict by comparison to other EU countries, are set out under the European Communities (Environmental Impact Assessment) Regulation 1989 (SI 349/1989) and the Fisheries (Environmental Impact Assessment) Regulations 1990 (SIs 40 and 41/1990).
