My presentation deals with the role of Bord Iascaigh Mhara set against the backdrop of some of the problems we have discussed today. It is not my intention to give the committee a complete profile of Bord Iascaigh Mhara. Instead, I will concentrate on one area, fisheries. It is important to recognise that Bord Iascaigh Mhara, through its mission statement, signs up to the concept of sustainable development. It is at the centre of everything we and the entire fisheries apparatus - the Marine Institute, BIM, the Department and so forth - do. Our mission statement is: "To promote the sustainable development of the Irish seafood industry both at sea and ashore and support its diversification in the coastal regions so as to enhance its contribution to employment, income and welfare both regionally and nationally."
The organisation is made up of a board of six members chaired by Mr. Pat Ridge. Mr. Pat Keogh is our chief executive. There are five operational divisions. I will concentrate on the one with which I am associated, the fisheries development division. The Bord Iascaigh Mhara approach is not to focus our gaze outwards from Dún Laoghaire and never look back. Our presence extends right around the coast. We have the National Fisheries College in Greencastle, County Donegal, the recently reopened regional fisheries centre in Castletownbere, which is being extended, an office in Galway and a network of inshore fisheries development officers. We also have a network of area officers who provide help on another level and the aquaculture division has a team of people spread around the coast. At least a third of staff, therefore, are based in the regional ports and operate at a local level. Moreover, we also have a presence in Europe, notably in marketing.
The backdrop tells an important story. The quota allocated to Ireland since 1982 has gone up and down over the years. This was partially due to realignments caused by taking what could be described as "paper fish" out of the system. It is important to recognise that while quotas, such as those for whiting and cod, have declined in recent years when one compares like with like, new opportunities have been added. As the traditional stocks have declined as a result of the types of problems already discussed, our quotas for these fish have fallen. However, we have succeeded in getting a quota of tuna, a fishery which was developed throughout the 1990s, and now have a reasonable quota of Albacore tuna.
We have also been exploiting deep water species. While the Minister correctly mentioned that tags and quotas apply to some of these species, many other deep water species remain outside the quota system. There are, therefore, further opportunities in this area and a number of minor opportunities which we have pursued overseas.
The resource base is one of the key areas which Bord Iascaigh Mhara is endeavouring to ensure is maintained or increased. This is not always possible. I remind the committee that the problems we are experiencing are, by and large, in the area of demersal, whitefish stocks. In terms of the catch for 2001, the last year for which we have full figures, the problems in the pelagic sector are not as great. Dr. Connolly will address this sector later.
There is one other sector which is doing extremely well, namely, the shellfish sector. The main problems relate to the demersal element of the catch, which is worth some €89 million from a total of some €227 million. The catch is important to areas right around the coast. As Mr. Fitzpatrick stated, the socio-economic benefits of the fishing industry do not accrue to just one or two places. Its contribution has a wide geographical spread, making an important contribution from Greencastle right around to Clogherhead.
With regard to future funding, questions were asked about the whitefish renewal scheme and what succeeded it. A new programme has been implemented under the national development plan. Four of its elements come within the domain of the fisheries development division. A sum of €26.4 million has been allocated for fleet development. A programme of vessel building larger than the whitefish scheme is in place. Some months ago people were commenting that a new boat was being completed almost every week. I assure Members this is about to happen again as the boats currently being built are completed.
There is a very strong ongoing programme in this area. However, matters would probably be slightly out of kilter if this programme were not balanced by a very strong ongoing programme of resource development. This is evident in the new scheme, known as the supporting measures, which has been allocated funding equal to that allocated for fleet development. The NDP programme balances almost euro for euro funding for the fleet on the one hand, which encompasses not only building new vessels, but also the important issue of vessel safety, and resource development on the other. The programme also contains a fisheries diversification scheme which enables fishermen to diversify away from mainstream catching into areas, such as eco-tourism and sea angling.
The NDP targets for marine catch in the seafood industry demonstrate a realisation that the catch cannot increase ad infinitum. If we are having problems with stocks, it is inevitable that the total marine catch will decline or at best remain static. However, the overall figure in export terms will continue to increase, which is a reflection of the enhanced role of aquaculture. Looking at the sector as a whole, Bord Iascaigh Mhara notes that other opportunities can be pursued. Some 25,000 direct and indirect jobs rely on the seafood industry.
While I do not wish to dwell on the fleet for too long, it is important to note its age. It is staggering to find that the median completion year for the vessels in our fleet lies between 1972 and 1976. Our average boat is between 22 and 26 years old. The whitefish renewal scheme is responsible for the rise in new vessels in 1996, a trend which will be strengthened in the next two years as a result of the fleet development measure I have outlined. Our ageing fleet remains a cause for concern.
Under the current programme, of our 1,200 registered vessels the owners of almost 700 have availed of opportunities to improve onboard safety equipment and bring their vessels up to the highest possible standards of safety. A further 100 owners have availed of the opportunity to acquire new vessels with 100 availing of opportunities for vessel modernisation. This means almost two thirds of registered fishermen have been able, in principle, to avail of some aspect of the development scheme.
Diversification, that is, moving away from mainstream fishing into marine tourism or leisure related activities, is directed towards the classical type of boat. The supporting measures are a suite of schemes which address the resource issue. Funding is now available for the collection of basic data; for improving our knowledge and creating transparency in the systems; to look at issues of sustainable management; experimental fisheries and technical conservation. Added finance is available to develop e-trade and other IT policies and to look at small-scale coastal fisheries. Aid is also available for the producers' organisations and for quality certification, traceability and so forth. The overall package is a balanced one, focused on both the fleet and the resource, which is important.
The inshore sector has not got as much attention as it deserves. It employs some 3,700 people. More than half the fishermen in Ireland and almost 83% of the vessels come from this sector. These are vessels of less than 15 metres that operate within ten to twelve miles of the coast. They do not operate off the Porcupine Bank and so forth. They have a widespread distribution and are responsible for some €32 million in landings, not necessarily into the big ports but right around the coast. In fact, they are largely responsible for catching non-quota species. A gentleman is depicted on the slide not wearing a life jacket, which is something that would no longer be acceptable. More than 50% of employment in the sector relies on this type of boat, which comprises 83% of the entire fleet.
We were worried about the decline in lobster stocks. The lobster in the slide has a little notch cut out of its tail. Each time a pregnant female is taken out by a fisherman it is held until one of our inspectors can get to it to insert the notch. They pay the value of the lobster to the fisherman. This is a co-operative effort between the State and the local co-op. The fishermen are paid for the lobsters, which are then returned to the sea to give birth to their young. The sale of a lobster with a "v" notch is illegal. This year we have put back some 50,000 lobsters. That is the sort of practical measure that can be implemented at relatively low cost that can help conservation for the future.
We are looking at alternative forms of fishing. People bemoan the fact that they cannot get a mackerel for their breakfast. There is a slide showing a man fishing for mackerel with a rod and line with feathers on it. Mackerel caught like this, by hand, can fetch a reasonably good price because they are for a dinner market, the human consumption market. We can create a difference working on this level. We have also been working very closely to promote wild salmon and a range of other developments, which I will not go into.
Part of the Irish Sea problem is the amount of fish caught that will be discarded, but even more invidious than the problem of discarding, is that of slippage. This arises when a fisherman has almost used up his quota. If the fish he lands are not of the best quality he may prefer to throw them away and try for another haul. These are the sorts of problems we are trying to address.
In BIM it is seen that gear technology can adapt nets to allow young fish to escape through a square net panel. Another type of net is used in the Irish Sea to allow cod to escape. On the east coast fishermen largely fish for nefrops, bottom-dwelling crustaceans. Unfortunately, cod enter the nets and, in the past, large numbers of cod were also taken. In order to keep our nefrops fishery open against a background of the cod problem it is necessary to facilitate the escapement of cod. A simple net change can enable the nefrops and the cod to enter from one side, while the prawns stay crawling along the bottom and go in below the lower panel. The cod tend to swim off and go out of the net. This allows the release of more than 75% of cod entering the nets.
The details of what we have heard from the industry today in terms of reducing effort and tying up boats amounts to a blunt instrument. Technical measures may be the way to fine-tune this instrument. More sensible net designs can solve some of the problems in a very directed fashion and the provision of on-board observers ensure that it is being used correctly. This leads me to believe we can address the concerns about cod without closing down the industry.