I propose to take Questions Nos. 409 to 413, inclusive, 415 to 417, inclusive, and 419 to 422, inclusive, together.
The Co-ordinated Local Aquaculture Management Systems (CLAMS) process is a nationwide initiative, to facilitate the management and the development of aquaculture, by local stakeholders, in bays and inshore waters throughout Ireland. BIM provide assistance to individual CLAMS groups to support them in their role. I am fully supportive of the CLAMS initiatives around the coast, which are a valuable tool in the local management of aquaculture. As the CLAMS are local management structures, the proposals referred to by the Deputy, are a matter for the Killary CLAMS group.
Mussel cultivation has emerged as one of the most valuable sectors of the aquaculture industry in recent years. In order to ensure the continued success and sustainability of the sector, it is necessary that the capabilities of our bays for shellfish aquaculture be established. This is why I have instructed BIM, through the Aquaculture Forum, to undertake Carrying Capacity studies in the main shellfish growing bays around the coast. Killary harbour has been prioritised as one of the pilot locations for this undertaking. This work will identify the obstacles at local level (such as the availability of phyto-plankton and crop density levels) that may be impacting on mussel farming in this bay and provide a practical and scientific basis for recommendations on how they should be tackled. It is not possible to make an accurate projection for the "best capacity" output from Killary for the next five years on the basis of current information. The findings of the pilot carrying capacity study should help inform future planning.
The question of the availability/occurrence of mussel spat is a wider question and is an issue faced by operators nationally. Mussel seed is a naturally occurring, wild resource which is also transient and unpredictable. While considerable research has been carried out by the Marine Institute into mussel seed, much remains to be done before a greater understanding has been achieved of the life cycle of the mussel and before it would be at all possible to predict its occurrence. For these reasons, it is critical to manage fishing for mussel seed so as to protect against over exploitation of the resource. The success of mussel spat collection for farming, in a given season, is dependent on many factors including; timing of deployment of collectors, tidal conditions, weather patterns, and salinity. All of these parameters can affect the distribution of mussel larvae in a bay, which in turn can affect settlement. The failure of the spat collection effort experienced by the farmers in Killary Harbour in 2006 is I am advised, purely a natural phenomenon, which has occurred in the past both in Killary and elsewhere from time to time. There are strategies that the Killary farmers can pursue to mitigate the 2006 spat failure such as buying in seed from producers in other bays, collecting rock seed and grading and thinning their existing stocks and then repacking the small mussels to boost output. I would urge the Killary farmers to engage with their local BIM area officer and with their CLAMS group with a view towards developing a cooperative strategy to deal with this challenge.
I am aware that certain operators have been experiencing a slow-down in the rate of growth of their crops in recent times. The issue of improving growth rates for all of the mussel farmers in Killary is a complicated one. Not only does it depend on the amount of phytoplankton in the bay but also on nutrients from other sources such as fresh water runoff into the lough. In addition the number and positioning of longlines in a bay as well as the stocking density used on those lines and the method of cultivation are also crucial factors. I am aware through the work of the Killary and other CLAMS groups that BIM has been working with farmers to demonstrate the benefit of changing husbandry practices and reducing the density of mussels on particular longlines thus improving growth rates. The outcome of the pilot carrying capacity study in Killary should provide important information to inform future arrangements.
During the last three months of 2005, as part of a major review of the rope mussel sector, BIM staff visited all the significant rope mussel production areas in the country, including Killary, and in each area most (but not all) of the individual farms were visited. Very detailed data was collected in each area for comparison purposes and much of the analysis of this data was showcased at the recent rope mussel workshop held in Bantry on the 16th of November. Due to limitations on staff resources BIM is not in a position to visit every mussel farm every year. BIM does however visit any farm that it is involved with in respect of grant aid or development projects. In this respect it would be safe to say the Killary based mussel farmers have had more visits from BIM staff than any other area in the country over the last three years because of the level of activity in the bay.
The main markets for harvested rope mussels are in France, Spain and Italy. The size of harvested mussels is decided by the needs of the markets in Europe. The Belgian markets generally require mussels of 65mm+ with the French, Dutch and German markets requiring a mussel of a smaller size, in the 45mm size range. However should the market preference change in the future, the harvest size would meet the demand. There are no size regulations applicable to rope cultivated mussels. Whilst the tonnages of mussels produced by the Irish mussel industry are monitored, no systematic data regarding the average individual size of mussels sold from year to year is collected form Killary or any other production area. The producers respond to market demand and the characteristics of the particular crop the have to hand. There are no legal minimum size regulations applicable to harvesting rope cultivated mussels. The volume and value for the rope mussel industry in Killary is given below.
Year
|
Location
|
Harvested Quantity
|
Value at First Sale
|
|
|
(MT)
|
€
|
1995
|
Killary Harbour
|
452
|
240,107
|
1996
|
Killary Harbour
|
630
|
246,964
|
1997
|
Killary Harbour
|
805
|
306,641
|
1998
|
Killary Harbour
|
1,010
|
542,178
|
1999
|
Killary Harbour
|
821
|
312,736
|
2000
|
Killary Harbour
|
246
|
62,471
|
2001
|
Killary Harbour
|
475
|
296,935
|
2002
|
Killary Harbour
|
1,170
|
767,593
|
2003
|
Killary Harbour
|
1,136
|
896,372
|
2004
|
Killary Harbour
|
1,419
|
1,110,453
|
2005
|
Killary Harbour
|
1,703
|
1,297,386
|
Exports to EU
Year
|
Bay
|
Export volume
|
Export value
|
|
|
t
|
€
|
2002
|
Killary
|
380
|
223,773
|
2003
|
Killary
|
212
|
172,952
|
2004
|
Killary
|
444
|
352,200
|
The exceptional frequency of detection of naturally occurring bio-toxins in shellfish growing waters in 1999 and 2000 led to prolonged closures for shellfish harvesting, of many premier shellfish growing areas, resulting in lost crops and financial difficulties throughout the shellfish farming sector. The rope mussel production sector was particularly badly affected.
Following representations by industry to the Minister for the Marine and a preliminary assessment by BIM of estimated losses, funding of €3.174m was made available to the shellfish production sector under the Shellfish Remedial Package. The aim of the scheme was to assist growers to overcome the difficulties of prolonged closures due to bio-toxins. The scheme provided financial aid to assist producers with a once-off environmental clean-up of redundant stock and to restore and secure production capability for the future. The scheme applied to losses of stock, which was mature and ready for harvest in the period 1 May to 31 December 2000. It should be noted that the Scheme was not devised to provide compensation to individual growers but rather to provide assistance to promote the restocking of affected farms on the basis of applications received from these farmers.
This national scheme was announced in Budget 2001 and launched in Bantry on 12 January 2001 and was launched by the Minister of State at the Department and received wide media coverage in both the national and local press and on radio and television. The practice of launching schemes with media coverage and advertising such schemes in local press is a standard practice followed by BIM.
Administration of the scheme was delegated to BIM who dealt with matters such as publicity, the application process and the assessment of applications received in accordance with agreed criteria. Details regarding the objectives of the scheme and how to apply were advertised by BIM in the Kerryman and Connaught Tribune of 19 January 2001 and the Southern Star of 20 January 2001. Details were also published in BIM's Administration of the scheme was delegated to BIM who dealt with matters such as publicity, the application process and the assessment of applications received in accordance with agreed criteria. Details were also published in BIM's Aquaculture Newsletter No 36 and Aquaculture Ireland. The Irish Shellfish Association was involved with BIM in negotiations with regards to the Scheme.
A total of 80 applications were received by BIM. Having assessed all applications in accordance with the criteria of the scheme, funding was approved in respect of 43 applications. The broad geographical spread of applications provides evidence that applications were received from all over the country and that the scheme was very well known to the mussel industry. Given its responsibility for the administration of public funds, it was not the policy of BIM, nor would it have been appropriate for BIM, to solicit individual applications under the Scheme.
There were seven Killary-based beneficiaries. Of these seven, five were members of the Killary Co-op at the time of the Scheme. It should be noted that the Killary Coop is comprised of members with addresses in both Co Galway and Co Mayo. BIM is not aware as to the reasons why a number of the mussel farmers in Killary failed to make applications to the scheme in time to be considered eligible for payment. BIM did not exclude any eligible applicant from the Scheme. All valid applications received, were processed in strict accordance with the criteria laid down for the operation of the scheme. A number of mussel farmers from Killary did lodge applications well after the closing date, and BIM did deal with them as sympathetically as possible. However it was not possible to make payments to these applicants as the fund for the scheme was fully spent dealing with the claims of eligible applicants; leaving no monies available to deal with late applications.