Dáil Éireann Debate, Wednesday - 20 June 2018
185. Deputy Mick Wallace asked the Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine further to Parliamentary Question No. 47 of 30 May 2018, if the record will be corrected to accept farmed stock was taken to Inland Fisheries Ireland in 2017 as per the response of the Minister for Communications, Climate Action and Environment to Parliamentary Questions Nos. 1035 to 1038, inclusive, of 12 June 2018; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [26988/18]
Amharc ar fhreagra186. Deputy Mick Wallace asked the Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine the reason neither his Department nor the Marine Institute have sought further information from Inland Fisheries Ireland with regard to the findings of the Report on the Occurrence of Farmed Atlantic Salmon in Rivers in the Western River Basin District in August September 2017; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [26989/18]
Amharc ar fhreagraI propose to take Questions Nos. 185 and 186 together.
My Department is aware of the Report on the Occurrence of Farmed Atlantic Salmon in Rivers in the Western River Basin District August/September 2017 and Press Release issued by Inland Fisheries Ireland (IFI) on Friday 16 February 2018.
As the Deputy has been advised, during 2017 my Department also noted media reports of salmon being found in rivers on the western seaboard which may have been from farmed stock. My Department advised IFI that where anglers or officers of IFI suspected that they had collected salmon from farmed stock that the fish should be sent to the Marine Institute for analysis, with a view to determining whether they were, in fact, from farmed stock.
The Marine Institute has confirmed that it received no stock for examination from anglers or from IFI. In addition the Marine Institute did not receive any request from IFI to examine salmon that appeared to be from farmed stock.
