FISSTA’s News & Views

PROGRESS ON 2020 PLAN FOR SALMON CONSERVATION DESPITE

PANDEMIC RESTRICTIONS

Much has changed since our last issue of this magazine but thankfully Mother Nature continues to allow the seasons to advance and with them the wild Atlantic salmon and sea trout run the rivers as the floods pave their way for them to return to their spawning grounds.

Thankfully, although later than usual due to the dry Spring, some remarkable numbers have shown up on most west of Ireland rivers which have given great encouragement to the angler who so looked forward to a bit of social distancing on our waters this season. The Salmon Leap on the Glen River.

The opening lines of our last column support from the various candidates (a) IN NORTH ATLANTIC stated “Further to a recent AGM, it was who have now been elected to Dail FEEDING GROUNDS agreed to canvass all political parties Eireann for their respective parties. (b) IN THE NATAL RIVERS with our own manifesto for the new Sadly, we failed to get only one 2. END OPEN SEA NETCAGE government to consider under the political party to declare in their SALMON FARMING IN IRELAND following five headings. We thank all manifesto on the salmon conservation 3. END GWEEBARRA & OTHER candidates, many who are now elected, issue, but then Eamon Ryan TD and RIVER TAKEOVERS BY IFI for their support and encouragement leader of the Green Party has from the 4. RESTORE NIFF MEETINGS –when we lobbied them in recent times. outset of his political career been a MINISTER TO OVERSEE IFI We look forward to progressing the stalwart for our wild Atlantic salmon. PROGRESS. FISSTA Plan with whoever is charged Many will remember his successful 5. REVIEW SCOTTISH with the responsibility for our wild bridges campaign of 2005 which STRUCTURE FOR ALL ISLAND salmon and sea-trout in the near future.” encouraged other political parties to ANGLING PLAN

At that time we were not aware of introduce the drift-netting ban. Our lobbying success record has who would form a government, but we Our five point plan for 2020 season always been poor throughout the tenure were delighted that our hard lobbying is still the same. of the past two administrations. The work led by our Chairman Paul Lawton 1. PROTECTION OF OUR WILD hard message form us to Fine Gael / had resulted in some very strong ATLANTIC SALMON Labour government of 2011 and the FF

supported FG government of 2016 -20 fell on deaf ears until once again the Green Party gave us all an unambiguous assurance in their manifesto last January which read: “The Green Party will support an end to the licensing of offshore salmon farming" - no 6 of the 10 green party manifesto principles.

So, after 25 years of campaigning for our wild salmon habitat to be protected, we welcome this great news of a new government that will end this marine environmental damage at a time when all our wild Atlantic salmon stocks continue to head south below the Conservation Limit.

We shall continue to advise and assist the new Minister Eamon Ryan TD and the new Food Commissioner in their implementation of the new guidelines to eradicate pollution and pesticides from the marine environment that contaminate our food.

We shall also seek to convince Marine Minister Dara Colleary TD from Ballina – the Salmon Capital of Ireland, to now do something to support the king of fish that keeps generating valuable tourism income not just for Mayo but for the entire 300 rivers of our island of Ireland.

OBJECTION TO SALMON FARMING & SEAFOOD DEVELOPMENT AT KILKIERAN

FISSTA have objected once again, to the chosen location of the proposed Udaras na Gaeltachta backed development application 20/683. It is a hastily constructed and poorly thought out proposal that ignores what any state body should have learnt over the many years of their failures and environmental disasters in salmon farming that have eroded the ecological integrity of these sites.

Everybody who is monitoring this application knows and many question the need for Udaras to compete and develop Parc na Mara when another state agency with a brief for scientific research, Foras na Mara, have already established a similar research centre at Lehangh Pool in Conamara.

Apparently a new breed of genetic salmon are being grown at this site alongside scallops and seaweed species to experiment at unknown cost to our salmonid and shellfish species. The use and continued research trials using IMTA –Integrated Multi –Trophic Aquaculture which is based on the concept of the food chain that where waste byproducts from the Rough conditions for this Lug na Druin angler. salmon rearing (unused toxic pellets and Keywater Fisheries IMTA site in Sligo salmon digestates) provides food for the in collaboration with other marine sites species such as shellfish and seaweed of other international partners that can be filtered from the waters. throughout EU, Turkey and China

This is yet another admission that the which EU funding has been granted salmon farming industry produces huge under the Horison 2020 project which unsustainable waste before they admit we have consistently objected to under the even greater problem of massive sea grant agreement No 774109. The full lice numbers being created that damage text of our objection is published on our the wild migrating smolt on their way to facebook page. the north Atlantic feeding grounds. We call on new Green Party Minister

For this reason alone, we appealed to for the Gaeltacht Caherine Martin to Galway County Council to reject this advise Udaras na Gaeltachta to application as the Foras na Mara withdraw this application as it now is research project is already operating in against the new Government policy to Lehanagh Pool in Conamara and protect the wild Atlantic salmon.