Aquaculture licence delay ‘prevents development and job creation’

MUSSEL farmers have warned the Government that a decade-long delay in processing 500 aquaculture licence applications is preventing the creation of much needed jobs.

Attendees at this week’s joint BIM and IFA aquaculture workshop in Claregalway village have called on Ministers Brendan Smith and John Gormley to speed up the bay-by-bay assessments and to end the 10-year logjam.

Irish Shellfish Association (ISA) chairman, Flor Harrington, said: “Not only are the unnecessary delays hitting our licences, but (they are) also preventing farmers from accessing vital capital grant aid for modernisation, improving quality and environmental management.

“The industry is very concerned that there appears to be no urgency whatsoever in getting these assessments done. Our members are being left high and dry — unable to get licence renewals or develop their farms to meet the demands of the market or the environment. These delays are costing real jobs and our competitors around Europe are steaming ahead with development in their own sectors.”

The farmed shellfish industry is worth over €50m annually, mostly in export earnings to coastal communities. Mussel growing is a key part of the sector, providing quality seafood to the fresh and retail market, as well as raw material for the important seafood processing sector at home.

The ISA leader said that mussel farmers, in common with other licence aquaculture producers, have been left in limbo by the Department of the Environment’s failure to implement the European Habitats Directive since it was introduced into law in the 1990s.

The department’s inaction resulted in a European Court of Justice judgment in 2007 which requires the state to carry out appropriate assessments on all licensed activity in areas designated as SACs (Special Areas of Conservation) or SPAs (Special Protection Areas for birds). At least 80% of all Irish aquaculture takes place in these areas.

Meanwhile, Galway-based JFC Manufacturing were given a very welcome approval at the Claregalway conference for their new mussel floats by Dr John Bonardelli, a world-leading independent shellfish production specialist. He evaluated and compared the efficiency of the JFC ribbed mussel floats to other similar-sized floats commonly used in the rope-grown mussel industry. He described the results as one of the most exciting developments in the rope mussels industry in years.