Policy stops €18m trawlers fishing

CORK county councillors have requested an urgent meeting with Minister of the Marine Dermot Ahern to discuss a controversial new licensing policy which has effectively beached two new state-of-the-art trawlers that cost their owners €18 million.

Cllr Noel Harrington secured the agreement of fellow councillors to seek the meeting following the recent publication of the Sea Fisheries Licensing Policy, which he described as “a crippling blow” to the south west region.

The policy announcement last Wednesday, coincided with the arrival of the latest state-of-the-art vessel to join the Castletownbere fishing fleet, the MFV Ronan Ross.

The new boat represents a total investment of €8m by her owner John D O’Sullivan. The other vessel, the Sarah David, owned by Neil and David Minehane, arrived in Castletownbere in early August and hasn’t been able to put to sea since.

John Nolan, manager of Castletownbere Fishermen’s Co-operative, said the minister’s policy would exclude the two vessels because nationwide he would only allow four trawlers to operate with the new slush-ice preservation method.

“The idea that two families, who have invested everything they have to bring in the most modern and safest vessels that can be built, are now facing financial ruin because the Department of Marine will not allow them to land their fish at optimum temperature and quality defies logic,” Mr Harrington said.

He said the decision to exclude the two vessels, simply because they have refrigerated tanks on board, had again made this country a laughing stock.

Mr Harrington claimed the new licensing laws are discriminatory and will lead to a decline in the fishing industry in the south western region.

“There are almost 200 fishing boats around the country licensed to fish for herring and about 100 of those are licensed to fish for mackerel, but the department seems hell bent on allowing just 23 vessels to remain in the industry by ensuring that licensing policies will give these [vessels] exclusive rights to fish what is a national asset,” he said.