Seal sanctuary forced to scale back services

THE country’s only seal sanctuary in north Co Dublin has announced it is being forced to limit services due to funding shortages.

The Irish Seal Sanctuary (ISS) at Garristown has operated in this country for 23 years and is manned entirely by volunteers, with the exception of one community employment (CE) scheme worker. The country’s only marine wildlife rehabilitation centre, it specialises in distressed seals and birds who are damaged by oil spills.

Since 1986, it has taken in 600 seals. Director Pauline Beades said that they will have to cap their seal intake at 12, even though they have a capacity for 25 seals, as they can’tafford to look after them properly. The sanctuary has been badly hit by the widespread downturn in fundraising.

It also says that for the past five years, it has focused hugely on developing a National Marine Conservation Centre on the coast.

Fáilte Ireland promised it€2 million in funding and they asked Fingal County Council for another €2m, but when Fingal devised plans with them, the most competitive tender estimated it would cost €8m to build the project at Balbriggan. According to the ISS, it is impossible for them to fund those plans.

“The plans they came back with were far too extravagant. We have since heard from a builder who offered to construct a centre for us for €3m, but we can’t as the project had already gone out to tender. We’re in a very difficult position as ideally we need a custom-built centre near the sea so we can invite the public in and generate our own income,” said Ms Beades.

Fingal County Council yesterday responded by saying the sanctuary’s business plan projected operating losses of €380,000 for the first three years of operation. Fingal believed this to be “optimistic”. They also said yesterday the “seal sanctuary never put forward funding of their own or any funding from a third party in support of this proposal”.

A Fingal spokesman confirmed yesterday that they went back to the construction design team and they reduced the project cost to under €6.5m.

The sanctuary now fears it will be forced to let go all resident international volunteers at Christmas as they won’t be able to afford to house them.

“We have 14 seals at the moment and four of these are due to be released into the wild shortly. After that, we will be capping at 12 seals at any one time. Over and above this number, the ISS will have to refer you and your casualty to a local vet or [the] Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals organisation with advice on providing a complete guide to treating seal casualties and oiled birds,” said Ms Beades.

“We regret this decision, forced upon us, and will keep it under review. Our auditors will not allow us operate beyond our resources, insisting funding for all services be committed in advance.”