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A GROUP OF residents in Co Cork is protesting the government’s decision to grant a licence for the mass mechanical harvesting of kelp seaweed in the local bay to a Kerry company.
The ‘Protect Our Native Kelp Forest’ campaign in Bantry is protesting the 2014 granting of a 10-year experimental mechanical harvesting licence regarding the kelp present in 1,860 acres of Bantry Bay to Tralee-based bioengineering company BioAtlantis.
A map of the area covered by the licence can be viewed here.
The protest group claims that the statutory public notice required by the government regarding what was being planned for Bantry’s offshore kelp (an advert in a local paper, and a notice held under lock and key at the local Garda station) was insufficient.
BioAtlantis strenuously asserts that it satisfied every condition demanded by the State and that it would have gone even further in its bid for compliance if asked to do so by the Government.
“There has been a lot of misinformation in relation to this,” the company’s CEO John T O’Sullivan says.
The Bantry residents, meanwhile, also say that BioAtlantis’ plans will irreparably damage the local sea environment – both in the case of the kelp itself and also the local marine life which they say is dependent upon the seaweed’s presence. BioAtlantis denies this.
The group has complained that the licence, which was granted in 2014 by the then-Minister for the Environment Phil Hogan, and first applied for in 2009 to the Department of Agriculture, was given without an Environmental Impact Assessment (EIA) being carried out.
The Department of Housing, which currently has responsibility for foreshore (ie the area between the high and low water marks of a seashore) activities says that under European law, no such assessment was required, nor was it deemed necessary by the government of the time.
Harvesting of sections of the region’s kelp forest is expected to commence in the near future.
“We had no idea any licence had been granted until February when it showed up on RTÉ,” local woman (and group member) Deirdre Fitzgerald told TheJournal.ie (the programme in question was an edition of Eco Eye on the State broadcaster).
Fitzgerald claims that a “litany of questionable things” regarding the granting of the licence are behind the residents’ protest – a campaign that has seen a petition calling for the licence to be revoked garner nearly 7,000 signatures online.
Neither is the Bantry group satisfied with the levels of public consultation required by the government in preceding the application for a harvesting licence. “The consultation with the local community consisted of a tiny ad in a local paper that did not specify what was planned,” says Fitzgerald.
“No regard has been shown for the people who rely on tourism and marine activities such as fishing in the bay to make a living,” she adds.
Click here to view a larger image
BioAtlantis, for its part, says that all established protocols have been followed, both in applying for the licence and in the future harvesting that has been planned.
“Our issue is not with the company. They have done all that they were asked. It is with the government letting this happen without letting the locals know,” says Fitzgerald.
I mean you’re talking about one of the biggest mechanical harvesting operations in the history of the State.
Expert group
For many hundreds of years seaweed has been harvested off Ireland’s shores by hand. However, mechanisation of the process has in recent times become more prevalent in other European countries such as Norway and France.
The use of seaweed and kelp for research, treatments, natural beauty products, and food is big business in Ireland and Europe at present. In 2014, the worldwide seaweed industry was estimated to be worth €5.25 billion.
A 2015 report by Irish seafood development agency Bord Iascaigh Mhara (BIM) meanwhile suggested that demand in Europe for sea vegetables is growing by up to 10% each year.
While seaweed has been farmed by hand for hundreds of years in Ireland, and the use of the plant in both nutrition supplements and beauty products is well-documented, BioAtlantis is not a cosmetics company.
Rather, the 13-year-old Kerry business plans to use the harvested seaweed as a means to develop alternatives to the use of antibiotics in the feed of farmed animals.
“We would completely disagree that there was not proper consultation,” O’Sullivan told TheJournal.ie regarding the granting of the 10-year harvesting licence to his company.
The action taken by BioAtlantis and approved by the government in the form of a trial licence is exactly as recommended by an expert group who provided an overview of kelp research, harvesting techniques, and resource management in other European countries in 2004.
Eight different bodies with specialists in the area assessed the application. The Marine Licence Vetting Committee (MLVC) concluded that subject to compliance with specific conditions harvesting was unlikely to have a significant negative impact on the marine environment.
“If there were other requirements in relation to consultation then BioAtlantis would have complied with these also.”
O’Sullivan, likewise, claims that “the decision to grant a licence obtained cross-party political support”, given it was originally approved by the Green Party’s John Gormley in 2011, before being officially granted by then Labour Minister for the Environment Alan Kelly in 2014.
Currently, the Department of Housing (and its newest Minister, Eoghan Murphy) has jurisdiction over the issue.
Click here to view a larger image
“Normal public consultation procedures were followed with the application being advertised in local newspaper The Southern Star and it was also made available for inspection at Bantry Garda Station for a period of 21 days,” a spokesperson for the Department told TheJournal.ie.
“No submissions were received from members of the public during the consultation period,” they added.
The local protest group counters this fact by saying Bantry Garda Station kept the notice in a filing cabinet to be produced only when the public asked to see it, and the scale of the licence was not made clear. TheJournal.ie contacted Bantry gardaí to confirm that this is indeed the case: “That is the policy, and is so for all such applications, not just sea licences,” a spokesperson said.
“You come into the station and ask to view it, we produce it and you can view it, but it cannot be copied and cannot be taken away.”
When asked how the public can know about something if it is not visible, the spokesperson replied: “I don’t think the facilities are here to put it on public display.”
Environmental assessment
An Environmental Impact Assessment meanwhile was, according to the Department, not required as the “proposed project was not within a Natura 2000 site (Natura 2000 is a European network of important ecological sites)”.
Nor does the project satisfy the criteria to qualify for an assessment under Annex I or II of the European EIA Directive, which would make an EIA mandatory (projects such as motorway building, or even intensive fish farming, automatically qualify for such an assessment).
While it was open to the Minister at the time to carry out an EIA, it was not considered necessary.
The spokesperson added that the “sustainability” of any mechanical harvesting would be subject “to a strict monitoring programme”.
The licensed area is split into five distinct harvesting zones and not all of the seaweed in the bay will be harvested.
Much of the criticism levelled at the granting of the licence has been at the level of public consultation required by the relevant state bodies, or perceived lack thereof.
In a letter to the foreshore section of the Department of Housing in late June, Cork academic and coastal marine environmental expert Seán Lynch described a situation in which a licence of the sort granted to BioAtlantis without adequate public consultation as being “entirely irresponsible”.
“Marine spatial plans should aim for sustainable and efficient use of marine space by maximising multiple uses and where necessary for the management of conflicts or to highlight specific opportunities for potential investors the zoning for preferred uses,” Lynch said.
Meaningful and early consultation with all stakeholders including the general public, is essential. In my honest opinion such a lack of foresight severely undermines the Department’s ability for good governance.
“People weren’t aware that it was to be a mechanical harvest,” says local independent TD Michael Collins. “If it was to be a hand harvest, well there would be no issue with that.”
But a mechanical harvest, it’ll have a visual impact on the whole Bere area.
The Minister says he can’t do any more, but I think he can. He can stop the process and allow a proper public consultation to proceed.
“There might be a way around this, but at the moment people are looking at it and they just see that 1,800 acres are on the licence. Everyone needs to take a step back,” Collins adds.
Clew Bay
BioAtlantis’ experience in Bantry, meanwhile, is not the only strained situation the company has found itself in with locals regarding the mechanical harvest of an area’s seaweed.
In 2015, the Mayo News reported that locals in Clew Bay in the western county had set up their own seaweed association, a move prompted by BioAtlantis seeking a 10-year exclusive licence to harvest the coastline’s seaweed.
The situation prompted local Fine Gael TD Michael Ring (now Minister for Community and Rural Affairs) to “outline his dissatisfaction… about the proposals” to then Housing Minister Paudie Coffey.
Back in Bantry, public opposition to the granting of the harvest licence appears to be growing.
“People have the right to sign petitions but it would be interesting to know whether they are aware of the facts,” says O’Sullivan.
“Kelp is proven to regenerate between three and six years post-harvest,” he added. (A key claim of the Bantry protest group is that mechanically cutting the kelp 25 centimetres from the root “will effectively kill the plant”.)
The description of kelp as a forest is inaccurate as it gives the impression of something old and covered with trees. This is not true. Kelp is a type of algae or seaweed, it is not a type of tree. It grows quickly unlike a tree and has a short generation time. Kelp in Bantry Bay is only three-to-five years old.
And as for a commencement date for harvesting?
There is no fixed commencement date; we are not ready to start yet.
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It would be helpful if there was more detail as to location and description of individual .
@Honeybee: Maybe there isn’t any…..it’s breaking news……
@Honeybee: He’s the man with the gun; seeing as this isn’t America, anyone walking around with a gun is going to stand out.
@Honeybee: And if you read the article
“No description of the man is available at present.”
@Paul Furey: If he’s been involved in a number of incidents then they must have some information and Tallaght is vast in size, so some indication of where the incidents occurred would assist people to be on the lookout otherwise Do the Bort Mans description below is as good as it gets.
@Joe Bloggs: If he was waving the gun around, I think there would be no need to issue an appeal, he would already have been located, they said a gun not a larger weapon, guns can be hidden in clothing.
@Joe Bloggs: in Tallaght, so not really.
@Nick Allen: Thanks Nick…….umm is Thursday your day for doing business as well……
@Honeybee:
I do all mine online
@Nick Allen: Reminds me of a story I once read, two poorly educated guys robbed a bank in America, they rushed home with the sacks of money, you grab a sack and start counting says one, nah, grab two cans, we’ll watch the news later on, they’ll tell us how much we stole says the other.
@Honeybee: Funnily enough, most people who commit crimes don’t tend to hang around to be caught. If the Gardaí give a description then every crank, nutter & a$$hole will ring in with false reports; it happens every time. Better to keep it vague, look for any suspicious activity & filter out the rubbish.
@Paul Furey: relax it’s grand – we have a local councilor on the case
@Dave Hammond: OK standing down :)
@Honeybee: Well done to gardai on the arrest, good news to have this man off the streets.
@Paul Furey: theres a vid of him being arrested on fb
@Honeybee: Why not just thank the brave Gardai ?
SUSPECT IS HATLESS. REPEAT HATLESS.
@Do the Bort man: Luas must be off
@john g mcgrath: madman on the Luas
@Do the Bort man: I hope they throw his hatless butt in jail.
I have arms and I’m in Tallaght. Perhaps I should turn myself in
An armed man on the loose in Tallaght – I heard that he’s a member of the Tallaban.
@Ciarán Masterson: And they are asking people to become the AyesATallaght
Tallaght-the new Johannesburg.
@Kieran Conroy: why is it the ones with no faces are the ones with the most idiotic statements?
@alan scott: Also,Jo’burg is famous for car-jacking.
@Kieran Conroy: yes but no one laughing wNkstsain.
@Mrs. Nugent: I laughed a little bit..
If they do a proper search I suspect they may find more than one
I’ve long said these people should be prevented from breeding. Then in a generation we’d have completely bred out the criminal element, reduced the prison population and solved the housing crisis not to mention reducing the dole queue
@Kevin Slater: absolutely agree. Waste of oxygen. And fair play to the guards today, a very professional and prompt response.
@Fake Avast: Its mostly Bono’s fault to be fair.
whenever i read a story like this, i feel for the lives of our gardai. All of them must be given firearms.
@Annette:
Why stop there. Give every man, woman and child in the country and we could get rid of the Gardai, save a fortune in tax revenue and simply self regulate
@Annette: Really? Let’s arm all the police?
Do the officers get a say?
One of my best friends is a police officer, I asked if they’d any interest in the armed response unit and their answer was “you have to be prepared to kill someone and I don’t want to be in that position”.
So, before you unilaterally decide you want to give all police guns maybe ask yourself do the actual police all want to be armed? Not to mention, if you make it a fully armed force, the people that don’t want to kill people would never sign up. I’m not okay with that.
@Nick Allen: Brendan Grace I hear is looking for new ways to make people laugh I will pass on this comment as the joke of the day.
@Alan Scott:
It was intended as a joke, I think arming all of the Gardai is a really stupid suggestion
@Annette: they’re bad enough already with biros and calculators.
@Nick Allen: you think 175 countries are stupid arming their police force and you are only one genius left on the planet?
@Annette:
Are you really that limited in your thinking. It’s not exactly a black or white question and because I suggest your recommendation is stupid you assume I am saying I am a genius. Try opening your mind a little more and try to understand why a country would need to arm their entire police force or not and also what the implications would be.
@Nick Allen: I don’t want Irish Gardai armed. I say this as a Garda and I have been armed (though am not presently). We manage very well with the resources we have (in this regard). There are plenty of armed Gardai around from ERU, RSU, detectives, drugs units and so on. We aren’t stuck for guns. There is a lesser chance of getting shot on the nod if unarmed as has been shown time and again. And in the last few Garda killings only Tony Golden MAY have been saved by being armed. No we’re far better with the model we have, correctly used. It’s not like the movies when you walk into an incident. Everyone thinks they know it all when you’re actually relying on training and instinct. Irish people in the vast majority are decent and wouldn’t dream of shooting a Garda. Well up until recently lol
@Mick Murphy:
Thanks for sharing a first hand opinion. I am absolutely in agreement that we do not need all of the Gardai armed.
@Mick Murphy: ok you don’t need a essay we get your point
@alan scott: am I supposed to edit my posts down for your convenience now Alan? Or am I as entitled to write what and as i choose like everyone else? If you’ve a chip on your shoulder take it to someone who gives a f$#k…
@Mick Murphy: Can’t be trusted with breathalysers. No way could the entire force be trusted with guns.
@Mick Murphy: Mick, i respect your opinion as garda but i am sure there is another garda who wants gardai to be armed , it is your personal opinion and not of the masses. You opined that so far gardai were good without having firearms that does not necessarily mean that they would have been worse ‘having’ firearms. May be Tony would have been amongst us today without anything changing.
@Mick Murphy: when will you lot stop taking things personally.
@Ronan Gallagher: lol Ronan….true that
@Annette: Annette…absolutely. it is only my opinion (and most guards I know). Going into a row is harder because you could be disarmed etc. But you’re right… maybe it is the future. And I would gladly take up arms to have Tony back.
@Maire: Seriously Maire.
Some unfortunate ppl in Tallaght suffer with poverty and MH issues, like most places also lots of brilliant hard working people just living their life’s.
I bet your a judgement passing biddy. Bless You in ur glass house throwing stones.
@Eyesplat Jon Franjewel: have to agree with you, coming from another area with a bad name myself, so many nice people living there as well as the feral ones. It’s a shame all people have to be lumped in together, both anecdotally and physically!
I. Love the comments section so much I often skip the news part. great sense of humour well done everyone thanks.
Wonder if he has legs too
Is it mild enough for shorts??
@paul kelly: does he sound sane enough to care?!
Not known as the ‘Wild West’ (of Dublin) for nothing!
@Maire: ? Look at your own back yard before you make idiot comment
@Maire: you are right it is not known as the Wild West .
@Maire: Something like that can happen everywhere @Maile – in Dalkey, in Donnybrook, even in Foxrock. Tallaght is lovely and peaceful area and decent people live there.
@Alan Scott: i checked hes not there
@Maire: You don’t know where he’s from. Anyone notice that he threatened the owner to get the car keys? I thought thieves knew how to hot wire cars, is that out of date now?
@Maire: Cant say i have heard it called that , maybe that’s an in joke among superior people like youself ,God love ye .
@Alan Scott: Actually, it is in my own back yard! And, I’v been victim to being burgled by Locals, twice!, Oh sorry, three times!
Well they still haven’t got him, The police helicopter is still over The Area!
That’s some domestic row! A machine gun?
He started off rampaging in jobstown, so he will get off, Paul clown Murphy will ensure it, he has rights. Bail probation etc.
One man with a gun three hijacking lucky he not shooting people god help us if was
@Noel: does he sound sane enough to care?!!
@Noel: sorry my comment wasn’t aimed at yours it ended up in response by accident!
He is known to gardai so why can they not give a better description or release a photo of him. The papers troll through peoples Facebook pages to get photos of them especially when whey just died
No Idiots breaking the reds this am because there’s a Garda Q7 parked on the road no doubt waiting for this gunman I would love to see the Gardai here every day to put manners on some of these drivers who think they have a Devine right to break the reds.
@Alan Scott: I know….and the ones hooring up the Bus lane till they realise there’s a garda car 200m in front and indicating back in and looking sheepishly at you to let them back in….
@A H: Never, ever, ever, ever, ever let these people back in to the traffic.
@A H: Its great to watch them sweat for someone to let them out
Well that’s like looking for a haystack in a needle
..
No they have no human rights once they’ve impinged in someone else’s rights
Garda car and helicopter chase currently underway in Citywest.
@Michelle Cronin: It has come to an end, thankfully the gardai have him in custody.
Careful!The easily offended Journal are deleting big-time on this.
Took over 7 hours to find an armed man on a rampage in a major European city?
Where are all the fluffy liberals singing the completely inept Gardai’s praises now?
@ I dunno. Fu(k off troll.
Oh look, somebody on the internet with a fake profile called me a troll and told me to f’ off, seriously?? poor likkle snowflake, did my comment upset you chuck? Go to your safe space for an hour, you’ll be fine.
@I dunno The person with two tweets on their blank profile is calling me out. Go away you absolute misfortune. Your carers will be looking for you by now.
@FlyB: Does your Mommy know you’re online?
a bloody Renault kadjar wow he feels the need for speed
Brookview is nowhere near the centre of Tallaght, just saying.
It is good that we don’t have alarmism in Ireland over such incidents that they are Jihadist terrorist related. Now we routinely see on other stories the reassurance that it was not terrorist related.
@Fiona deFreyne: I think you know when you know….don’t you?
@Fiona deFreyne: We know it’s not a Muslim terrorist because his not actually killing people.
Only in America? Well holy God.
Love the comments section. Very difficult to register though
Can’t blame a man out walking his dog on this one.
Relax he here in Killarney clay pidgeon shooting he just had a bad morning ..
He is here clay pigeon shooting in Killarney seems to be in a calm state so everyone relax he had a bad morning
And he’s not even Muslim what are all the racist bigots going to talk about now ?
@Chris Turner: Well its wide open for the Tallaphobes , Journal must be deleting most of them though, poor gits ,
Is this real life or a ‘Grand theft Auto’ mission on the PlayStation? Hard to tell.
Hope they shoot the fool!
Heil Kevin !
‘It’s believed the series of events may have begun as a domestic row.’ When will the media stop peddling the belief that male violence is caused by, and is a valid response to, ‘domestic’ arguments?
When you are playing grand theft auto on acid and suddenly sheet gets real
F*ckin hell, Robo-scober
Up the dubs
Ah here leave it out. Oh mammy.
have your say