This article is from page 15 of the 2010-01-05 edition of The Clare People. OCR mistakes are to be expected so download the original SWF or the rendered page 15 JPG
THE MULKEAR River in Clare is one of 50 rivers where anglers can legally enjoy fishing for salmon, ac- cording to regulations just approved.
But the permits to catch salmon come with a grim warning that their numbers are still under threat and that poachers are depleting stocks aUUmatbaseom
The Minister for Natural Resourc- es, Conor Lenihan TD, has approved a suite of regulations and bye-laws that will govern the wild salmon fish- ery in 2010. These came into effect on January |.
Under the regulations, salmon fish- ing will be permitted in the Mulkear and in neighboring Limerick in the River Feale.
The number of rivers in which a catch will be permitted is now 50, two more than last year. Four rivers which were closed to fishing in 2009 will be opened but two which were being fished – the Blackwater in Ker- ry and Glengariff in Cork – will now be closed to conserve stock.
Meanwhile scientists and officials in charge of the State’s inland fisher- ies say that poaching “has increased due to the recession” as people have more time on their hands and less money to spend on luxuries such as a0 (ecy-¥beslOyee
Fish conservationists are alarmed that poachers are ‘lamping’ salmon – using bright lights to stun them and spearing the spawning fish with
pitchforks.
The Regional Fisheries Boards have appealed to people to stop the prac- tice, which poses a “severe threat” to the future of salmon stocks and the tourism businesses which depend on Weloeen
Announcing the river openings, the minister said that 11] rivers are open only to angling on a ‘catch and re- lease’ basis because of the status of stocks. There are 80 rivers closed to fishing as salmon stocks are not meeting conservation limits. In re- gard to the scientific analysis of
salmon stocks, the minister said, “This reflects the persistent down- ward trend in marine survival which is pervasive throughout all the North Atlantic stock complexes as reported by the International Council for the Exploration of the Sea. Significantly, Irish marine survival indices are at their lowest since records began in the 1980s and appear to be declining further.”