This article is from page 8 of the 2013-05-07 edition of The Clare People. OCR mistakes are to be expected so download the original SWF or the rendered page 8 JPG
OPPOSITION to a € 60 million fishfarm proposed off the Doolin and Fanore coast solidified this week week with Fianna Fáil, Sinn Féin and Clare TD Michael McNamara all coming out against the controvertial development.
The two main opposition parties have now both adopted policy documents against the proposed fish farm – and nine other large scale fish farms which are understood to be in line for construction along the west coast – should the Clare fish farm be granted a licence by the Minister for Agriculture, Simon Coveney (FG).
Michael McNamara has also become the first Clare Oireachtas member to put his cards on the table about the proposed fish farm. Following a meeting with North Clare fishermen and other connected with the fish-industry last month, the East Clare deputy last week raised concerns about the scale of the proposed development.
He also questioned whether Bord Iascaigh Mhara (BIM), who are proposing the construction of the fish farm, have done enough to promote the fish-related employment which already exists in North Clare.
“I would question whether the scale of proposals by BIM, in relation to the development of salmon farms, is compatible with marketing and developing our own indigenous inshore fishing sector. The on-going availability of fresh, high-quality fish is also crucial to our tourism sector and should not be jeopardised under any circumstances,” he said. “Speakers [at the North Clare meeting] said that the cages would be unsightly from Doolin and the revenue yielded by tourism to the Cliffs of Moher, Connemara and the Burren could be put in jeopardy.” Deputy McNamara also said that markets for species such as bass, cod, mackerel and velvet crab should be assisted by BIM rather than proposing to build a very large salmon farm and end up “destroying” the industries and activities on which the coastal communities depend. Tue07May13