The spotlight is on seaweed and other renewable biological resources this week for Bioeconomy Ireland Week 2020 — which begins today, Monday 19 October. A series of online events from leading stakeholders within the Irish Bioeconomy Network will showcase resources…

Baltimore RNLI was called out to provide a medical evacuation late last night (Sunday 18 October) from Sherkin Island off the coast of Baltimore, West Cork.  The volunteer lifeboat crew launched their all-weather lifeboat at 11.39 pm, following a request…

Each new wind turbine built in Europe generates €10 million worth of economic activity, according to a European industry network. A new report by WindEurope also says investing in wind energy will help Europe’s economic recovery from the impacts of…

Reports of the disappearance of Dingle’s resident dolphin Fungie this week appear to have been greatly exaggerated, as a cetacean matching his description was spotted by a local fisherman. Paul Hand tells RTÉ News that he is “one thousand percent…

University College Dublin have been set to deploy an Acoustic Doppler Current Profiler (ADCP) off Inis Mór in the Aran Islands between today, Thursday 15 October, and next Wednesday 21 October as part of the Highwave project. The university previously…

The Irish Wildlife Trust has welcomed this week’s Budget announcements of new funding to address biodiversity issues. These include a move to more than double the allocation to the previously “defunded and neglected” National Parks and Wildlife Service (NPWS) from…

Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine, Charlie McConalogue T.D., has earmarked the purchase of a new marine research vessel for the State in his Department's 2021 Budget. As Afloat previously reported, €25m was allocated in Tuesday's budget to progress…

A memorial to commemorate those lost to the sea is finally in sight for a coastal village in West Cork. For the past twelve months, Baltimore Rath & the Islands Community Council has been liaising with Cork County Council and…

The Department of the Marine's 2021 budget estimate announced today provides some €13 million in increased funding for the continued promotion of the environmentally sustainable development of fisheries, aquaculture and the wider seafood industry. This brings the total funding for…

The Irish Wildlife Trust (IWT) has called on Minister for Marine Charlie McConalogue and Minister of State for Biodiversity Pippa Hackett to “act swiftly” over a High Court decision that overturns a ban on fishing by vessels over 18 metres…

The people of Ireland are being invited to share their views on Irish coastal seascapes. And the feedback gathered will inform Ireland’s Seascape Character Assessment Report, a key technical study for the National Marine Planning Framework. The new survey follows an…

On the Irish Sea a giant wind turbine vessel has had its departure from the Port of Holyhead delayed by the weather. MPI Resolution arrived at the port on Thursday after sailing in from Rotterdam - with its towering 220ft…

"Getting the builders in" is a challenging prospect on land at the best of times. Add in the sea, and it's then a challenge-plus. Thus when you're working on and in the waterfront to implement a project within a busy…

Strangford Lough is world-famous as the main arrival site for most of the migrating Canadian population (up to 80%) of pale-bellied Brent geese. Every autumn thousands of these birds leave their breeding grounds in eastern Canada and travel to Ireland…

A new report from the Irish Wildlife Trust says some of this country’s protected marine zones are suffering from “serious deterioration, and in some cases outright destruction”. And according to The Irish Times, the situation is grave enough for the…

Volunteers with Seal Rescue Ireland walked 117km — a kilometre for every seal the charity rescued last year — to raise much needed funds for their efforts last month. As the Gorey Guardian reports, the ‘Seal Stride’ challenge took the…