The European Commission is surveying industry and private boat owners regarding the mutual recognition of private boater licences.

Consultancy firm Panteia is collaborating with the Commission on a study to determine the advantages and drawbacks of recognising licenses and qualifications for private boaters across Europe.

Panteia has developed two surveys: one tailored for industry and one for the general public. The average response time for both surveys is five minutes.

These surveys aim to collect qualitative feedback and quantitative data to gain a comprehensive understanding of the current landscape of license recognition. Responses are requested by Wednesday 10 April.

The Maritime Area Regulatory Authority (MARA) is currently in the process of developing its first statement of strategy for the period 2024-2027.

A key priority of this process is to garner the views and input of key stakeholders through consultation. To that end, MARA has launched an online survey to garner views until 5pm next Monday 19 February.

This survey portal is facilitated by Mazars and all contributions will be treated as private and confidential. Individual responses will not be viewed by anyone in MARA, however consolidated data will be shared to inform the strategy development process.

If you have any issues when completing this survey, contact Mazars directly at [email protected].

MARA was established in July 2023 under the National Marine Planning Framework as the State agency which will act as the regulator and thus protector of the maritime area for the benefit of current and future generations of Irish people.

A survey of Lough Sheelin anglers has found that 94 per cent are now releasing more of the trout they catch back into Lough Sheelin than they did when they started fishing.

The Inland Fisheries Ireland (IFI) research involved 132 participants, and more than half of these had over 25 years’ experience fishing for wild brown trout in the lake, which borders counties Cavan, Meath and Westmeath and attracts anglers nationwide and internationally.

Catch-and-release methods ensure that trout stock have a greater chance of survival within the freshwater lake.

Dr Cathal Gallagher, head of research and development at IFI, said: “The trends, over the four decades studied in the research, were mostly positive regarding the abundance and size of trout in the lake and its ecosystem.

“Respondents commented they now believe the lake is currently fishing well.

“However, some expressed concerns about threats to Lough Sheelin’s trout stocks, including pollution, pressure from angling activity, poor water quality and protection of fish.

Shore angling at Lough Sheelin | Credit: IFI

“This research highlights the growth in awareness of fish conservation among anglers.

“Seasoned fishers on Lough Sheelin have a deep understanding of the lake’s surrounding ecology that’s been developed through long-term interactions with the natural environment.”

The research used a method developed by IFI called Fishers’ Local Ecological Knowledge Surveillance Indicators (FLEKSI).

It is designed to track environmental impacts and changes in fish stocks through local information sources by asking anglers about different aspects of the fishery now, compared to when they started fishing on the lake.

Engaging Ireland’s anglers as citizen scientists is now an important element of research programmes at IFI, Dr Gallagher said.

“Their very important contribution can help us to fill gaps in knowledge about the history of fisheries, and to develop sound, evidence-based management strategies,” he added.

Researchers at IFI have expressed their thanks to all local anglers who participated, and to the Lough Sheelin Trout Protection Association.

The survey findings are available to download HERE.

As the 2023 season draws to a close with the news of three major keelboat events in Dun Laoghaire in September 2024, the Irish Cruiser Racing Association (ICRA) is seeking members’ view on cruiser racing and events during the past year.

ICRA says the feedback will help it ensure that the association represents the views of its members, participants and non-participants alike, and makes targeted efforts to improve cruiser racing in Ireland.

Click HERE to access and complete the short online survey, and share with your crew and any other interested parties.

Waterways Ireland advises all masters of vessels on and other users of the Shannon-Erne Waterway that Inland Fisheries Ireland will be conducting a fish stock survey on Lough Scur between Monday 14 and Thursday 17 August.

All nets will be clearly marked by orange buoys marked ‘IFI Survey’, adds the cross-border body for Ireland’s inland waterways.

Masters of vessels and all water users should proceed with additional caution when operating on Lough Scur during this period.

The Marine Institute and the Socio-Economic Marine Research Unit (SEMRU) at NUI Galway are conducting a survey of marine and marine-related businesses as part of the regular reporting on Ireland’s Ocean Economy.

Although the CSO and other State organisations provide some data on marine related economic activity, the Marine Institute says there is a need to supplement this data with company surveys across a number of sectors in the growing blue economy.

These include advanced marine technology products and services, offshore renewable energy, marine commerce and legal services, marine manufacturing, construction and engineering.

The survey began this month and will continue in July, with the results published later this year. In addition to general economic figures collected, this year’s survey includes a section on the impact of COVID-19 and other external factors effecting marine businesses.

Queries regarding the survey should be directed to Marie-Christin Lanser, scientific technical officer with the Marine Socio-Economic and Social Data Programme at [email protected] or Prof Stephen Hynes, director of SEMRU at NUIG at [email protected].

The State agency responsible for the conservation and protection of freshwater fish, habitats and sea angling resources is asking angling enthusiasts who have fished the Currane catchment in Co Kerry for their views.

Inland Fisheries Ireland’s (IFI) new online survey aims to gather anglers’ knowledge via the FLEKSI method, which was developed by IFI to help give a deep insight into the status of fisheries.

Over recent decades populations of sea trout and salmon throughout Ireland are facing serious challenges from various ecological changes.

IFI’s Currane STAMP programme is already assessing fish populations within their freshwater and marine phases, to report current status and provide scientific advice to support the development of appropriate conservation management measures.

The data gathered in the FLEKSI survey has the potential for citizens to get involved and provide important insights to guide fisheries management in the future.

This survey is for all anglers who fish in the Currane catchment for various species. IFI says all responses will help to build an understanding of the history and ecological status of your fishery.

FLEKSI — which stands for Fisher’s Local Ecological Knowledge Surveillance Indicators — aims to capture anglers’ knowledge and hands-on experience to help track changes in fish stocks and ecosystems.

Dr William Roche, a senior research officer with IFI and manager of the STAMP project said: “Anglers are keen observers of nature and are aware of changes within their fisheries. We are looking for anglers to share their knowledge and contribute to the conservation and management of this important sea‑trout and salmon fishery.

“The Currane fishery is particularly highly regarded by anglers, but there is grave concern about the health of its fish stocks in recent years.

“By capturing these observations, which inevitably span an individual angler’s entire angling career, we believe their unique insight into the fisheries environment will help us to track and understand changes in Currane’s sea trout stocks and the ecosystem as a whole.”

The Currane catchment in Co Kerry is Ireland’s most important sea trout fishery, with a long history of high-quality fishing, particularly for larger sea trout. The fishery is renowned internationally and has been the cornerstone of sea trout and salmon fishing in the southwest of the country since the 1900s. 

IFI says the FLEKSI survey will give anglers on the Currane catchment an exciting opportunity to share their knowledge as citizen scientists and to make a valuable contribution towards fisheries management on the fishery.

If you fish the Currane system, you are invited to fill out the online survey HERE.

Each participant also can opt to enter into a prize draw for angling tackle, with one €200 voucher and one €100 voucher to be won.

Sea swimmers around Ireland are encouraged to give their input via an online survey to inform bathing water policy, as Independent.ie reports.

The national Bathing Water Expert Group wants to find out more information about where, when and why people are swimming outside of the summer season — from 1 June to mid September — to help inform potential options for helping to protect winter swimmers’ health.

The 15-minute questionnaire is available until next Friday 6 May. Indepdenent.ie has more on the story HERE.

On behalf of Waterways Ireland, KPMG have created an online survey to capture canal boaters’ views on use of Ireland’s inland navigations, with a particular focus on sustainable on-water living.

“The purpose of this survey is to capture the experience and knowledge of users of the canals and the views of long-term residential moorings on the canal navigations’ ‘liveaboards’,” it says.

All permit holders should already have received this survey directly. If you did not receive it or if you do not hold a permit for the canals, you can still complete this survey by including your Shannon vessel registration number in the permit number box.

“This survey is completely anonymised and no responses can be identified, the permit number is just used a verification for eligibility,” it adds. “This is to encourage survey participants to provide responses which are completely transparent and which reflect the interests, views, outlooks and recommendations of survey respondents in an honest way.”

The closing date for the completion of the survey is next Thursday 17 February at midnight.

The Department of Transport advises that an analogue survey consisting of multibeam, side-scan sonar and magnetometer will be carried out off the South Coast of Ireland by the Marine Institute on behalf of Providence Resources from Saturday 23 to Sunday 31 October, weather permitting.

In addition to the analogue survey, seabed samples and camera imagery will be acquired at approximately 10 stations in the survey area.

The survey will be conducted in Block 48/24 Barryroe, in the North Celtic Basin, around 45–50km from the south coast of Ireland, and will be undertaken by the RV Celtic Voyager (callsign EIQN). The vessel will be towing a side-scan sonar and magnetometer from time to time with cables of up to 300m long.

As this vessel will be restricted in its ability to manoeuvre when surveying, other vessels are requested to keep a wide berth. The vessel will display appropriate lights and signals.

For details of coordinates of the survey area, see Marine Notice No 55 of 2021 which is available to download below.