Lorna Siggins
Lorna Siggins is a print and radio reporter, and a former Irish Times western correspondent. She is the author of Search and Rescue: True stories of Irish Air-Sea Rescues and the Loss of R116 (2022); Everest Callling (1994) on the first Irish Everest expedition; Mayday! Mayday! (2004); and Once Upon a Time in the West: the Corrib gas controversy (2010). She is also co-producer with Sarah Blake of the Doc on One "Miracle in Galway Bay" which recently won a Celtic Media Award
Marine and Agriculture One of Top Four Government Departments to Provide "Climate Finance"
30th March 2023 News Update
Seven per cent of Ireland’s financial support for climate action in developing countries came from the Department of Agriculture, Food and the Marine in 2021. A report into “climate finance”, as it is known, found the marine and agriculture department…
Naval Vessels Among Locations for Sexual Assaults, Interviewees Claim in Independent Review
29th March 2023 Navy
Interviewees for the Independent Review Group into sexual harassment, bullying and discrimination in the Defence Forces have reported that Naval Service vessels were among locations where sexual assaults took place. Advice was given to female members of the Defence Forces…
Mayo’s Clare island has been hit with a “boil water” notice after the detection of cryptosporidium in the public water supply. The “boil water” notice takes immediate effect, Uisce Éireann (Irish Water) and Mayo Council have said. This follows consultation…
The rejection is a major setback for Údaras na Gaeltachta, the Gaeltacht development authority, which based its jobs growth strategy on employment the new marine park would create. Páirc na Mara, which was to be located in Carna in the…
State Regulator Seeking Fishing Vessels for Remote Electronic Monitoring Pilot Project
26th March 2023 Fishing
The State’s fisheries regulator is seeking a number of Irish-registered fishing vessels to take part in a pilot project involving remote electronic monitoring (REM). The Sea Fisheries Protection Authority (SFPA) says it has written to fisheries producer organisations to encourage…
Many tributes have been paid to RTÉ Radio One Seascapes presenter and producer Fergal Keane, who has announced he is leaving the national broadcaster to pursue new interests. Keane announced his departure on Twitter on March 16th, and on-air during…
A total of 42 owners have accepted offers to scrap their fishing vessels under the Government’s Brexit-related decommissioning scheme. The big jump in figures – which had been running at 21 accepted offers from a total of 57 offers up…
New Angelshark Action Plan to Support Recovery for Future Generations
19th March 2023 Wavelength Podcast
“Jaws” it ain’t – the Angelshark has more in common with the skate and ray but is now an endangered species. The squat flat shark, appropriately named Squatina squatina, once lived in abundance on sandy and muddy seabed areas on…
Skellig Michael Part of New Global Project to Safeguard Against Impact of Climate Change
13th March 2023 Island News
Skellig Michael has been selected to join a new global initiative to safeguard sites of cultural significance from the impact of climate change. The UNESCO world heritage site known as Sceilg Mhichíl is to become part of the “Preserving Legacies”…
Ban on Trawling Inside Six Nautical Miles Declared Invalid by Court of Appeal
13th March 2023 Fishing
Two fishermen have won an appeal over a ban on trawling inside the Irish six-mile limit. A judgment issued by the Court of Appeal has ruled that the Government policy directive introducing a ban on trawling inside the six nautical-mile…
Fiddle-fish, Banjofish and Devilfish are all names given to a species of shark native to Ireland which is now as endangered as the Giant panda or Bengal tiger. The Angelshark once lived in abundance on sandy and muddy seabed areas…
A new UN agreement on global ocean conservation has been welcomed as a “landmark” deal by Tánaiste and Minister for Foreign Affairs Micheál Martin. Minister for Housing, Local Government and Heritage Darragh O’Brien and Minister of State for Heritage and…
The Marine Casualty Investigation Board (MCIB) report into the death of a Donegal student during a kayaking trip in Co Kerry has said the outing was not properly assessed for risk. Aisling O’Connor, 21, from Ballyshannon, Co Donegal, drowned after…
Ireland is to develop nature-based solutions in coastal areas to protect biodiversity, improve resilience to climate change and reduce the impact of pollution under a new programme of measures for the marine environment Ireland’s plan to maintain or achieve “good…
Ireland's Wetlands and Why We Should Care - Tobias Salathé of the UN Ramsar Convention
24th February 2023 Wavelength Podcast
Ireland has 45 fragile flooded habitats which are protected under a UN Convention named after a city on the Caspian Sea. The Ramsar Convention was signed in the city in 1971, and international participation has gradually grown to 172 countries.…
EU Publishes Four Marine Action Plans and Seeks "Pact" for Fisheries and Oceans
22nd February 2023 Fishing
EU Commissioner for Environment, Oceans and Fisheries Virginijus Sinkevičius say the EU wants to establish a “pact for fisheries and oceans” to ensure sustainable fisheries, protect and restore marine ecosystems and strengthen long-term food security. The Commissioner was commenting as the European Commission…
Two non-governmental organisations (NGOs) have dubbed the European Commission’s action plans for biodiversity and climate change in ocean and fisheries as “inaction plans”. NGOs Birdwatch Ireland and Our Fish were responding to the European Commission’s publication of four EU action…
'Línte na Farraige’ To Be Installed at Dublin's Blackrock Martello Tower on Dublin Bay
18th February 2023 Dublin Bay
The Martello Tower in Dublin’s Blackrock is to be wrapped with a solar-powered “line of light”, showing possible future sea levels as part of a series around the Irish coast. The “Línte na Farraige” (Lines of the Sea) project, which…
European Fisheries Control Agency Aircraft Involved in Recent Fishery Arrest
15th February 2023 Fishing
A European Fisheries Control Agency (EFCA) surveillance aircraft was involved in the recent detention of a German-registered Spanish vessel in the Irish exclusive economic zone (EEZ). In a joint statement, the Sea Fisheries Protection Authority (SFPA) and Naval Service said…
Giant Limpets Reproduced by University of Corsica Scientists A "Breakthrough " for Mediterranean Ecology
15th February 2023 Marine Science
Marine scientists at the University of Corsica say they have mastered the reproduction of the giant limpet as part of a ten-year research programme on vulnerable species. This could “pave the way for a large-scale ecological restoration” in the Mediterranean…
