The Government has approved two new Special Areas of Conservation (SAC) off the Irish coast.
The two areas selected under the EU Habitats Directive extend over a combined area of three million hectares, according to Minister of State for Heritage Malcolm Noonan
Mr Noonan also confirmed Government approval for the general scheme of the Marine Protected Areas Bill, before travelling to the UN Biodiversity Conference, COP15, in Montréal, Canada.
The two SACs are located off the northwest coast and off the south coast.
Noonan said both were selected “due to the presence of the internationally-protected deep-water reef habitat, a unique ecosystem that supports a wide range of marine species”.
He said work is also well advanced on the selection of a number of internationally important sites for birds – Special Protection Areas - under the EU Birds Directive.
He said the formal notification process is expected to begin in the coming months and will soon bring Ireland’s total marine areas protected under the European Nature Directives over the 10% target.
Efforts are being prioritised along the country’s east coast, in the Irish Sea, while further work is underway on the southern and western coasts, he said.
The developments were welcomed by the Fair Seas network. It said the proposed new legislation will allow Ireland to designate new nationally based marine protected areas (MPAs), helping it meet its national and international commitments, and giving nature at sea the best opportunity to not only survive, but thrive.
“Ireland currently has 2.1% MPA coverage, but with today’s announcement of the new SACs off the north west, and south west coasts of Ireland, that number has increased to 8.3%, “it noted.
“ The creation of two new SACs should be celebrated, this is a significant step in the right direction,”Fair Seas campaign manager Aoife O’Mahony said. H
“owever, considering the global biodiversity crisis we are now facing, it’s essential that proper management plans are put in place for these and all other existing MPAs too.”
The Southern Canyons SAC site is approximately 280 km south of counties Cork and Kerry.
Fair Seas noted that it is “home to diverse reef communities and corals, as well as larger fauna such as long-finned pilot whales and numerous fish species”, including the Whittard Canyon system which has been described as comparable in scale and drama to the Grand Canyon in the USA.
“ Important at-risk species of seabird are frequently present here such as the red-listed kittiwake and puffin,”it said.
“The Porcupine Shelf SAC site extends north from an area due west of Clew Bay, Co Mayo to an area west of Malin Head, Co Donegal. Biologically sensitive reef-forming, cold-water coral species are found in this area. So too are various species of whale, dolphin, shark and ray. A range of breeding birds, including the arctic tern, puffin, storm-petrel and Manx shearwater, are also found in this area,” Fair Seas said.
The new sites overlap with areas highlighted by Fair Seas in its June 2022 report identifying ‘Areas of Interest’ for MPA designation, the network said.
Fair Seas involves environmental non-governmental organisations and networks, including the Irish Wildlife Trust, BirdWatch Ireland, Sustainable Water Network, Irish Whale and Dolphin Group, Coomhola Salmon Trust, Irish Environmental Network and Coastwatch.