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Dublin Bay Boating News and Information

Displaying items by tag: Brexit Impact

As the impact of Brexit continues affecting trade, lorry freight volumes on ferries between Dublin and Holyhead – the busiest Irish Sea route – fell by a third in the first nine months of the year.

New industry figures to be published shortly will show a sharp reduction in the number of lorries moving between Ireland and Britain and across the “landbridge” to mainland Europe as companies prefer the certainty of direct routes without border checks and controls.

The Irish Maritime Development Office is finalising figures on port traffic for the third quarter.

Dublin Port and Rosslare Europort have recorded sharp declines in lorry freight traffic between Ireland and Britain but a surge in freight volumes on direct routes as traders avoid post-Brexit Britain.

There has been an increase in lorry freight moving on ferries between Northern Ireland and Britain as hauliers move away from ports in the Republic to avoid checks on goods.

Neither Dublin or Rosslare have experienced the disruption to shipping witnessed in the UK where shipping companies have had to divert supersized cargo vessels away from Britain because of bottlenecks in the global supply chain and a shortage of lorry drivers.

Click the The Irish Times for more about Irish Shipping traffic.  

Published in Ferry

#BrexitImpact - Ireland's fishing industry will not lose out to agriculture in the wake of Brexit, the new Marine Minister assured stakeholders at this year's SeaFest in Galway.

Speaking to The Irish Times, Minister Michael Creed said "I am not going to shop one in favour of the other" amid concerns in the marine sector of a repeat of Ireland's concessions in favour of farming in negotiations to join the then EEC in the early 1970s.

As for what measures the Government will take to address the impact of Brexit, the minister said that "until Britain triggers the exit mechanism and lays its cards on the table, we can’t react".

Recently it was suggested that Britain's exit from the EU could create an opportunity for north Atlantic coastal countries – including Ireland and non-EU member Norway – to form their own economic group and take greater control of the region's fisheries.

The impact of Brexit is already resonating in the marine sector, as major Irish Sea ferry operator Stena Line, based in Sweden, confirmed it is "considering the implications for all of [its] UK interests".

Published in Fishing

#BrexitImpact - Ferry operator, Stena Line has said it will have to assess how Brexit could impact the UK. The Swedish company, which sails between Holyhead and Dublin, employs hundreds of workers in North Wales.

A Stena Line spokesman said: "As Brexit is a completely new situation Stena Line will have to evaluate its potential impacts from a number of different perspectives.

"Stena Line is currently working with the UK Chamber of Shipping to consider the implications for all of Stena’s UK interests.

"The UK Chamber of Shipping is an important neutral platform for us to work with the wider shipping community, including its social partners and stakeholders, to better understand the practical implications of a UK exit from the EU.

To read more click WalesOnline here.

Published in Ferry

Dublin Bay

Dublin Bay on the east coast of Ireland stretches over seven kilometres, from Howth Head on its northern tip to Dalkey Island in the south. It's a place most Dubliners simply take for granted, and one of the capital's least visited places. But there's more going on out there than you'd imagine.

The biggest boating centre is at Dun Laoghaire Harbour on the Bay's south shore that is home to over 1,500 pleasure craft, four waterfront yacht clubs and Ireland's largest marina.

The bay is rather shallow with many sandbanks and rocky outcrops, and was notorious in the past for shipwrecks, especially when the wind was from the east. Until modern times, many ships and their passengers were lost along the treacherous coastline from Howth to Dun Laoghaire, less than a kilometre from shore.

The Bay is a C-shaped inlet of the Irish Sea and is about 10 kilometres wide along its north-south base, and 7 km in length to its apex at the centre of the city of Dublin; stretching from Howth Head in the north to Dalkey Point in the south. North Bull Island is situated in the northwest part of the bay, where one of two major inshore sandbanks lie, and features a 5 km long sandy beach, Dollymount Strand, fronting an internationally recognised wildfowl reserve. Many of the rivers of Dublin reach the Irish Sea at Dublin Bay: the River Liffey, with the River Dodder flow received less than 1 km inland, River Tolka, and various smaller rivers and streams.

Dublin Bay FAQs

There are approximately ten beaches and bathing spots around Dublin Bay: Dollymount Strand; Forty Foot Bathing Place; Half Moon bathing spot; Merrion Strand; Bull Wall; Sandycove Beach; Sandymount Strand; Seapoint; Shelley Banks; Sutton, Burrow Beach

There are slipways on the north side of Dublin Bay at Clontarf, Sutton and on the southside at Dun Laoghaire Harbour, and in Dalkey at Coliemore and Bulloch Harbours.

Dublin Bay is administered by a number of Government Departments, three local authorities and several statutory agencies. Dublin Port Company is in charge of navigation on the Bay.

Dublin Bay is approximately 70 sq kilometres or 7,000 hectares. The Bay is about 10 kilometres wide along its north-south base, and seven km in length east-west to its peak at the centre of the city of Dublin; stretching from Howth Head in the north to Dalkey Point in the south.

Dun Laoghaire Harbour on the southside of the Bay has an East and West Pier, each one kilometre long; this is one of the largest human-made harbours in the world. There also piers or walls at the entrance to the River Liffey at Dublin city known as the Great North and South Walls. Other harbours on the Bay include Bulloch Harbour and Coliemore Harbours both at Dalkey.

There are two marinas on Dublin Bay. Ireland's largest marina with over 800 berths is on the southern shore at Dun Laoghaire Harbour. The other is at Poolbeg Yacht and Boat Club on the River Liffey close to Dublin City.

Car and passenger Ferries operate from Dublin Port to the UK, Isle of Man and France. A passenger ferry operates from Dun Laoghaire Harbour to Howth as well as providing tourist voyages around the bay.

Dublin Bay has two Islands. Bull Island at Clontarf and Dalkey Island on the southern shore of the Bay.

The River Liffey flows through Dublin city and into the Bay. Its tributaries include the River Dodder, the River Poddle and the River Camac.

Dollymount, Burrow and Seapoint beaches

Approximately 1,500 boats from small dinghies to motorboats to ocean-going yachts. The vast majority, over 1,000, are moored at Dun Laoghaire Harbour which is Ireland's boating capital.

In 1981, UNESCO recognised the importance of Dublin Bay by designating North Bull Island as a Biosphere because of its rare and internationally important habitats and species of wildlife. To support sustainable development, UNESCO’s concept of a Biosphere has evolved to include not just areas of ecological value but also the areas around them and the communities that live and work within these areas. There have since been additional international and national designations, covering much of Dublin Bay, to ensure the protection of its water quality and biodiversity. To fulfil these broader management aims for the ecosystem, the Biosphere was expanded in 2015. The Biosphere now covers Dublin Bay, reflecting its significant environmental, economic, cultural and tourism importance, and extends to over 300km² to include the bay, the shore and nearby residential areas.

On the Southside at Dun Laoghaire, there is the National Yacht Club, Royal St. George Yacht Club, Royal Irish Yacht Club and Dun Laoghaire Motor Yacht Club as well as Dublin Bay Sailing Club. In the city centre, there is Poolbeg Yacht and Boat Club. On the Northside of Dublin, there is Clontarf Yacht and Boat Club and Sutton Dinghy Club. While not on Dublin Bay, Howth Yacht Club is the major north Dublin Sailing centre.

© Afloat 2020