Fishing opportunities have been reduced by major storms, according to one of the leading Irish fish producer organisations.
“Eleven major storms since January first,” says Aodh O Donnell, Chief Executive of the Irish Fish Producers Organisation. This has left many of them unable to fish their monthly quotas in full and they lose these quotas as a result.”
The offshore prawn fishery is one of the worst hit as the weather has caused havoc for fishermen this spring, says the IFPO. “Climate change is a further hammer blow to a struggling industry poorly understood by the general public and the political classes.”
“The Government and the EU must address the impact climate changes have had on fishing. They have done so for agriculture. Why isn’t fishing helped?”
Aodh O Donnell says the catching sector “needs action to address these external factors such as weather, fuel prices and geopolitical market volatility. It’s time to draw up and implement short, medium and long-term measures to address the crisis. This sector plays a vital role in maintaining EU food security in an uncertain political environment. The Government must act to address our very real concerns in a meaningful way.”