The Department of Transport advises that it has re-established a panel of surveyors to conduct surveys of small fishing vessels of less than 15 metres in length, to check for compliance with the department’s Code of Practice for such vessels.

This panel is established until 24 January 2027. Contact details for the panel can be found in Marine Notice No 07 of 2024, attached below.

The Department of Transport has been advised by Geological Survey Ireland (GSI) and the Marine Institute that hydrographic and geophysical survey operations will be undertaken by INFOMAR in the Celtic Sea, Atlantic Ocean, western coastal areas and Irish Sea areas between 1 March and 30 December.

RVs Keary, Geo, Mallet, Galtee and Lir are expected to carry out survey operations in three areas: the Atlantic Ocean, west of Galway and Mayo; an offshore area north-west of Belmullet, Co Mayo and western coastal areas stretching from Galway Bay to Malin Head, Co Donegal; and the Irish Sea adjacent to the Ireland/UK border from east of Co Dublin to east of Co Wexford and in coastal areas of Co Dublin.

Meanwhile, the RV Tom Crean is expected to carry out survey operations in the Celtic Sea, south of the 30-nautical-mile limit, and potentially in the Atlantic Ocean west of Kerry, Clare and Galway west of the 30nm limit between 5 March and 25 November.

This vessel will be towing a magnetometer sensor with a single cable of up to 200 metres in length and a moving vessel profiler cable of variable length up to a maximum of 200 metres.

All vessels will display appropriate lights and markers and will be listening on VHF Channel 16 throughout the course of the survey.

Full details of the surveys, including maps, coordinates and contact details, can be found in Marine Notice No 06 of 2024 attached below.

The Department of Transport has been advised by University College Cork (UCC) that it intends to deploy hydrophones east of the Arklow Bank at four locations, and southwards to 15km off the bank and east of Gorey and Blackwater.

This marine science research aims to describe seasonal and diurnal occurrence of the cetaceans (the order of marine wildlife that comprises whales, dolphins and porpoise) present in the areas.

UCC plans to deploy four moorings with attached hydrophones on the seabed between the dates of Monday 5 and Saturday 17 February, subject to operational and weather constraints. The moorings will be fully recovered after three to four months for maintenance and then redeployed.

The hydrophones will be deployed in four locations in a latitudinal gradient, from east of the turbines at the Arklow Bank to 10km south of the bank, east of Gorey and Blackwater, Co Wexford.

A single vessel will be used for deploy the hydrophones: the Sharpshooter (callsign EI5069). Deployment operations will be conducted during the hours of daylight, during favourable weather conditions.

Throughout operations, the vessel will be displaying the appropriate lights and shapes as required under the COLREGS Rule 27(b). As Sharpshooter will be deploying survey equipment and moorings, the vessel will be restricted in its ability to manoeuvre, therefore all other vessels are requested to leave a wide berth.

Coordinates and a map of the survey areas as well as contact details can be found in Marine Notice No 05 of 2024, attached below.

The first and second legs of this year’s Irish Anglerfish and Megrim Survey (IAMS 2024) will be carried out from Thursday 8 February to Sunday 3 March.

Surveys will be conducted to the West, South-West and South Coasts of Ireland by the Marine Institute in fulfilment of Ireland’s obligations under the Common Fisheries Policy (CFP).

IAMS is a demersal trawl survey consisting of approximately 110 otter trawls, each of 60 minutes duration, in ICES areas 7b, 7c, 7g, 7h, 7j and 7k.

Fishing in 2024 will take place within a three-nautical-mile radius of the positions indicated in Appendices 1 and 2 of Marine Notice No 03 of 2024, a PDF of which is attached below.

The survey will be conducted by the RV Celtic Explorer (callsign EIGB) which will display appropriate lights and signals. The vessel will be towing a Jackson demersal trawl during fishing operations.

The Marine Institute requests that commercial fishing and other marine operators keep a 3nm radius area around the tow points clear of any gear or apparatus during the survey period.

Further details are included in the Marine Notice below.

The Department of Transport has been notified by Optic Marine that it will carry out works from Wednesday 10 to Friday 22 January off the coast of Ireland north-west of Belmullet, subject to operational and weather constraints.

The subsea surveys with remotely operated vehicles (ROVs), underwater cable repairs, cable recovery with grapnel and buoy operations will be conducted by the cable vessel Cable Vigilance (callsign FMQW).

Regular safety messages will be broadcast on VHF Channel 16 and a buoy will be rigged with white flashing lights.

As the work vessel will be restricted in its ability to manoeuvre during operations, it is requested that all other passing vessels leave a wide berth.

Coordinates and a map of the work area, as well as contact details, can be found in Marine Notice No 1 of 2024 attached below.

The final Marine Notice of 2023 draws attention to and provides information regarding the International Convention for the Control and Management of Ships’ Ballast Water and Sediments (BWM Convention).

These 2023 regulations give effect to the Convention in Ireland and the specific compliance requirements that apply to particular vessels in the immediate term and with effect from 29 February 2024.

Under these regulations, all ships are required to manage their ballast water and sediments to a certain standard, according to a ship-specific ballast water management plan, and to carry a ballast water record book.

Ships of 400 gross tonnes and over are also required to carry an international ballast water management certificate.

The regulations apply to all Irish ships and to foreign-flagged ships under port state control.

For further details, see Marine Notice No 83 of 2023, attached below.

The Marine Survey Office (MSO) of the Department of Transport is seeking applications from interested parties who wish to act as Recognised Security Organisations - RSO (Ports) for the period from January 2024 to 31 December 2028.

The authorisation will cover work as an RSO in relation to both Regulation EC 725/2004 on enhancing ship and port facility security and Directive 2005/65/EC on enhancing port security.

The closing date for receipt of completed applications is 3pm on Tuesday 16 January 2024.

Requirements and conditions for application are set out in the annex of Marine Notice No 82 of 2023, attached below.

Completed applications should be returned to the Marine Survey Office by post, or by email to [email protected].

The Department of Transport has been made aware of a Safety Recall Notice for AWG fire hose nozzles by the EU Commission’s Safety Gate rapid alert system.

The affected nozzles are type HS 10, HS 12, HS 16 and HS 20, country of origin Germany, marked with batch number “EN15182-1/3 2015” on the nozzle cap and “55” marked inside the orange tube.

They were most likely supplied during weeks 24 to 37 in
2015.

According to the EU notice, the product is defective and does not comply with the requirements of the Marine Equipment Directive or with the European Standard EN 15182- 1.

The notice adds that the nozzle is not robust enough to withstand working pressure of 16 bar and may burst. As a result, the user may be injured due to bursting or suffer burns when extinguishing a fire.

For more details on the safety recall, see Marine Notice No 81 of 2023 attached below.

The Minister for Housing, Local Government and Heritage has issued a direction regarding activities requiring prior ministerial approval within the site of the proposed special protection area (SPA) for seabirds in the North-West Irish Sea.

As reported earlier this year on Afloat.ie, the proposed new SPA will cover over 230,000 hectares extending out from Dublin Bay to as far north as Dunany Point in Co Louth, and will increase Ireland’s percentage of marine waters protected under the EU Birds and Habitats directive to over nine per cent.

The list of Activities Requiring Consent relating to the SPA includes the following:

• Reclamation, including infilling.
• Blasting, drilling, dredging or otherwise removing or disturbing fossils, rock, minerals, mud, sand, gravel or other sediment.
• Introduction, or re-introduction, of plants or animals not found in the area. (Consent is not required for the planting of crops on established reseeded grassland or cultivated land.)
• Undertaking scientific research involving the collection and removal of biological material.
• Any activity intended to disturb birds, including by mechanical, air, gas, wind-powered or audible means.
• Developing or consenting to the development or operation of commercial recreational/visitor facilities or organised recreational activities.
• Undertaking active acoustic surveys in the marine environment.

Observations in relation to the classification of the site may be submitted by interested parties and must be supported by scientifically based ornithological criteria.

Any objections to the classification of the site as a SPA or the Ministerial Direction may be lodged with the National Parks and Wildlife service.

The closing date for receipt of any observations or objections is 19 February 2024 and further details are included in Marine Notice No 80 of 2023, attache below.

The Department of Transport has issued a reminder regarding several circulars in relation to compliance with Chapter IV of the Convention for the Safety of Life at Sea (SOLAS) as it pertains to radio communications and distress alerts.

These circulars detail the following:

• Guidance for the Reception of Maritime Safety Information and Search and Rescue Related Information as required in the GMDSS
• Flow Chart: GMDSS Operating Guidance for Ships in Distress Situations
• Procedure for Responding to DSC Distress Alerts by Ships
• Guidance on Distress Alerts

The guidance set out in these circulars will come into effect on 1 January 2024 and mariners are requested to ensure that they comply with the relevant procedures.

Each of the above circulars is included as an appendix to Marine Notice No 77 of 2023, attached below.