Crew rostering of the Naval Service now have to frequently postpone seagoing missions due to its chronic manpower shortage and the effects of Covid-19.

Within the last year the service’s six operational ships have been regularly operating with close to the bare minimum of crew members, meaning if a small number of sailors become unavailable and no replacements can be found, the ships cannot go to sea.

In January, The Irish Times reported the LÉ Ciara was forced to delay a patrol mission for three days as it sought replacement crew members. According to senior Naval officers this has now become a regular occurrence.

In response to queries, a spokeswoman for the Defence Forces said “it is not uncommon for patrols to be delayed if an essential crew member is unable to sail due to force majeure”.

She said the Naval Service operated a “family-friendly policy” of giving replacement crew members 72 hours before deployment.

“Unfortunately, due to Covid-19, there has been a recent and expected rise” in the number of incidents where a replacement crew member cannot step in.

Naval sources also expressed doubt the Government’s new “loyalty scheme”, which offers a bonus of up to €10,000 a year for seagoing duties, would make a significant difference in the number of personnel leaving the Naval Service.

The scheme only applies to personnel with more than three years’ service, meaning there is little incentive for recently graduated personnel to stay on if they are offered employment in the private sector, they said.

Much more from the Irish Times can be read here. 

Concerns about the environment have been raised about cruise liners that dock in Cobh, Cork Harbour. 

Local councillors were invited aboard one of the largest ships in the world, the ‘Norweigan Getaway’, by the Port of Cork to see how the ship operates.

However, one councillor told the EchoLive.ie, he “came away with an existential angst over the scale of the environmental problems we face.”

Green Party Cllr Alan O’Connor says he sees environmental concerns, both in the immediate effect such vessels have on Cobh and Cork Harbour, as well as the impact in terms of the worldwide large-scale effect of the industry.

Internationally there is growing concern about the environmental impact that cruise ships have.

By the end of 2019, according to Cllr O’Connor around 100 cruise liners will dock in the Port of Cork, with up to 110 expected in 2020. Those figures have been on the rise since 2014 when 53 cruise liners docked there, bringing more than 142,000 passengers and crew to Cork.

Cllr O’Connor acknowledges that many people's livelihoods depend on the tourists coming from the cruise liners, with many buses taking people to locations all across Cork including Blarney Castle, while others stay around the Cobh area.

“For Cobh, I got an estimated figure of €30,000 total spend by visitors from this boat,” he said. However, he’s questioned the sustainability of it: “At what stage must the environment come first?” he asked.

For further reading click here. 

#LARNE LOUGH - Larne Council has looked into the concerns of local residents over a proposed £250 million (€300 million) natural gas plant at Larne Lough, the Larne Times reports.

Islandmagee Storage Limited (IMSL) has applied for planning permission for a 500 million cubic metre natural gas storage facility in Permian salt beds almost a mile beneath the lough, which is claimed would satisfy the North's peak demand for gas for over 60 days.

But locals have spoken out with their fears over noise levels, health and safety, pollution and the potential effect on tourism in the area.

Larne Council’s environmental health department carried out its own research into the proposed facility, taking these concerns into consideration.

It found that there was "no huge issue in terms of noise levels" where similar facilities are established throughout the UK and that the effect on tourism would be negligable.

However the department was “not yet happy” with data supplied by IMSL regarding noise levels and would be seeking more detailed information.

The Larne Times has more on the story HERE.

Plans are afoot to power Edinburgh with a giant offshore windfarm, the Edinburgh Evening News reports.

The £1.2 billion (€ 1.37 billion) project proposed by Irish group Mainstream Renewable Power could see as many as 130 turbines generate power for up to 335,000 homes.

The turbines would be installed 30km north of Dunbar, East Lothian, though a number would be visible from the coastline.

Concerns have been raised by East Lothian residents at a consultation hearing regarding the environmental impact of the project, dubbed Neart na Gaoithe (might of the wind), though wildlife and environmental surveys are still being carried out.

Any final go-ahead on the windfarm scheme would have to be given by the Scottish government.

As previously reported on Afloat.ie, Mainstream Renewable Power - headed by Eddie O'Connor - has signed deals for windfarms in South Africa and Alberta province in Canada.

The Evening News has more on the story HERE.