Seals posing a serious threat to leading Mayo tourist attraction

BALLINA is 'finished' as a fishing town if something isn't done to tackle the issue of seals in the Moy Estuary, a local county councillor has claimed.

Noting a response from the office of the Minister for Housing, Local Government and Heritage, Malcolm Noonan, to a notice of motion he had submitted calling for a seal cull, Councillor John O'Hara (FG) said the answer received – that culling seals in Ireland is unlikely to be an effective management measure – is 'the wrong one' for Ballina.

Councillor O'Hara tabled the following motion at the October monthly meeting of Ballina MD: “That Ballina MD calls on the Minister for Housing, Local Government and Heritage to implement a professional and humane scheme for the culling of seals along the Moy Estuary, from Killala Bay to the Quay at Ballina, due to their negative impact on the salmon population in this area.”

It was also resolved in October to invite an expert on seals and their impact on the Moy Estuary to a meeting of Ballina MD to discuss the issue.

At the November monthly meeting of Ballina MD, held last Wednesday, Councillor O'Hara further explained the rationale behind his motion. “All we want is to see fish come up the estuary,” he said.

In a response to the notice of motion, signed by Minister Noonan's personal secretary, Danielle Kelly, it was pointed out that seals are protected under the Wildlife Acts and, under the EU Habitats Directive, Ireland is required to maintain them at favourable conservation status.

The correspondence added: “While seals are a protected species, the Department may issue licences under Section 42 of the Wildlife Act to cull individual problem seals, and affected persons can apply for such licences. In general, Section 42 provides that people can apply to the Minister for a licence to take such steps including to kill wild birds or wild animals where they are causing serious damage to food, livestock, other flora or fauna, or fisheries.”

It was explained that three Section 42 licences have issued between 2016 and 23 October 2023 for the Moy Estuary. To date, licences have not been used on any occasion. The three licences have been issued in respect of a total of seven grey seals.

The letter continued: “The latest population estimates available to the Department indicate that there are approximately 8,000-10,000 grey seals and about 5,000 harbour seals in Ireland. These animals are spread around the Irish coast, with the largest populations occurring along the west coast from the Blaskets in Co. Kerry to north Mayo and Donegal.

“Seals, and grey seals in particular, are wide ranging animals. The Irish animals are known to move between Scotland and north-west France. In turn, animals from the large seals populations in Scotland migrate into Irish waters to feed. There are over 100,000 grey seals in Scotland. Therefore, culling seals in Ireland is unlikely to be an effective management measure.”

The correspondence from the department concluded by highlighting that the National Parks and Wildlife Service are providing grant support to a pilot study carried out by Univesity College Cork. This study will feed into a larger one – Seals Fisheries Coexisting Sustainably – with a key focus on seal depredation monitoring and mitigation, including research on the application of startle technology to reduce depredation in static fisheries.

Councillor O'Hara commented: “I'm not against seals but there will be no fishing in Ballina from now on. We used to have four or five fishing tackle shops in town but now there's just one opening for a few hours during the week. They (seals) have to be taken from the estuary because nothing can get by them.

“Our fishing is gone completely. I do not know who is going to tackle it but we are finished as a fishing town if someone does not tackle it.”

Agreeing with his colleague, Councillor Jarlath Munnelly (FG) said a cull carried out in the proper way could be part of the solution.

Meanwhile, the head of Ballina MD, Declan Turnbull, promised to invite an officer from Inland Fisheries Ireland to a future meeting to discuss the issue.