We are calling for an immediate moratorium (pause) on all industrial fishing of sprat in Bantry Bay and all Irish coastal waters to prevent the collapse of the species and until there is time to carry out studies on the sprat in our bays.
• We acknowledge that the over 18m trawlers are banned from sprat fishing from 2026. There is a legal challenge to this ban and we ask that every legal means are employed to ensure the ban remains in place.
• We urge government to go further and stop all sprat fishing in our inshore waters as trawlers under 18m also contribute greatly to industrial fishing of sprat.
• We call for government-funded bodies to be assigned to audit the actual biomass of sprat that exists to ascertain the full extent of the situation and put quotas in place for sprat.
• We ask for engagement with the fishing industry to encourage species protection through a variety of measures including stopping harvesting in spawning season particularly with sand eel nets and the use of large scale / volume pair trawling.
• We request meaningful oversight and inspection of trawler catches and appropriate recording and report of this indiscriminate fishing and its bycatch damage by trawlers in Bantry Bay, it’s harbours, Special Areas of Conservation (SAC’s) and Special Protection Areas (SPA’s).
• We seek to enlist local, regional and national political & public servants and Non Governmental Organisations (NGOs) to action the enforcement of current legislation including the Marine Protection Bill which would designate Bantry Bay sprat spawning grounds as a Marine Protected Area (MPA).
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