The Environment SPC of Mayo County Council proposed to put forward a set of bye-laws in relation to the protection of Lough Mask and other lakes from bio-security risks, to be forwarded on to the Department of Environment so that measures can be put in place for the council to legally enforce the laws.
The members of the SPC, which met this week, were given a presentation on the bio-security plan for Lough Mask which was complied by the Western Regional Fisheries Board, by Greg Forde, regional manager of the board, on the threats from biohazards to the lake and other lakes in the county. Mr Forde told the members that the lakes were under threat from a number of non-native aquatic species such as zebra mussel, Lagarosiphon, and Japanese knotweed. He told the members that once these non-native species are introduced it is very difficult to get rid of them from the lakes and they could have a devastating effect on the native species which live in the lake, and on the lakes themselves. He outlined a number of measures that the council could take such as implementing bye-laws which covered registration of boats, informing the authority of when boats were being moved from one lake to another, and compelling people to disinfect boats to stop the spread of species from native environments to non-native. He went on to say that education and enforcement were necessary to stop the spread of these species.
Director of services for Mayo County Council environment section, Seamus Granahan, told the meeting: “There is an urgent need for action on this issue from a number of agencies, the problem really has to be tackled head on from the Government with national legislation, because it’s all well and good having local bye laws enforced here, but it needs a national effort.” Sean Smyth, Mayo County Council environment section, told the meeting that the Minister for Environment has called for a study to be made on these problems this year, but it still has not happened. “And another problem we have is that the Local Government Act doesn’t say that we can enact bye-laws on inland waterways, there is a defect in the legislation in regards to that.”
SPC chairman Cllr Seamus Weir told the meeting: “I think from this meeting we should put forward a motion to the full council for the enactment of bye laws in regard to this, with the motion to be forwarded to the Department of Environment so it will be raised on a national issue.” This was agreed by the members.
