Minister Creed presented with The Atlas of Commercial Fisheries around Ireland

Minister of Agriculture, Food and the Marine, Michael Creed TD, was recently presented with the Marine Institute's Atlas of Commercial Fisheries around Ireland.

This publication includes a series of maps detailing fishing activity around Ireland, providing an insight into fishing activities and Ireland's fisheries resources. On an average day, approximately 500 fishing vessels are active in the waters of Ireland's Exclusive Economic Zone, which equates to more than 1.8 million fishing hours per year.

Dr Paul Connolly, CEO of the Marine Institute said, "The fisheries in Irish waters are highly diverse. The Atlas presents very complex, scientific data through a series of visual and informative maps making this information more accessible for our stakeholders. The Atlas will be useful for scientists to further understand fishing activities in Irish waters and will also inform marine spatial planning of our marine resource."

Published by the Marine Institute, The Atlas of Commercial Fisheries around Ireland, is the third publication of its kind. The Atlas of Commercial Fisheries around Ireland shows the distribution of fishing activities by gear and country, as well as the Irish landings of key commercial fish species.

The maps featured in The Atlas of Commercial Fisheries around Ireland are produced using a number of data sources including Vessel Monitoring Systems which provide geographical position and vessel speed, and the Irish vessel Logbooks and the EU Fleet Register provide details on the catch and fishing gear used.

The Atlas of Commercial Fisheries around Ireland is available at: http://hdl.handle.net/10793/1432

The data that underpins the information provided in The Atlas of Commercial Fisheries around Ireland is collected under the Data Collection Framework, which is financed by the Irish Government and the European Maritime and Fisheries Fund as part of the EMFF Operational Programme for 2014 – 2020.

ENDS