Request for information on Kish/Bray Bank fauna & flora

[jd]

I received the following today
John

EcoServe is an ecological consultancy company (http://www.ecoserve.ie) and we are currently undergoing an assessment of Kish/Bray Bank marine ecology in relation to a proposed wind farm development . This is an update of the original work carried out by EcoServe in 2002. We aim to collect as reliable and up-to date information on fauna and flora of the area as possible. This will allow a thorough examination of all the potential effects of the wind farm development on the habitats and species present. We aim to achieve this through a combination of field data collection and consultation with individuals, groups and organisations, who are likely to share information relevant to the wind farm development.


You may already have been contacted by EcoServe consultants during the initial assessment few years ago. At this point I would like to ask if you would be in position to provide additional information on Kish/Bray Bank area with regard to sea-angling:


fish species caught,
fish stocks condition and sensitivity,
any other information you may have or relevant comments in relation to Kish/Bray bank.


Responses can be emailed to barbara@ecoserve.ie or marcin@ecoserve.ie. Alternatively, EcoServe can be contacted by telephone, fax or by post at the details provided below. Thank you very much, in advance, for your time. If you have any queries about the project please don’t hesitate to contact either of us.



Yours sincerely,






________________ ________________

Barbara Maciejewska Marcin Penk



Ecological Consultancy Services Ltd (EcoServe)

Unit B19, KCR Industrial Estate,

Kimmage, Dublin 12,

Tel: 01-4925711

Fax: 01-4925694

Last edited by jd on Mon Apr 21, 2008 11:18 pm, edited 2 times in total.

I'm right on this! Before the damage is done!

If there is a wind farm on the Kish bank will anglers be allowed to fish near it?

If trawlers are not allowed net there then it is possible that proper nursery area could be developed in the area. Anglers could benefit.

However, if a large amount of the bank is also to exclude anglers then I wonder should it be supported or opposed by member of all East coast fishing clubs?

Before we all protest about the development of a windfarm careful consideration should be given to the advantages and disadvantages involved.

I received the following today
John

EcoServe is an ecological consultancy company (http://www.ecoserve.ie) and we are currently undergoing an assessment of Kish/Bray Bank marine ecology in relation to a proposed wind farm development . This is an update of the original work carried out by EcoServe in 2002. We aim to collect as reliable and up-to date information on fauna and flora of the area as possible. This will allow a thorough examination of all the potential effects of the wind farm development on the habitats and species present. We aim to achieve this through a combination of field data collection and consultation with individuals, groups and organisations, who are likely to share information relevant to the wind farm development.


You may already have been contacted by EcoServe consultants during the initial assessment few years ago. At this point I would like to ask if you would be in position to provide additional information on Kish/Bray Bank area with regard to sea-angling:


fish species caught,
fish stocks condition and sensitivity,
any other information you may have or relevant comments in relation to Kish/Bray bank.


Responses can be emailed to barbara@ecoserve.ie or marcin@ecoserve.ie. Alternatively, EcoServe can be contacted by telephone, fax or by post at the details provided below. Thank you very much, in advance, for your time. If you have any queries about the project please don’t hesitate to contact either of us.



Yours sincerely,






________________ ________________

Barbara Maciejewska Marcin Penk



Ecological Consultancy Services Ltd (EcoServe)

Unit B19, KCR Industrial Estate,

Kimmage, Dublin 12,

Tel: 01-4925711

Fax: 01-4925694

Stan why would you think anglers wouldn't be allowed near it :?:

i don't think there is any restrictions around the arklow bank why would the kish/bray bank be any different.

don't put ideas in there minds :shock:
i would hate to see a galvanized fence put around the bank :wink: :lol: :lol:

Hi, no restrictions around the arklow bank, i hav'nt fished it , but know that the service boat does occassionally and they get great fishing.
I personally would think its the way to go, each base of those towers provides a refuge for all kinds of sea life,
During a strong tide there is a great rip behind these bases , perfect bass stalking areas, they have to be there.
X that by say 20 30 windmills, i think it will only do good to the fishing.
On the old ww2 structures off east anglia, and the oil platforms, fishing is superb.
I have a great DVD made in Brunei, where a local sub aqua club did a survey of a new oil structure placed onto the sea bed, it was monitored a filmed for a year. it was incredible who quickly life and fish started to colonise the rig, within 7 months a full fish population was established.
regards
screeming

All sounds groovy, but I do have one concern.

We know that fish, some species more than others, use miniscule electric fields to find their prey. What effect will the fields generated by this developement's seafloor cabling have on fish behaviour?

Has there been any research done, or any anecodatal reports back from other places?

wind farms - its the way to go

Just did quite a lot of reading on wind farms at sea and indeed it would appear that overall they are of great benefit to the local fish population. Also trawlers will have an exclusion area.

Roll on the new wind farm

I sent on a few queries to Marcin..hope his reply helps..

I would also like to address their concern about the impact on fish
populations, but can't post a reply as a non-member of the forum.
There's research undertaken at UCD by Marine Biodiversity, Ecology and
Evolution group, targeted toward understanding impacts of wind farms on
marine life and ecosystem functioning in Irish context. They collected
substantial data on Arklow bank and did not find any apparent impact of
the turbines (nor the cable route) on demersal fish and benthic
assmblages. The only detected trend was an increase in 'Shannon' index
(indication of species diversity) along the cable route. However, the
data has not been properly published up to date.

For example, the latest Marine Institute covering Kish Bank
area data that's out there comes from 2004 survey
http://www.marine.ie/NR/rdonlyres/2199F ... tBSS04.pdf
This is why we are normally trying to get a mixture of publications and
personal communications in our report (to get it up-to-date).
Information obtained during consultations is usually a supportive tool
rather than the core of the report, so no need to worry about the
science behind it - anectdotal feedback is definitely ok. Bennet bank
seems a bit away from the study area, but the chance it that it supports
similar fauna to Kish Bank, so it would be great if you could pass this
information to us.

Hi,

Wind Farms at sea, while more expensive to set up and run then those on land, are beneficial to the local environment. Visually they are less conspicuous, and they provide protection for marine creatures, and the surrounding seabed. In effect a micro marine protection area free from trawling.

Regarding possible bans from angling in these areas. There is no such ban on the Arklow Bank Farm. Even if there was, in time the spill out from the area protected by the Wind Farm of fish due to increases in population within the protected area, would more than compensate. Anglers would also find that the average size of fish would increase also.

Ashley Hayden

Hope this is not off topic but did any one see this?

http://home.eircom.net/content/irelandcom/breaking/13481853?view=Eircomnet

In case the story is removed this is what it said.




---------------------------------------------------------------
Providence offered licensing option in Kish Bank Basin

From irishtimes.com08:19Friday, 15th August, 2008


Oil and gas company Providence Resources has been offered a three-year licensing option in the Kish Bank Basin with joint venture partner Star Energy.

Providence, which is listed in Dublin and London, has entered into a partnership with Star Energy, a subsidiary of Malaysia's Petronas, for gas storage initiatives offshore Ireland.

The licensing option offered by the Department of Energy, Communications & Natural Resources covers eight blocks in the basin. Providence will act as operator on behalf of the partnership.


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Might be more than wind farms to be concerned with.

Didn't see it Steven, but read it and I'm still not not sure what the impact of this will be :?: :?: :?:

The windfarm will create an artificial reef and will be accessible. Happy days!

A pity about the change in the seascape in Dublin/Wicklow though.