HARMFUL HARVESTING
Conservationists are concerned that loss of kelp could impact other species in Irish waters.
Plans to harvest kelp in Bantry Bay, on Ireland’s south-west coast, have drawn an angry response from scientists, fishermen and residents.
The Department of Housing has granted BioAtlantis a licence to harvest kelp from 175 hectares of the bay each year for the next decade.
Karin Dubsky from Coastwatch says the loss of over 400 acres of seaweed forest ecosystem services per year, when we know it helps us adapt to climate change is her key concern. “Removing large areas of kelp could also allow invasive Japanese Sargassum seaweed, which is already established in Bantry Bay, to rapidly colonise,” she says. “The loss of kelp could have a big impact on other species, such as seabass.”
Inshore fishermen are concerned about the effect on lobsters and shrimps.
But the Irish Government says harvesting will be sustainable. “It requires approval of a baseline study prior to the start of operations,” a spokesperson says.