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Displaying items by tag: Lough Derg

Gardaí exercised their emergency powers this past Thursday (9 April) on Lough Derg, warning cruisers, motor boats and anglers alike to stay at home, as the Clare Echo reports.

Terryglass Angling & Conservation Club informed its members on Thursday afternoon that the Garda was patrolling the lough with a fast RIB to enforce the Covid-19 restrictions “so no getting away”.

Under Operation Fanacht, which has been extended from this Easter weekend to Tuesday 5 May, gardaí have the power to detain anyone found in breach of movement measures — which include travel beyond a 2km radius of one’s home being restricted to essential reasons.

Grocery shopping is considered one such essential purpose. However, it is understood by the Clare Echo that gardaí were turning back traffic in the Shannon area and telling drivers there were options closer to home.

The Clare Echo has more on the story HERE.

Published in Inland Waterways

Waterways Ireland advises all masters of vessels and water users that the Green E Buoy buoy at Goat Island on Lough Derg is off station, and to proceed with additional caution in the vicinity of the island.

Published in Inland Waterways

Lough Derg RNLI lifeboat was requested by Valentia Coast Guard to assist a family of three, two adults and a child, on a 21ft cruiser suffering engine failure near the County Clare shore today.

Weather conditions were calm with Force 2 winds and good visibility.

The lifeboat, with helm Dom Sharkey and crew Michael O'Sullivan and Tom Hayes on board, reached the casualty vessel at 12.10 pm. The skipper of the vessel had dropped anchor to prevent his boat drifting onto the rocky shore. Once the RNLI volunteers established that the people on board were safe and well and that the vessel had not suffered damage, they set up for a tow and took in the anchor.

At 12.30 pm the lifeboat had the cruiser, with her passengers and an RNLI crew member on board, under tow to Mountshannon Harbour.

After tying the cruiser safely alongside at Mountshannon Harbour, the lifeboat returned to Station and was ready for service again at 2.30 pm.

Dom Sharkey, volunteer helm at Lough Derg RNLI said: ‘We advise people to ensure that their vessels are regularly serviced, and, in the event of difficulties, to always carry a means of communication.'

Published in RNLI Lifeboats
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On Tuesday evening (30 July), Lough Derg RNLI launched to the aid of an 18ft boat with engine failure by Mountshannon Harbour on the Clare shore.

On arrival at the reported location, the volunteer lifeboat was directed by Valentia Coast Guard to new co-ordinates as the vessel had drifted two miles south and was anchored at Castlelough on the Tipperary shore.

Once alongside, the crew observed that the boat’s onboard motor had had a fire.

The crew advised the skipper to disconnect the motor’s battery and the fuel line to the engine, and to locate the fire extinguisher.

Once satisfied the engine posed no danger, the lifeboat crew took the vessel under tow to Mountshannon where it was tied alongside at 8pm.

The crew then administered minor first aid to the skipper who had a recent finger injury and had lost the dressing from his wound.

Speaking following the callout, volunteer crew member Ger Egan said: “We would remind all boat users of the importance of doing regular checks on their boat’s engine and make sure it is serviced regularly.

“As we continue to enjoy the summer, we would also like to remind all users of the lake to respect the water.

“Always wear a lifejacket, always carry a means of communication and let someone on the shore know where you are going and when you are expected back.

“Should you get into difficulty, call 999 or 112 and ask for the coastguard.”

Published in RNLI Lifeboats
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Today Lough Derg RNLI was requested by Valentia Coast Guard to assist two people on a 30-ft cruiser who had become stuck on rocks on a raised shoal on the Eastern Shore of Lough Derg.

The lifeboat launched at 1.46 pm at the request of Valentia Coast Guard with volunteer crew members Dom Sharkey, Owen Cavanagh and Christian Parker and helmed by Eleanor Hooker.

Weather conditions were calm with force 2 winds and good visibility.

The lifeboat reached the casualty vessel and established that the people on board were safe and well. The lifeboat took soundings of depth on approach as the cruiser was high on a rocky shoal.

A crew member transferred to the vessel and checked it was not holed and the rudder and drives were all in good working order. With the crew member still aboard they set up a tow and took the boat off the rocks and into safe waters. The RNLI volunteer showed safe water and markers on the chart before the cruiser continued its journey without further assistance from the lifeboat.

Deputy Launching Authority, Brendan O’Brien said ‘We advise people using the lake to anticipate each marker on their route and study their charts when passage planning and to enjoy Lough Derg’

Published in RNLI Lifeboats
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Vintage barges and fantastic events are promised in the line-up as the Mountshannon Arts Festival returns this June Bank Holiday, Thursday 30 May to Monday 3 June.

Inspired by this year’s theme, ‘Roots and Wings’, the festival features all facets of the arts including music, theatre, visual art, sculptures, films, poetry, literature, workshops, puppets, talks, walks, family fun and even a dog show.

And this year it will be almost two festivals in one as a gathering of vintage barges in Mountshannon Harbour on Lough Derg will comprise a floating fringe festival delivering a cargo of poetry, writing and performance.

Mountshannon Arts Festival has been running since 1995, and each year brings a new collection of exhibitions, performances and workshops to inspire and entertain both locals, and visitors to the area.

Rooted in the visual arts, the ethos of the festival is to create access to works and exhibitions that would not be easy to find in a rural area, while at the same time stimulating the creation of works and performances from within the local community.

For more information, visit www.mountshannonarts.net or find the festival on Facebook, Instagram and Twitter.

Published in Maritime Festivals

At 2.30pm, Saturday, May 11 2019, Lough Derg RNLI held their naming ceremony for their new inshore lifeboat, the Atlantic 85 B911 ‘Jean Spier’, in Dromineer.

The new B class lifeboat was donated to the RNLI by Robert Spier and his late wife Jean Spier. As active supporters of the RNLI they had together decided to donate money to the RNLI for an Atlantic lifeboat. Sadly Jean died in October 2017 and Robert dedicated the new boat in her honour.

With fantastic weather, the ceremony was held outside on the lawn of the Lough Derg Yacht Club. Children of the volunteer crew handed out brochures to guests as they arrived.

RNLI lough derg launchGuests on the lawn for the RNLI Lough Derg launch of the new lifeboat Photo: Geraldine Wisdom

Niamh McCutcheon, Lifeboat Fundraising Chair and Irish Council Member opened the ceremony with special thanks to Robert Spier and the late Jean Spier for their generous donation.

Robert Spier expressed his pleasure in handing over the boat to the RNLI and into the care of Paddy McLaughlin, an RNLI Irish Council Member and Coxwain of Red Bay Lifeboat Station. Mr. McLaughlin thanked Robert, saying ‘there is no greater gift that we can receive, no act of generosity more appreciated by the volunteers than the bequest of a lifesaving vessel’.

Lough Derg Lifeboat Operations Manager, Liam Maloney accepted the lifeboat on behalf of volunteer crew, expressing his thanks to Robert and his late wife Jean, saying ‘on behalf of all of us at Lough Derg how proud we are to get this state of the art lifeboat for our station’. He acknowledged the magnitude of the gift, saying ‘This B class lifeboat means we now have the latest and finest rescue equipment available’.

RNLI lough derg2Volunteer crew – Doireann Kennedy, Dom Sharkey, Kjell Jimmy Gundergjerde and Joe O’Donoghue Photo: Geraldine Wisdom

On behalf of all station personnel at Lough Derg RNLI, volunteer members Aoife Kennedy, Administrative Officer and Ger Egan, Lifeboat Mechanic and helm presented Robert with the signature Lough Derg jacket with the ‘Jean Spier’ crest as a token of their appreciation, and welcomed him as an honourary member of the Lough Derg Lifeboat team.

The Reverend Roderick Smyth and Father William McCormack were invited to lead a service of dedication before poet and Lough Derg volunteer helm Eleanor Hooker read her poem, Lifeboat: for Robert Spier, i.m. Jean Spier.

Robert then officially named the lifeboat ‘Jean Spier’ in Dromineer before Pat Kelly, Boathouse Manager closed the ceremony with a note of thanks to all involved in making the event so successful.

Following the ceremony, guests were invited for afternoon tea in the Yacht Club, provided by Simply Foods from Nenagh. Fundraising Committee member, and former Deputy Launching Authority Teddy Knight took guests out on the lake in his boat the Ku-Ee-Tu to watch a demonstration of the new lifeboat in action.

We would like to express our thanks to the Commodore Tadgh Murphy and his committee for permitting is the use of Lough Derg Yacht Club’s premises for the occasion, to Gerardine Wisdom, official photographer for the day, and for the support of our friends and colleagues in the RNLI and various rescue agencies who attended and to members of our local community who are unfailing in their support of the lifeboat.

The success of the day was in no small way due to the hard work by the dedicated team of volunteers at Lough Derg RNLI Station and fundraising and by Alex Sivyer and Emily Weaver from the Events and Ceremonies team who travelled over from RNLI Headquarters in Poole. This great team spirit contributed to the great atmosphere of celebration on the day.

Published in RNLI Lifeboats
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A painting by Montague Dawson recently sold at auction may not depict an amateur sailing race on Lough Derg as claimed, according to one yachting historian.

As previously reported on Afloat.ie, the painting titled ‘Racing for the Corinthian Challenge Cup on Lough Derg’, by the renowned maritime artist, fetched more than €87,000 in the Marine Sale at Bonhams in London last Wednesday (1 May).

The auctioneers confess that “it has not yet been possible to identify the specific race and those yachts depicted”.

But that could be because the race never happened, an expert on Lough Derg has suggested.

In correspondence seen by Afloat.ie, Vincent Delany — a member of the Association of Yachting Historians, author of a definitive history of Lough Derg’s yacht clubs, and a regular contributor to Afloat.ie — identified a number of reasons why he believes the painting takes artistic licence with its title.

Among them are the sail numbers, when Lough Derg boats used house flags; the size of the boats depicted, when there were no six-metre yachts on the lough; and the background, which is “not reflective of the hills of Co Tipperary, or of Cos Clare or Galway or the eastern shorelines of Lough Derg”.

Delany also posits that the quality of the lighting in the painting is more suggestive of the south of England than the lakes of the Shannon.

Afloat.ie awaits Bonhams’ response to Delany’s questions.

Published in News Update

A 21ft motor boat with two people on board was rescued by Lough Derg RNLI after it ran aground in the lough on Sunday afternoon (5 May).

The volunteer crew with helm Eleanor Hooker, Joe O’Donoghue, Doireann Kennedy and Kjell Jimmy Gundergjerde launched their inshore lifeboat at 4.45pm in Force 2 north-north-west winds with good visibility to the location north of the mouth of the Scarriff River, where the 21ft boat was reported to be high on a shoal.

A crew member transferred to the motor boat and found that the people on board were unharmed and wearing their lifejackets.

The motor boat was checked for damage before a tow was set up and the vessel was removed from the rocks into safe water.

Once towed past the middle ground and the drives, steering and rudder were found to be in good working order, the boat was allowed to continue on its journey.

Helm Eleanor Hooker advises boat users “to plan your passage and pay close attention to the navigational marks at the entrance to harbours and rivers on the lake”.

The lifeboat returned to the station and was ready for service again at 7.15pm.

Published in RNLI Lifeboats
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A painting by a renowned maritime artist of yachts racing on Lough Derg has fetched more than €87,000 at auction.

Afloat.ie reader James Gilna tipped us to the sale of ‘Racing for the Corinthian Challenge Cup on Lough Derg’ by Montague Dawson, which was auctioned last Wednesday 1 May at Bonhams in Knightsbridge, London.

There is some mystery surrounding the painting, which had been in a private collection since its original sale in 1984, as according to Bonhams “it has not yet been possible to identify the specific race and those yachts depicted”.

But regardless, the “spirited” work will surely bring much enjoyment to its new owner as one of the more lively examples of the famed maritime painter, whose patrons included the British royal family and two US presidents among many others.

Published in News Update
Page 12 of 27

Marine Protected Areas (MPAs) - FAQS

Marine protected areas (MPAs) are geographically defined maritime areas where human activities are managed to protect important natural or cultural resources. In addition to conserving marine species and habitats, MPAs can support maritime economic activity and reduce the effects of climate change and ocean acidification.

MPAs can be found across a range of marine habitats, from the open ocean to coastal areas, intertidal zones, bays and estuaries. Marine protected areas are defined areas where human activities are managed to protect important natural or cultural resources.

The world's first MPA is said to have been the Fort Jefferson National Monument in Florida, North America, which covered 18,850 hectares of sea and 35 hectares of coastal land. This location was designated in 1935, but the main drive for MPAs came much later. The current global movement can be traced to the first World Congress on National Parks in 1962, and initiation in 1976 of a process to deliver exclusive rights to sovereign states over waters up to 200 nautical miles out then began to provide new focus

The Rio ‘Earth Summit’ on climate change in 1992 saw a global MPA area target of 10% by the 2010 deadline. When this was not met, an “Aichi target 11” was set requiring 10% coverage by 2020. There has been repeated efforts since then to tighten up MPA requirements.

Marae Moana is a multiple-use marine protected area created on July 13th 2017 by the government of the Cook islands in the south Pacific, north- east of New Zealand. The area extends across over 1.9 million square kilometres. However, In September 2019, Jacqueline Evans, a prominent marine biologist and Goldman environmental award winner who was openly critical of the government's plans for seabed mining, was replaced as director of the park by the Cook Islands prime minister’s office. The move attracted local media criticism, as Evans was responsible for developing the Marae Moana policy and the Marae Moana Act, She had worked on raising funding for the park, expanding policy and regulations and developing a plan that designates permitted areas for industrial activities.

Criteria for identifying and selecting MPAs depends on the overall objective or direction of the programme identified by the coastal state. For example, if the objective is to safeguard ecological habitats, the criteria will emphasise habitat diversity and the unique nature of the particular area.

Permanence of MPAs can vary internationally. Some are established under legislative action or under a different regulatory mechanism to exist permanently into the future. Others are intended to last only a few months or years.

Yes, Ireland has MPA cover in about 2.13 per cent of our waters. Although much of Ireland’s marine environment is regarded as in “generally good condition”, according to an expert group report for Government published in January 2021, it says that biodiversity loss and ecosystem degradation are of “wide concern due to increasing pressures such as overexploitation, habitat loss, pollution, and climate change”.

The Government has set a target of 30 per cent MPA coverage by 2030, and moves are already being made in that direction. However, environmentalists are dubious, pointing out that a previous target of ten per cent by 2020 was not met.

Conservation and sustainable management of the marine environment has been mandated by a number of international agreements and legal obligations, as an expert group report to government has pointed out. There are specific requirements for area-based protection in the EU Marine Strategy Framework Directive (MSFD), the OSPAR Convention, the UN Convention on Biological Diversity and the UN Sustainable Development Goals. 

Yes, the Marine Strategy Framework directive (2008/56/EC) required member states to put measures in place to achieve or maintain good environmental status in their waters by 2020. Under the directive a coherent and representative network of MPAs had to be created by 2016.

Ireland was about halfway up the EU table in designating protected areas under existing habitats and bird directives in a comparison published by the European Commission in 2009. However, the Fair Seas campaign, an environmental coalition formed in 2022, points out that Ireland is “lagging behind “ even our closest neighbours, such as Scotland which has 37 per cent. The Fair Seas campaign wants at least 10 per cent of Irish waters to be designated as “fully protected” by 2025, and “at least” 30 per cent by 2030.

Nearly a quarter of Britain’s territorial waters are covered by MPAs, set up to protect vital ecosystems and species. However, a conservation NGO, Oceana, said that analysis of fishing vessel tracking data published in The Guardian in October 2020 found that more than 97% of British MPAs created to safeguard ocean habitats, are being dredged and bottom trawled. 

There’s the rub. Currently, there is no definition of an MPA in Irish law, and environment protections under the Wildlife Acts only apply to the foreshore.

Current protection in marine areas beyond 12 nautical miles is limited to measures taken under the EU Birds and Habitats Directives or the OSPAR Convention. This means that habitats and species that are not listed in the EU Directives, but which may be locally, nationally or internationally important, cannot currently be afforded the necessary protection

Yes. In late March 2022, Minister for Housing Darragh O’Brien said that the Government had begun developing “stand-alone legislation” to enable identification, designation and management of MPAs to meet Ireland’s national and international commitments.

Yes. Environmental groups are not happy, as they have pointed out that legislation on marine planning took precedence over legislation on MPAs, due to the push to develop offshore renewable energy.

No, but some activities may be banned or restricted. Extraction is the main activity affected as in oil and gas activities; mining; dumping; and bottom trawling

The Government’s expert group report noted that MPA designations are likely to have the greatest influence on the “capture fisheries, marine tourism and aquaculture sectors”. It said research suggests that the net impacts on fisheries could ultimately be either positive or negative and will depend on the type of fishery involved and a wide array of other factors.

The same report noted that marine tourism and recreation sector can substantially benefit from MPA designation. However, it said that the “magnitude of the benefits” will depend to a large extent on the location of the MPA sites within the network and the management measures put in place.

© Afloat 2022