The Loughs Agency welcomed an international delegation of almost 100 marine scientists, academics and political representatives to Derry for the much-anticipated SeaMonitor-STRAITS Conference, which took place at the city’s Guildhall on Thursday 23 and Friday 24 February.
The two-day event, which was compered by biologist and comedian Simon Watt, provided an opportunity for the consortium working on the Loughs Agency-led SeaMonitor project to present their findings and highlight the benefits of tracking aquatic life in our seas and rivers.
It’s hoped that the data collated will be utilised to help inform policy and management decisions, with the protection of vulnerable marine species a priority throughout the process. The species targeted included salmon, seals, basking sharks, cetaceans and skate.
The SeaMonitor project has received €4.7m of funding from the European Union’s INTERREG VA Programme, managed by the Special EU Programmes Body (SEUPB). Match-funding for this project has been provided by the Department for Agriculture, Environment and Rural Affairs in Northern Ireland and the Department of Housing, Planning and Local Government in Ireland.
Ross McGill shows Richard Hill, Joint Secretary of the North South Ministerial Council, the Loughs Agency’s Marine Machine
Over 1,000 animals were tagged throughout the life of SeaMonitor, while the receivers picked up over 4.5 million detections of a variety of species.
SeaMonitor also made waves in science circles for its innovation and ambition, with Europe’s largest fish counter deployed in the North Channel between Malin Head and Islay as part of the project. This particular counter measures comes in at over 60km and 100 receivers in length, demonstrating the scale of this important work.
Loughs Agency has collaborated with the European Tracking Network (ETN) throughout this process, with similar counters deployed in the Danish Straits, the Strait of Gibraltar and the Strait of Bosphorus and Dardanelles.
Sharon McMahon, Loughs Agency CEO addresses the conference
Day two of the conference focused on STRAITS, a new project that has received EU funding to the tune of €3.5 million as part of the Horizon 2030 initiative.
In collaboration with partners from ETN, this four-year project will run until the end of 2026 and will essentially act as the successor to SeaMonitor, ensuring that the landmark counter in the North Channel is redeployed and integrated with the other major counters around Europe.
A range of dignitaries attended the conference, including the Mayor of Derry City and Strabane District Council, Cllr Sandra Duffy; Gina McIntyre, CEO of the Special EU Programmes Body (SEUPB); and Mark Hanniffy and Richard Hill, Joint Secretaries of the North South Ministerial Council — all of whom conducted speeches expressing their admiration for the collaborative approach taken throughout the duration of the project.
The consortium working on SeaMonitor comprised the Loughs Agency, Atlantic Technological University, University College Cork, the University of California Davis, the Agri-Food and Biosciences Institute, Queen’s University Belfast, Ocean Tracking Network (Dalhousie University), Marine Institute and the University of Glasgow. All members of the working group were in attendance at the Guildhall.
