Afloat.ie understands that there was little representation of sailing stakeholders at a public meeting earlier this month to discuss Ivana Bacik’s Dublin Bay Bill.
As previously reported on Afloat.ie last December, the Dublin Bay South TD’s bill proposes establishing a dedicated statutory authority for the conservation of Dublin Bay.
It’s intended that the Dublin Bay Authority would draw its membership “from elected members of the Eastern and Midland Regional Assembly and others with a special expertise or interest in the future protection of Dublin Bay”.
The bill is currently in its second stage before the Dáil. A PDF of the bill is attached below.
Bacik hosted the meeting at the Sandymount Hotel on Tuesday 13 September and ahead of that evening she said: “Dublin Bay is one of the greatest resources our city has. During the pandemic, many Dubliners reconnected with the bay, swimming and meeting friends there. Indeed, the Bay remains a valuable amenity for year-round and seasonal sea swimmers.
“However, too often, the water quality is poor, with swimming prohibited. The biodiversity of the bay is also under threat due to pollution. For decades, Dubliners have watched as former hubs of community activity, such as the Blackrock and Sandymount baths have fallen into decay.
“It is past time that we saw action taken to ensure the environmental protection of the bay, as well as a vision as to how it can better be brought into public use.”
Bacik says the bill would create a new Dublin Bay Authority with a mandate to:
- propose and promote policies for the protection and enhancement of the environment of Dublin Bay and of the natural habitats and wildlife in and around the bay;
- coordinate, promote and support strategic planning and sustainable development in and around Dublin Bay;
- make recommendations to regulate and control pollution in and around Dublin Bay;
- promote public interest in and respect for Dublin Bay as a public amenity; and
- coordinate the activities of public bodies and other organisations and persons in matters connected with the performance of its functions.
Bacik added: “‘For too long we have taken Dublin Bay for granted. Not long ago 300,000 tonnes of sewage sludge were dumped in the Bay every year. Today for instance there are real concerns about wastewater discharges from the Ringsend Wastewater Treatment plant and the potential damage that dredging of the port is causing to the ecosystem.
“We need a joined-up approach to the future protection and enhancement of Dublin Bay. We need to act now, and my proposal is a necessary first step to change how we treat Dublin Bay and realise its remarkable potential.”
