Lease / Licence Consent to Use In almost all cases where the owner or persons entitled to a fishery, almost always the landowner, allows somebody to use the land, it is by consent or licence. A lease of fishing rights is possible. Fishing rights may be leased to Angling clubs. There may be a contract specifying the terms of access. The landowner may permit entrance […]
Public Rights Under common law, the public has a right to fish in the tidal reaches of rivers and estuaries. However, the State or its predecessor, the Crown or a private fisheries holder, may have acquired the right and excluded the public right. It may be vested by statute in a body. There is no general public right to fishery in nontidal waters, even if […]
Fisheries Rights Fisheries refers to the right to fish and can also refer to a fishing area. There can be public fishing rights and private fishing rights. The presumptive position is that members of the public have a right to fish only in tidal waters. A fishery is a type of property right. It may be passed by deed. A lease may be granted. There […]
Licensing & Regulation Aquaculture licensing is now regulated under the Fisheries (Amendment) Act 1997. Persons may be licensed to engage in aquaculture or such operations in relation to aquaculture and subject to such conditions as may be thought fit. A licence may be granted notwithstanding any public right to fish in the waters to which the licence relates. The Fisheries Act of 1997 establishes a […]
IFI Makes Rate Inland Fisheries Ireland shall, as regards every fishery year and within the period beginning on the 1st day of December preceding the commencement of that fishery year and ending on the 31st day of January next following a strike on all fisheries within a fishery district, a rate of such amount per cent of their valuations as will, with the estimated amount […]
Nature of Fishery Fisheries are profits of the soil over which water flows. The title to the fishery derives from the right to the soil. The fishery may be held separately, in which event it becomes a profit a prendre. A public fishery is one that is vested in the public generally. A private fishery is vested in a limited number of individuals or an […]
Sale of Certain Fish The sale of salmon, trout, eels and molluscan fish is regulated and subject to licensing. It is an offence to purchase, sell or export for sale or keep for sale or have in possession any unseasonable salmon or trout or to purchase, sell, keep, or have in possession any salmon, trout, eel or molluscan shell which has been unlawfully captured. The […]
Salmon Salmon fisheries are the most important inland fish in Ireland from a recreational and commercial perspective. Salmon includes fish of the salmon species, sea trout and spawn or fry thereof. A salmon river is one frequented by salmon. Salmon fishing opens on January 1 on a handful of rivers, and after that, the remainder of rivers open on various dates in February, March, April […]
Enter & Search Waterkeepers and authorised officers have powers to search, enter land, inspect, seize, take samples. They may obtain search warrants where required for more extensive searches. Members of Garda Siochana or authorised persons may enter along banks and borders of any lakes with boats or enter such water and lakes, enter on weirs, sluices, mills, enter boats engaged in fishing, seize any unlawful […]
Ministerial Powers The Minister has powers to make byelaws for the management, protection and improvement of fisheries in the State. Regulations may be made in relation to fishing licences, times and seasons for taking and fishing for specified classes of fish, regulation of fish engines, nets and other matters for the protection of the fishery. The Minister may issue permits for catching fish for certain […]
Nets Nets are included in a number of definitions under the Fisheries Acts, including fixed engines, fishing engines and scheduled engines. Nets are more a feature of sea fisheries, which is the subject of a separate article. Bye laws on salmon and trout conservation define drift nets, raft nets and snap nets, as well as other nets. The salmon and trout conservation byelaws are made […]
Oyster Beds Oyster beds in Ireland received statutory recognition and protection in the Fisheries (Ireland) Act 1842. Many have been held under charter by individuals or by prescription since the 18th century. The Fisheries Amendment Act 1980 provided for licences and made provision in relation to oyster farming. There are oyster bed licences, oyster fishery orders and fish culture licences. Oyster beds have been held […]
Background The Fisheries Acts, 1959 to 2010, deal principally with inland fisheries. Fish are widely defined to include marine invertebrate crustaceans and molluscs together with their brood and spawn. The Fisheries Act of 1959 originally created fisheries districts. In 1980 provision was made for a central fisheries board and a number of regional fisheries boards. In 2010 all the various functions were transferred to Inland […]
Trout & Salmon The following does not apply to the use in any special tidal waters of a fishing engine for the taking of salmon or trout. If any person uses or erects in any fishery district any scheduled engine, for the taking of salmon, trout, coarse fish or eels in respect of which there is not for the time being in force an ordinary […]