MARITIME DIGEST FROM THIS ISLAND NATION

Every time I go into the studio to put together my radio programme, THIS ISLAND NATION, I am struck by the wide variety of maritime news stories and developments which have happened, but not many of which have been reported in the mainstream media. It remains a great disappointment that the established national media still do not give the maritime sector the wide, detail coverage which it should get in an island nation. In this new edition of the programme, we go from a story of romance and love on the coastal clifftops of Ireland to the problems which submarines chasing each other could be causing to – and killing- whales. Coincidentally, when the latter story came to me I had been reading a book “Hunter Killers” by Ian Ballantyne, the “untold story of the Royal Navy’s most secret service.” The Irish Whale and Dolphin Group is investigating the number of Cuvier’s beaked whales arriving on Irish shores and whether the noise of sonar pinging as submarines of different nations chase each other off the Irish coastline, could be causing whales to die from “the bends.” A more positive aspect of the marine environment is romance of the Tystie on Irish clifftops. The way history repeats itself is happening off the Mayo coastline and then there is the davit from the Lusitania, returned to Kinsale by the dying wish of a County Down fisherman and, you can hear about the “Queen of the North Atlantic.” As ever, a wide variety in the maritime programme, THIS ISLAND NATION. Thank you for your interest in maritime matters and I hope you enjoy the programme and would always be pleased to hear your comments. You can listen now on this link:https://www.mixcloud.com/CRY104FM/this-island-nation-3rd-september-2018/

WHAT’S IN A NAME - ENNISCRONE OR INISHCRONE?I have always know the area as Enniscrone, but a plebiscite is needed to declare it the official name of this Sligo village. That is what, it is reported, the majority of local people want it known by, because it is the most used, but, it seems, the officially-recognised name is ‘Inishcrone’. In June Sligo county councillors voted unanimously to hold a plebiscite, following an intensive campaign by the Enniscrone Place Names Committee, and a provisional date for that to be held was set for September 20. However, legal advice to the Council has deferred the vote, apparently because new legislation is needed for it to be held..

5,000 SHARK FINS FOUND ON SPANISH TRAWLER: Shark finning is an illegal and detestable practice, where they are cut from the body of the shark which may often be thrown back alive into the sea, to die a gruesome death, unable to swim and either suffocates, drowns, or is eaten by other predators. Five thousand sharks are reported to have been caught and dealt with in this manner by the Spanish fishing boat, Virxen da Blanca, which was detained by the Naval Service vessel, LE William Butler Yeats, 150 nautical miles south of Mizen Head and escorted into Castletownbere. At Clonakilty Court a release bond of €335,000 was placed on the vessel which had 164,250kg  blue shark, 98kg of mako shark and 1,250kg of shark fins on board. Shark fins fetch a high price in Asia where they are used for sharkfin soup. Sharks can be caught legally, but removing the fins at sea had been illegal under EU regulations since 2013. The owners of the vessel have claimed that Irish authorities misunderstand the rules. Sinn Féin MEP Liadh Ní Riada has said the Government must take a zero tolerance approach towards illegal fishing by foreign vessels in Irish waters. “Not only is the practice of shark finning, often while the animals are still alive, a disgustingly inhumane act that is threatening the very existence of the species, but it just goes to show the sheer contempt some vessels have for Irish waters.”

HARVEST MOON FESTIVAL CELEBRATIONS AT HOOK HEAD LIGHTHOUSE: Hook Lighthouse in County Wexford will host its third annual Harvest Moon celebration on Saturday, September 22. Visitors can enjoy watching the sunset and the harvest moon rise over Hook Peninsula beneath the protective beam of the world’s oldest intact operational lighthouse. From 5:30pm the Lighthouse Visitor Centre will open especially late and invites visitors to come along and find a spot on the straw bales around the fire-pits on the lighthouse lawns and watch nature at its best during the Autumn Equinox and enjoy some traditional harvest fare from the Hook Lighthouse Café from a Wexford baked potato to Hook Chowder. The event will also see a celebration of ‘The Last of the Summer’ with food and drink tastings.

MAERSK SHIP TO TRANSIT NORTHERN SEA ROUTE: The world’s largest shipping company, Maersk, is expected to send one of its new ice-class feeder ships through the Northern Sea Route this week. This will be a ‘first’ for the company. They say that it will be “one-time occurrence” for the Venta Maersk on its maiden voyage from China to Northern Europe. It is the fourth vessel in a series of seven ice-class Baltic feeder containerships to serve the North Sea and Baltic Sea for Seago Line, the intra-Europe and short-sea carrier of Maersk. They are amongst the world’s largest ice-class containerships, designed specifically for operation in winter conditions (down to -25 degrees C). Apart from a stronger hull, the vessels are also fitted with 600 reefer plugs for refrigerator cargo. Maersk said that, at this time, it does not see the Arctic route as a viable alternative to its current services.

HOWTH STONE BOUND FOR BRITTANY ON A FORMER TUNA TRAWLER: From Dorans on the Pier at Howth Newsletter: “Howth harbour had a handsome French visitor.  The sailboat Nebuleuse stood out among the fishing trawlers and a fine ship she is too. Talking to the crew we learned they were on an expedition for granite! They had travelled the coast of Ireland and visited Wales and Cornwall sourcing granite for the Valley of the Saints in Brittany. Interestingly the ship is a former tuna fishing trawler which was built in 1948 and refurbished in 1980 for use as a cruising sailboat.”

 MARINE NEWS on Twitter: @TomMacSweeney