More than 33,000 patrols were undertaken by Inland Fisheries Ireland officers in 2020, as illegal fishing activity rose during Covid-19 pandemic.
That is according to the latest report from the fisheries authority, which used patrols, drones and specialist surveillance equipment to detect illegal activity on waterways.
The authority initiated 119 prosecutions for fisheries-related offences in 2020, compared with 67 prosecutions in 2019. It also seized 1,287 illegal fishing items last year, up from 788 items the year before.
Officers issued 240 fixed charge penalty notices last year, compared with 158 in 2019 and gave 756 cautions, up from 425 cautions in 2019.
The way in which Inland Fisheries Ireland patrols the country’s rivers and lakes also changed during Covid-19, with the unmanned, drone patrols becoming increasingly important, especially for difficult-to-reach terrains.
Greg Forde, head of operations with Inland Fisheries Ireland said safeguarding Ireland’s fisheries resources was now “a round-the-clock job”, involving planned day patrols, covert night patrols and intelligence-led surveillance operations.
“Despite the fact that there was a global pandemic and travel restrictions in place for the public for much of the year, our teams all over the country recorded a higher level of illegal fishing activity last year, compared with 2019,” he said.
The number of patrols in 2020, at 33,051, was a substantial increase on the previous year’s 28,276.
Despite Covid-19 related work challenges faced by officers, the agency also achieved higher detection rates.
Francis O’ Donnell, the chief executive officer of Inland Fisheries Ireland, said the protection programme played “a key role in tackling serious ecological issues”.
He said: “Ireland’s freshwater fish, the habitats that they live in and the water that they swim in are all under threat.
“So, the aim of our protection programme is to help protect stocks of vulnerable fish species, such as Atlantic salmon and sea trout, as well as promoting biodiversity and sustainable angling, which can bring important social and economic benefits to urban, rural and coastal communities.”
