AQW 30600/17-22 Written question to the Minister of Agriculture, Environment and Rural Affairs
To ask the Minister of Agriculture, Environment and Rural Affairs how many tonnes of shellfish from Strangford Lough were exported from Northern Ireland, in each of the last five years.
Asked by Kellie Armstrong MLA on 7 March 2022
- Answered
- Written
- After due date
- Tabled
- 7 March 2022
- Answer due by
- 23 March 2022
- Answered
- 27 March 202220 days after tabling
- Priority question
- No
Answer
My Department records the landings of fish and shellfish from licensed fishing vessels and operates an additional restrictive permit scheme to manage the fishing effort in Strangford lough. In addition oysters and mussels are produced for human consumption at licensed aquaculture sites on the lough. Shellfish landings and shellfish aquaculture data for the past 5 years is set out below.
| WEIGHT IN TONNES | ||||||
| YEAR | Prawns | Brown Crab | Velvet Crab | Oyster | Mussels | Lobster |
| 2017 | 9.8 | 23.4 | 34.3 | 92.0 | 50.0 | 8.6 |
| 2018 | 10.4 | 29.6 | 42.8 | 105.0 | 50.0 | 7.1 |
| 2019 | 9.3 | 18.2 | 40.6 | 75.0 | 50.0 | 11.2 |
| 2020 | 12.0 | 21.2 | 40.2 | 140.0 | 50.0 | 7.1 |
| 2021 | 11.4 | 8.7 | 51.6 | 80.0 | 50.0 | 8.4 |
My Department does not currently regulate the intertidal hand gathering of shellfish and therefore does not have records for species such as periwinkles. Potential options for regulating intertidal hand gathering are being developed, including proposals requiring commercial gatherers to complete an activity log, which would include the weight of catch and harvesting location. I am currently considering these options.